The Ink Spots

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The Ink Spots were an American vocal pop group who gained international fame in the 1930s and 1940s. Their unique musical style predated the rhythm and blues and rock and roll musical genres, and the subgenre doo-wop. The Ink Spots were widely accepted in both the white and black communities, largely due to the ballad style introduced to the group by lead singer Bill Kenny.

In 1989, the Ink Spots (Bill Kenny, Charlie Fuqua, Deek Watson, Jerry Daniels, and Orville Jones) were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame,<ref name="halloffame">Template:Cite web</ref> and in 1999 they were inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame. Since the Ink Spots disbanded in 1954, there have been well over a hundred vocal groups calling themselves "The Ink Spots", with and without any original members of the group. It has often been the case that these groups claimed to be "second generation" or "third generation" Ink Spots.<ref name="Goldberg, Marv 1998">Goldberg, Marv (1998). More Than Words Can Say: The Ink Spots And Their Music. Scarecrow Press</ref><ref>Howard Perspectives, Dwight Burrill, Herb Kenny, Howard University, 1992</ref>

1930s

Early background of founding members

Daniels and Fuqua formed a vocal duo called "Jerry and Charlie" and performed in the Indianapolis area around 1931. About the same time, Jones and Watson were part of a quartet, "The Four Riff Brothers" with Mifflin James "Miff" Campbell and Elmer Oliver aka Slim Green,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> who appeared regularly on radio station WLW in Cincinnati, Ohio. In 1933, that group disbanded, and Watson, Daniels and Fuqua got together to form a new vocal, instrumental, and comedy group initially called "King, Jack, and Jester". They continued to appear regularly on radio in Ohio and became a quartet when Jones joined the following year.

In July 1934, they accepted a booking at the Apollo Theater, New York, supporting jazz bandleader Tiny Bradshaw. At this point they had changed their name to "The 4 Ink Spots". Later that year, the Ink Spots achieved international success touring the UK with Jack Hylton's Orchestra, one review in the Melody Maker stating: Template:Cquote

They first recorded for Victor Records in 1935. Their early recordings included such songs as "Swingin' on the Strings", "Your Feet's Too Big", "Don't 'Low No Swingin' in Here" and "Swing, Gate, Swing". Despite their rising popularity as performers, their early records were not commercially successful.

Bill Kenny joins

In 1936, Daniels was replaced by a 21-year-old singer from Baltimore, Bill Kenny, who signed on with the Ink Spots after winning first place in an amateur contest at Harlem's Savoy Ballroom. Three years later, Kenny was credited for bringing the group to global success with his unusual high tenor ballad singing.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In 1938, after being in the group for two years, Kenny started to introduce the group to a new format that he called "Top & Bottom". This format was used primarily for ballads rather than the uptempo "jive" songs the group was used to performing. This format called for the tenor (Kenny or Watson) to sing the lead for one chorus followed by a chorus performed by bass singer Jones reciting the lyrics rather than singing them. After a chorus of the "talking bass" the lead tenor sang the rest of the song until the end. The earliest example of their "Top & Bottom" format is from a radio broadcast from 1938. The song, titled "Tune In on My Heart", features Kenny taking the lead and Jones performing the talking bass.<ref>Chicago Defender, July 12, 1952</ref>

Also in 1938, Kenny took his first feature solo in Decca studios. His feature was on a song titled "I Wish You the Best of Everything". Although not in the "Top & Bottom" format, it was a ballad and used the signature Ink Spots guitar intro. Even though it got a good response, it was not very successful in terms of record sales and did not reach the pop chart.<ref>Indianapolis Recorder, Indianapolis, Marion County, July 7, 1945, page 13.</ref>

"If I Didn't Care" and the late 1930s

Template:Main On January 12, 1939, the Ink Spots entered Decca studios to record a ballad written by a young songwriter named Jack Lawrence. This ballad, "If I Didn't Care", was to be one of their biggest hits, selling over 19 million copies and becoming the 8th-best-selling single of all time. This is the first studio recorded example of the Ink Spots "Top & Bottom" format with Kenny singing lead and Jones performing the "talking bass". For this recording, each member was paid $37.50; after the record sold 200,000 copies, however, Decca destroyed the original contract and the group was paid an additional $3,750. This was the recording that brought the group to global fame and established the "Top & Bottom" format as the Ink Spots "trademark". From 1939 until the group's disbanding in 1954, many of their songs employed this format. The year 1939 also saw the Ink Spots enjoy commercial success with five other recordings that featured Kenny in the "Top & Bottom" format. Their most successful hit of 1939 was the Lombardo, Marks & Hill ballad, "Address Unknown". Other successful hits from 1939 and early 1940 included "My Prayer",Template:Sfn "Bless You", "Memories of You", and "I'm Gettin' Sentimental Over You".<ref name="Goldberg, Marv 1998"/>

1940s

Recordings

Between the years 1940 and 1949 the Ink Spots landed well over 30 hits on the US Pop Charts with 18 of them on the top 10. The group's first Billboard No. 1 hit came in 1944, when they teamed up with Ella Fitzgerald to record "I'm Making Believe".<ref name=pc1b>Template:Pop Chronicles 40s</ref> This recording featured Bill Kenny. In 1946, the Ink Spots earned another No. 1 spot on the US Pop Charts with "To Each His Own". The Billy Reid composition "The Gypsy" was the Ink Spots' biggest chart success, staying at the No. 1 position on the Billboard Best Sellers chart for 10 straight weeks in 1946.

Other hits for the Ink Spots in the 1940s included "When the Swallows Come Back to Capistrano", "Maybe", "We Three", "I Don't Want to Set the World on Fire", "Don't Get Around Much Anymore", "A Lovely Way to Spend an Evening", "Into Each Life Some Rain Must Fall", and "I'm Beginning to See the Light".<ref name="Tyler2007">Template:Cite book</ref>

Films

In 1941, the Ink Spots were featured in The Great American Broadcast starring John Payne and Alice Faye. In the film, the Ink Spots play Pullman porters who sing during their breaks and ultimately "make it big time" and sing live on the radio during a national broadcast. The group sings a short segment of "If I Didn't Care", "Alabamy Bound", and "I've Got a Bone to Pick with You". They also provide background vocals to Faye and Payne on a ballad entitled "Where You Are".

The following year, the Ink Spots were featured in an Abbott and Costello film, Pardon My Sarong. In this film, the Ink Spots play singing waiters in a nightclub. They sing the ballad "Do I Worry?" and the swing song "Shout Brother Shout".<ref name="Goldberg, Marv 1998"/>

Line-up changes

A poster for the group promoting an appearance with the NBC Symphony Orchestra circa 1946

In 1943, Ink Spots baritone singer and guitarist Fuqua was drafted into the US Army. He chose his friend Bernie Mackey to be his temporary replacement until he returned to the group. After being with the group for two years, Mackey was replaced by Huey Long in March 1945. Long completed the role as a "fill in" until Fuqua finally returned in October 1945.

Jones died in October 1944, after collapsing on stage at the Cafe Zanzibar in New York City, near the height of the Ink Spots' popularity. He had been having cerebral hemorrhages for a year and had fallen ill from the condition in June 1944.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Jones was temporarily replaced by Cliff Givens, who filled in from October 1944 to March 1945, before a permanent replacement was found in Bill Kenny's brother (and fraternal twin) Herb Kenny. Herb Kenny sang with the group from 1945 to 1951, when he began a career as a solo artist. The last bass singer in the Ink Spots was Adriel McDonald, who was with the group from 1951 to 1954. McDonald was previously the Ink Spots' personal valet, a job given to him by Herb Kenny, with whom he had sung in a group called "The Cabineers" in the early 1940s.

Due to personality clashes between Bill Kenny and Watson after Jones' death, Kenny decided he would rather carry on as the leader of the group and bought Watson's share of the group for $10,000, which gave him the power to kick Watson out of the group. Watson went on to form a group similar in style to the Ink Spots called the Brown Dots (which later became the Four Tunes), and his place was filled by Billy "Butterball" Bowen, who sang with the Ink Spots from 1944 to 1952.

1950s

Final years

In 1952, Fuqua left the group to form his own vocal group using the name "Ink Spots". At this time, Kenny and Fuqua each owned 50% of the Ink Spots, and it was decided by court ruling that Kenny's group was to continue on as the original "Ink Spots", while Fuqua's group was to use the name "Charlie Fuqua's New Ink Spots". Defying the court ruling, Fuqua instead called his group the "Original" Ink Spots.

Fuqua was replaced in the Ink Spots by popular jazz and R&B guitarist Everett Barksdale, so the group now consisted of Bill Kenny (lead tenor), Teddy Williams (second tenor), who had replaced Bowen, Everett Barksdale (baritone and guitar), and McDonald (bass). After being with the group for only a few months, Williams was replaced by Ernie Brown. Barksdale stayed with the group for about a year before being replaced by baritone vocalist and guitar player Jimmy Cannady. This line-up of Kenny (lead tenor), Brown (second tenor), Cannady (baritone and guitar), and McDonald (bass) lasted until 1954, when the final change of lineup was made.

In April 1954, Brown was replaced by Henry Braswell, who sang with the Ink Spots for their final three months. Kenny officially disbanded the Ink Spots in July 1954, after an appearance at the Bolero Bar in Wildwood, New Jersey.<ref name="Goldberg, Marv 1998"/>

Members

Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

Timeline

<timeline> ImageSize = width:1000 height:400 PlotArea = left:95 bottom:80 top:20 right:5 Alignbars = justify DateFormat = mm/dd/yyyy Period = from:01/01/1931 till:07/01/1954 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal format:yyyy Legend = position:bottom ScaleMajor = unit:year increment:1 start:1931 gridcolor:black

Colors =

id:JerryCharlie  legend:As_Jerry_and_Charlie            value:pink
id:FourRiff      legend:Part_of_The_Four_Riff_Brothers  value:yellow
id:KingJack      legend:As_King,_Jack,_and_Jester       value:skyblue
id:The4InkSpots  legend:As_The_4_Ink_Spots              value:rgb(0.7,1,0.7) # light green
id:Lead          legend:Lead_tenor                      value:red
id:Baritone      legend:Baritone                        value:orange
id:Bass          legend:Bass                            value:blue
id:Second        legend:Second_tenor                    value:green

PlotData =

width:10  align:left
 bar:Jerry Daniels      from:start       till:01/01/1933  color:JerryCharlie width:4
 bar:Jerry Daniels      from:01/01/1933  till:07/01/1934  color:KingJack width:4
 bar:Jerry Daniels      from:07/01/1934  till:01/01/1935  color:The4InkSpots width:4
 bar:Jerry Daniels      from:start  till:01/01/1936  color:Lead
 bar:Bill Kenny         from:01/01/1936  till:07/01/1954  color:Lead
 bar:Charlie Fuqua      from:start       till:01/01/1933  color:JerryCharlie width:4
 bar:Charlie Fuqua      from:01/01/1933  till:07/01/1934  color:KingJack width:4
 bar:Charlie Fuqua      from:07/01/1934  till:01/01/1935  color:The4InkSpots width:4
 bar:Charlie Fuqua      from:start  till:01/01/1943  color:Baritone
 bar:Charlie Fuqua      from:10/01/1945  till:01/01/1952  color:Baritone
 bar:Bernie Mackey      from:01/01/1943  till:03/01/1945  color:Baritone
 bar:Huey Long          from:03/01/1945  till:10/01/1945  color:Baritone
 bar:Everett Barksdale  from:01/01/1952  till:01/01/1953  color:Baritone
 bar:Jimmy Cannady      from:01/01/1953  till:07/01/1954  color:Baritone
 bar:Hoppy Jones        from:start       till:01/01/1933  color:FourRiff width:4
 bar:Hoppy Jones        from:07/01/1934  till:01/01/1935  color:The4InkSpots width:4
 bar:Hoppy Jones        from:start       till:01/01/1933  color:Bass
 bar:Hoppy Jones        from:07/01/1934  till:10/01/1944  color:Bass
 bar:Cliff Givens       from:10/01/1944  till:03/01/1945  color:Bass
 bar:Herb Kenny         from:03/01/1945  till:01/01/1951  color:Bass
 bar:Adriel McDonald    from:01/01/1951  till:07/01/1954  color:Bass
 bar:Deek Watson        from:start       till:01/01/1933  color:FourRiff width:4
 bar:Deek Watson        from:01/01/1933  till:07/01/1934  color:KingJack width:4
 bar:Deek Watson        from:07/01/1934  till:01/01/1935  color:The4InkSpots width:4
 bar:Deek Watson        from:start  till:12/01/1944  color:Second
 bar:Billy Bowens       from:12/01/1944  till:01/01/1952  color:Second
 bar:Teddy Williams     from:01/01/1952  till:06/01/1952  color:Second
 bar:Ernie Brown        from:06/01/1952  till:04/01/1954  color:Second
 bar:Henry Braswell     from:04/01/1954  till:07/01/1954  color:Second

</timeline>

Non-original Ink Spots groups

Disputes over the rights to use the Ink Spots name began in the late 1940s, resulting in many court cases. Starting in 1954, groups calling themselves "The Ink Spots" sprang up all around the United States. Some groups contained original members Fuqua, McDonald, Bowen, or Watson, but most had no ties to the original group whatsoever. Many groups claimed to have the rights to the name, but no one did. Still, lawsuits were filed between various groups and there was great confusion as to who owned the naming rights. Some groups avoided lawsuits by naming themselves "The Fabulous Ink Spots", "The Famous Ink Spots", "The Amazing Ink Spots", "The Sensational Ink Spots", "The Dynamic Ink Spots", and more.

According to writer Marv Goldberg: "The original group was a partnership, not a corporation, and that influenced judge Isidor Wasservogel to say, in 1955, that when Hoppy Jones died in 1944, it effectively served to terminate the partnership and that no one could truthfully use the name after that."<ref name=macarthur>Template:Cite web</ref> From 1954 to the present, more than 100 groups have used the name "The Ink Spots".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 1967 US federal judge Emmet C. Choate ruled that since so many groups had been using the name "Ink Spots" it had become "public domain" and was free for anyone to use.<ref>The Oregonian, September 1, 1967, p. 29</ref>

Charlie Fuqua's Ink Spots

In 1952, Fuqua left the original Ink Spots led by Kenny to form his own Ink Spots group. Fuqua recorded dozens of singles with his group for King Records as well as releasing two LP (long play) albums for Verve Records. In 1963 Fuqua's group also recorded one 45 RPM record for Ford Records. Fuqua led and was a member of various vocal groups calling themselves "The Ink Spots" until his death in 1971.

Deek Watson's Ink Spots

Watson, who had been forced out of the original Ink Spots in 1944 and briefly sang with Charlie Fuqua's Ink Spots in 1952–1953, started his own vocal group using the name "The Ink Spots" in 1954. Watson made numerous recordings with his "Ink Spots" groups in the 1950s and 1960s. Many of the recordings Watson made with his groups were released and re-released on various low budget labels. Watson led various groups until his death in 1969.

Legitimate members of the Ink Spots

Legitimate members of the Ink Spots included Bill Kenny, Jerry Daniels, Deek Watson, Charlie Fuqua, Hoppy Jones, Bernie Mackey, Huey Long, Cliff Givens, Billy Bowen, Herb Kenny, Adriel McDonald, Jimmy Cannady, Ernie Brown, Henry Braswell, Teddy Williams and Everett Barksdale. Pianists and arrangers included Bob Benson, Asa "Ace" Harris, Ken Bryan, Mort Howard (arranger), Bill Doggett, Ray Tunia, Harold Francis and Fletcher Smith. Some singers have tenuous ties to Deek Watson's or Charlie Fuqua's offshoot groups; many, with no credentials whatsoever, claim to be original members.<ref name="Goldberg, Marv 1998"/>

Deaths

It is unknown if Teddy Williams (born June 20, 1927, in Manhattan) (Ink Spots member in 1952) is still alive or not as there are no types of certificates (e.g. Marriage, death) matching his details from 1952 onwards.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1">Template:Cite web</ref> Marv Goldberg, who wrote an article about Williams published in 2025, stated: "There was never another word about Teddy Williams, not even a record of his death. I don't know if he ever married or had any children. There's even a slim chance that he's still alive."<ref name=":1" /> If still alive, Williams will be 98 as of 2025.

Additional deaths:

  • Slim Green (born Elmer Oliver, birthdate unknown) (member of pre-Ink Spots group "The Four Riff Brothers) died on April 30, 1938, after suffering from pneumonia.<ref name=":0" />
  • Miff Campbell (born Mifflin James Campbell, January 22, 1906, in Indianapolis, Indiana) (member of pre-Ink Spots group "The Four Riff Brothers") died on April 2, 1995, in Indianapolis aged 89.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Legacy and honors

  • 1946 Cashbox award for making "The Gypsy" the biggest money making song of the year.
  • 1948 awarded a plaque from the Negro Actors Guild for their efforts in "breaking down the walls of racial prejudice".
  • 1989, the Ink Spots were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as "early influences" by Bobby McFerrin; the members were listed as Bill Kenny, Charlie Fuqua, Deek Watson, Jerry Daniels, and Orville Jones.<ref name="halloffame" />
  • 1989, the Ink Spots' 1939 recording of "If I Didn't Care" was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame
  • 1999, the Ink Spots were inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame.

Template:More citations needed section

Television appearances

The Ink Spots were television pioneers when, on November 6, 1936, they were the first musical group to perform live on television, during an NBC test broadcast held at the NBC/RCA Building for the press.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

In 1948, they were the first black performers to appear on The Ed Sullivan Show.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In 2025, The Ink Spots' version of "We'll Meet Again" was featured on the fifth episode of the show Alien: Earth.<ref>https://consequence.net/2025/08/alien-earth-season-1-soundtrack-every-song/</ref>

In 2025, The Ink Spots' version of "If I Didn't Care" was used at the end of the South Park episode "The Woman in the Hat".

Other homages and references

In Glenn Miller's 1942 song "Jukebox Saturday Night", The Ink Spots are directly mentioned and an homage is done.

In 1945, Spike Jones recorded a parody cover of "You Always Hurt the One You Love" in an Ink Spots impression. The original song was recorded by a group they were often compared to, The Mills Brothers, just a year prior to Jones' cover.

The Beatles, at the time known as The Quarrymen, attempted to imitate The Ink Spots in the song "You'll Be Mine". It was only ever recorded as a demo. Paul McCartney sang in a deep baritone and John Lennon sang backing vocals in falsetto.

"I Don't Want to Set the World on Fire" is briefly played at the beginning of Megadeth's "Set the World Afire".

"If I Didn't Care" is played during the opening of the film The Shawshank Redemption.

Selected discography

Compilation albums

Select Singles

Year Single Chart positions
US
<ref name="whitburn memories">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Refn
US
R&B
1939 "If I Didn't Care" 2
"You Bring Me Down" 14
"Address Unknown" 1
"It's Funny to Everyone but Me"
"My Prayer" 3
"Bless You for Being an Angel" 15
1940 "Memories of You" 29
"I'm Gettin' Sentimental Over You" 26
"When the Swallows Come Back to Capistrano" 4
"Whispering Grass (Don't Tell the Trees)" 10
"Maybe" 2
"Stop Pretending" 16
"You're Breaking My Heart All Over Again" 17
"We Three (My Echo, My Shadow and Me)" 1
"My Greatest Mistake" 12
"Java Jive" 15
1941 "Please Take a Letter, Miss Brown" 25
"Do I Worry?" 8
"I'm Still Without a Sweetheart ('Cause I'm Still in Love with You)" 19
"So Sorry" 24
"Until the Real Thing Comes Along" 24
"I Don't Want to Set the World on Fire" 4
"Someone's Rocking My Dreamboat" 17
1942 "Ev'ry Night About This Time" 17 6
"This Is Worth Fighting For" 9
"Just as Though You Were Here" 10
1943 "Don't Get Around Much Anymore" 2 1
"If I Cared a Little Bit Less" 20 10
"I'll Never Make the Same Mistake Again" 19
"I Can't Stand Losing You" 1
1944 "Don't Believe Everything You Dream" 14 6
"Cow Cow Boogie (Cuma-Ti-Yi-Yi-Ay)" (with Ella Fitzgerald) 10 1
"A Lovely Way to Spend an Evening" 2
"I'll Get By (As Long as I Have You)" 7 4
"Someday I'll Meet You Again" 14
"I'm Making Believe" (with Ella Fitzgerald) 1 2
"Into Each Life Some Rain Must Fall" (with Ella Fitzgerald) 1 1
1945 "I'm Beginning to See the Light" (with Ella Fitzgerald) 5
1946 "The Gypsy" 1 1
"Prisoner of Love" 9 5
"To Each His Own" 1 3
1947 "You Can't See the Sun When You're Crying" 19
"Ask Anyone Who Knows" 17 5
1948 "The Best Things in Life Are Free" 10
"Say Something Sweet to Your Sweetheart" 22
"You Were Only Fooling (While I Was Falling in Love)" 8 15
1949 "You're Breaking My Heart" 9
"Who Do You Know in Heaven (That Made You the Angel You Are?)" 21
1950 "Echoes" 24
"Sometime" 26
1951 "If" 23
"It Is No Secret" (Bill Kenny solo) 18
1952 "(That's Just My Way of) Forgetting You" (Bill Kenny solo) 23

Notes

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See also

References

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