The Coasters

The Coasters Artistfacts

  • 1955-
    Carl GardnerLead vocals1955–2005
    Billy GuyBaritone vocals1955-1973
    Bobby NunnBass vocals1955-1957
    Leon HughesTenor vocals1955-1957
    Adolph JacobsGuitar1956-1960
    Will "Dub" JonesBass vocals1958-1967
    Cornell GunterTenor vocals1958-1961
    Elbert McKinley "Sonny" ForriestGuitar1959-1961
    Earl "Speedo" CarrollTenor vocals1961-1979
  • The Coasters trace their roots to the Robins, a Los Angeles vocal group formed in 1949 that recorded some of Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller's earliest hits, including "Riot In Cell Block #9" and "Smokey Joe's Cafe."
  • In 1955, the Robins fractured over a business dispute: whether to stay independent on the West Coast or sign with Atlantic Records and relocate east. Leiber and Stoller took Bobby Nunn and Carl Gardner from the Robins, added new singers Leon Hughes and Billy Guy, and formed the Coasters.
  • The Coasters' name was a nod to the group's Californian roots and their coast-to-coast relocation from Los Angeles to New York.
  • The rebranded Coasters kept working almost exclusively with Leiber and Stoller, who wrote, produced, and arranged practically every one of their singles between 1956 and 1961.
  • Leiber and Stoller's insistence on treating every song as a mini comic drama meant Coasters sessions often required far more takes than a typical 1950s pop recording, since the pair were chasing precise comic timing, not just a clean vocal performance.
  • The group's classic lineup didn't solidify until 1957, when tenor Cornell Gunter and bass Will "Dub" Jones replaced Leon Hughes and Bobby Nunn, rounding out the quartet most fans associate with the Coasters' biggest hits. Their breakthrough came that year with the double-sided single "Searchin'" and "Young Blood," which topped the R&B chart and cracked the pop Top 10 simultaneously.
  • The Coasters' run of hits through the late 1950s and into 1961, built on songs overflowing with teenage slang and wisecracking narrators, made them one of rock and roll's first acts to build an entire identity around comedy rather than romance or dance crazes.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Subversive Songs Used To Sell

Subversive Songs Used To SellSong Writing

Songs about drugs, revolution and greed that have been used in commercials for sneakers, jeans, fast food, cruises and cars.

Grateful Dead Characters

Grateful Dead CharactersMusic Quiz

Many unusual folks appear in Grateful Dead songs. Can you identify them?

Dave Alvin - "4th Of July"

Dave Alvin - "4th Of July"They're Playing My Song

When Dave recorded the first version of the song with his group the Blasters, producer Nick Lowe gave him some life-changing advice.

The Untold Story Of Fiona Apple's Extraordinary Machine

The Untold Story Of Fiona Apple's Extraordinary MachineSong Writing

Fiona's highly-anticipated third album almost didn't make it. Here's how it finally came together after two years and a leak.

Billy Steinberg - "Like A Virgin"

Billy Steinberg - "Like A Virgin"They're Playing My Song

The first of Billy's five #1 hits was the song that propelled Madonna to stardom. You'd think that would get you a backstage pass, wouldn't you?

James Williamson of Iggy & the Stooges

James Williamson of Iggy & the StoogesSongwriter Interviews

The Stooges guitarist (and producer of the Kill City album) talks about those early recordings and what really happened with David Bowie.