Tymes

The
Tymes

    Donald Banks, Albert Berry, Norman Burnett, and George Hilliard were all native Philadelphians when in 1956 they formed their first group The Latineers. After several years of struggling on the "chitlin circuit" they seemed doomed to becoming nothing more than another "hitless" bar band.
     In 1960 they decided that The Latineers, the name, might be holding them back and changed the formal group name to the catchy "Tymes." With the name change a decision to bring in a lead vocalist was made and George Williams won an audition for the less than coveted spot.
     A few more years of "paying their dues" ensued and by 1963 they were a well established local band. Their moderate local success won them a coveted spot on Philadelphia's WDAS radio talent show in April 1963. An A&R man from Parkway Records happened to hear them, tracked them down and quickly signed them to a label deal. Within one month the group had already recorded several tracks for the label.
     "So Much In Love" was released in May of 1963 and surprisingly shot to number one on Billboard's Pop chart. The song was written by George Williams and producer Billy Jackson and arranger Roy Straigis. The tune with it's rolling waves, chirping birds and finger snaps was less typical of R&B and more in line with the romantic stylings of Johnny Mathis. For their second single they capitalized on the vocal similarity to Mathis and recorded "Wonderful! Wonderful!." Johnny's version had peaked at 14 but the Tymes bested him by taking theirs to number 7. But after a third hit, "Somewhere," (not the 'West Side Story' track) in 1964 the group was "hitless." Their total output for Cameo-Parkway was four albums, "So Much In Love," "Sound Of The Wonderful Tymes," "To Each His Own" and "Somewhere" and then they were dropped.
     Two years later they started their own label with songwriters John Madera, Dave White ("It's My Party"), and Leon Huff ("I Ain't Jivin', I'm Jammin"). Cameo distributed the label, Winchester Records, but the group failed to have any hits and after only two albums it folded. Producer Billy Jackson moved the group to MGM Records next and another two failed albums found them label-less once again. Jackson and the group agreed that a makeover was in order and that their "Mills Brothers" image needed updating to a much more contemporary soul vision. In the process they recorded for Columbia Records and scored a minor hit with "People" from "Funny Girl" that went to number 39. But CBS also dropped them in 1969. They spent three years retooling their sound, while Hilliard departed. Their longtime producer, Billy Jackson, financed some sessions at Gamble and Huff's Sigma Sound studios in an attempt to get them on the Philadelphia International roster. Gamble and Huff passed on the unfinished demos, but RCA signed them.
     Their first single for the new label was "You Little Trustmaker." The song became an instant club smash and was a worldwide hit peaking at number 12 in America and 18 in Britain. This was in disco music's early period and was a pivotal song in it's evolution. An album track, "Miss Grace," was released as the second single with the liberated title of "Ms. Grace." It became their only number one song in Britain.
     During their tenure with RCA Records the group would have four album releases including: "Turning Point," "Tymes Up" and "Diggin' Their Roots." One more single charted in 1976. "It's Cool" reached number 3 R&B and number 18 pop.
     Their second reason for inclusion into The DiscoMuseum was their 1977 12" single "How Am I To Know (The Things A Girl In Love Should Know)." A smoldering uptempo disco track that remains one of disco music's buried treasures. By the time of it's release the group had undergone several line-up changes. Hilliard, then Berry, eventually left the group, while two later additions, Terri Gonzalez and Melanie Moore, suggested a further shake-up of their image. Despite the infusion of female lead vocals and the disco shift the group was dropped from RCA by 1977.
     Various aggregations using the name remained active on the oldies/cabaret circuit in the 1980's and 1990's. George Williams later recorded with the mid-eighties jazz group "The Chosen Three." In 1980 the group released "Brothers & Sisters" on Hammer Records and surfaced on Ripete Records in 1989 with a new recording of "So Much In Love." In 1997 a live disc was released to rave reviews and in 2002 an excellent compilation entitled "Soul Gems" was released. Naturally all included "Trustmaker" and none included "How Am I To Know."
     Thanks to the Tymes for two of my all-time favorites and for being there in disco's infancy.