The Radiants
Encyclopedia
The Radiants were an American
doo-wop
and R&B
group
popular in the 1960s.
The group formed in Chicago
, Illinois
, in 1960, where its members met singing in the youth choir of Greater Harvest Baptist Church. They performed both gospel
and secular tunes, the latter of which were written by leader Maurice McAlister. While attempting to land a record deal, they found that labels weren't interested in gospel groups anymore, and concentrated on secular tunes, eventually landing a deal with Chess Records
. Billy Davis produced their early records, including the first, "Father Knows Best" b/w "One Day I'll Show You", which was a regional hit in Cleveland in 1962.
Several more singles for Chess followed, but didn't sell well, and by 1964 the group had more or less broken up. McAlister and baritone Wallace Sampson continued on as a trio with new member Leonard Caston, Jr.
(son of Leonard Caston
). With this lineup they had their biggest hit, 1964's "Voice Your Choice". The follow-up, "Ain't No Big Thing", was also a hit.
Caston left the group in 1965, replaced by James Jameson. This lineup recorded only one single, "Baby You Got It", before McAlister departed. At this time, Chess had another group, The Confessions, led by Mitchell Bullock, on its roster, who had recorded the single "Don't It Make You Feel Kinda Bad" but broken up before the album's release. Billy Davis had Bullock join The Radiants with Sampson, Jameson, and Victor Caston, the younger brother of Leonard Jr.. The recording of "Don't It Make You Feel Kinda Bad" made by The Confessions was then issued under The Radiants' name in 1967.
This lineup produced one more hit single, "Hold On", and after several more failed singles the group was dropped by Chess in 1969. They continued to perform together through 1972. McAlister and tenor Green McLauren also recorded as Maurice & Mac.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
doo-wop
Doo-wop
The name Doo-wop is given to a style of vocal-based rhythm and blues music that developed in African American communities in the 1940s and achieved mainstream popularity in the 1950s and early 1960s. It emerged from New York, Philadelphia, Chicago, Baltimore, Newark, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati and...
and R&B
Rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues, often abbreviated to R&B, is a genre of popular African American music that originated in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly to urban African Americans, at a time when "urbane, rocking, jazz based music with a...
group
Musical ensemble
A musical ensemble is a group of people who perform instrumental or vocal music. In classical music, trios or quartets either blend the sounds of musical instrument families or group together instruments from the same instrument family, such as string ensembles or wind ensembles...
popular in the 1960s.
The group formed in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, in 1960, where its members met singing in the youth choir of Greater Harvest Baptist Church. They performed both gospel
Gospel music
Gospel music is music that is written to express either personal, spiritual or a communal belief regarding Christian life, as well as to give a Christian alternative to mainstream secular music....
and secular tunes, the latter of which were written by leader Maurice McAlister. While attempting to land a record deal, they found that labels weren't interested in gospel groups anymore, and concentrated on secular tunes, eventually landing a deal with Chess Records
Chess Records
Chess Records was an American record label based in Chicago, Illinois. It specialized in blues, R&B, soul, gospel music, early rock and roll, and occasional jazz releases....
. Billy Davis produced their early records, including the first, "Father Knows Best" b/w "One Day I'll Show You", which was a regional hit in Cleveland in 1962.
Several more singles for Chess followed, but didn't sell well, and by 1964 the group had more or less broken up. McAlister and baritone Wallace Sampson continued on as a trio with new member Leonard Caston, Jr.
Leonard Caston, Jr.
Leonard Caston, Jr. is an American rhythm and blues songwriter, record producer, pianist and singer. He recorded for both the Chess and Motown labels in the 1960s and 1970s, and co-wrote or co-produced several major hit records, including Mitty Collier's "I Had A Talk With My Man" , The Supremes'...
(son of Leonard Caston
Leonard Caston
Leonard "Baby Doo" Caston was an American blues pianist and guitarist. He is best noted for the tracks "Blues At Midnight" and "I'm Gonna Walk Your Log".-Life and career:...
). With this lineup they had their biggest hit, 1964's "Voice Your Choice". The follow-up, "Ain't No Big Thing", was also a hit.
Caston left the group in 1965, replaced by James Jameson. This lineup recorded only one single, "Baby You Got It", before McAlister departed. At this time, Chess had another group, The Confessions, led by Mitchell Bullock, on its roster, who had recorded the single "Don't It Make You Feel Kinda Bad" but broken up before the album's release. Billy Davis had Bullock join The Radiants with Sampson, Jameson, and Victor Caston, the younger brother of Leonard Jr.. The recording of "Don't It Make You Feel Kinda Bad" made by The Confessions was then issued under The Radiants' name in 1967.
This lineup produced one more hit single, "Hold On", and after several more failed singles the group was dropped by Chess in 1969. They continued to perform together through 1972. McAlister and tenor Green McLauren also recorded as Maurice & Mac.
Members
- Maurice McAlister (lead) (1960-65)
- Wallace Sampson (baritone)
- Jerome Brooks (second tenor) (1960-64)
- Elize Butler (bass) (1960-64)
- Charles Washington (first tenor) (1960-62)
- Green McLauren (first tenor) (1962-63)
- Frank McCollum (first tenor) (1963-64)
- Leonard Caston, Jr. (tenor) (1964-65)
- James Jameson (tenor) (1965-?)
- Victor Caston
- Mitchell Bullock (lead) (1967-1972)
Charting singles
| Year | Title | Chart Positions | |
|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
U.S. Black Singles chart Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,... |
||
| 1962 | "Father Knows Best" | #100 | - |
| 1964 | "Voice Your Choice" | #51 | #16 |
| 1965 | "Ain't No Big Thing" | #91 | #14 |
| 1967 | "(Don't It Make You) Feel Kinda Bad" | - | #47 |
| 1968 | "Hold On" | #68 | #35 |