The Whispers

The Whispers is a group from Los Angeles, California, with a consistent track record of hit records dating back to the late 1960s. The Whispers were inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 2003,[1]  and were winners of the Rhythm and Blues Foundation's prestigious Pioneer Award in 2008.[2]  By popular vote, the group was inducted into The SoulMusic Hall Of Fame at SoulMusic.com in December 2012.[3]



Contents
[hide]  *1 Career  ==Career[ edit] == The Whispers formed in 1964 in Watts, California. The original members included twin brothers, Wallace "Scotty" and Walter Scott, along with Gordy Harmon, Marcus Hutson and Nicholas Caldwell. After Harmon injured his larynx in a driving accident in 1973, he was replaced by former Friends of Distinction member Leaveil Degree. Scotty Scott's fluid, melodic voice is featured on virtually all of their hits.
 * 2 The Whispers group members
 * 3 The Whispers band members
 * 4 Discography
 * 4.1 Studio albums
 * 4.2 Holiday albums
 * 4.3 Live albums
 * 4.4 Compilation albums
 * 4.5 Singles
 * 5 Legacy
 * 6 Awards and recognition
 * 6.1 SoulMusic Hall Of Fame at SoulMusic.com
 * 7 See also
 * 8 References
 * 9 External links

The group scored many hits on the R&B and Billboard Hot 100 charts throughout the 1970s and 1980s, and they hit #1 on the Hot Dance Club Play chart in 1980 with "And the Beat Goes On / "Can You Do the Boogie" / "Out the Box". In 1987, they enjoyed a brief tenure in the Top 40 when "Rock Steady" became their first Top 10success on the Hot 100, reaching #7, while also capturing the #1 spot on the R&B chart.

After a series of singles on Los Angeles label, Dore, the group signed to a small LA label, Soul Clock, run by producer Ron Carson, who was responsible for their breakthrough hit, "Seems Like I Got To Do Wrong" in 1970. Moving to the larger New York-based Janus label, they continued to be produced by Carson, before he sold all of his recordings to Janus with the group then recording mainly in Philadelphia in the mid '70s. Since that period, most of their studio work has been done in Los Angeles. Their most successful period was in the 1980s with SOLAR Records (Sound Of Los Angeles Records), which was operated by their manager at the time, Dick Griffey. The Whispers later established their own production company, Satin Tie Productions, through which they released their independent 2006 album "For Your Ears Only."

The group opened Game 2 of the 1989 World Series at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum with their rendition of the National Anthem.

Marcus Hutson left the group in 1992 due to prostate cancer. According to the Whispers' website, when Hutson died of it in 2000, they vowed to never replace him, and now perform as a quartet.

Jerry McNeil resigned his position as keyboardist in the latter part of 1993 in order to spend more time with his family. In 2014 The Whispers was inducted into The Official R&B Music Hall of Fame.

The Philadelphia soul songwriter team Allan Felder, Norman Harris, Bunny Sigler, and Ronnie Baker provided several of The Whispers' songs including "A Mother for My Children" and "Bingo". ==The Whispers group members<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;font-family:sans-serif;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] == ==The Whispers band members<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;font-family:sans-serif;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] == ==Discography<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;font-family:sans-serif;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] == ===Studio albums<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] === ===Holiday albums<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] === ===Live albums<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] === ===Compilation albums<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] === ===Singles<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] === ==Legacy<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;font-family:sans-serif;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] == ==Awards and recognition<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;font-family:sans-serif;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] == <p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:17.9200000762939px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:14.3999996185303px;">The Whispers were inducted into The Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 2003.
 * Wallace "Scotty" Scott (born September 23, 1943, Fort Worth, Texas)
 * Walter Scott (born September 23, 1943, Fort Worth, Texas)
 * Marcus Hutson (born January 8, 1943, St Louis, Missouri, died 2000)
 * Nicholas Caldwell (born April 5, 1944, Loma Linda, California)
 * Leaveil Degree (born July 31, 1948, New Orleans, Louisiana)
 * Gordy Harmon The fifth original member of The Whispers, who had to leave the group after being with them for almost a decade, due to injuries sustained in an auto accident. He was replaced by Leaveil Degree.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-4" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;font-size:11.1999998092651px;">[4]
 * Grady Wilkins — musical director, vocals, keyboards
 * Emilio Conesa — guitar
 * John Valentino — saxophone
 * Jamie Brewer — bass
 * Melvin Coleman — bass
 * Dewayne Sweet — keyboards
 * Magic Mendez — keyboards
 * Reggie Rugley — keyboards, programming
 * Dante Roberson — drums
 * "Can't Help But Love You" was sampled by Mobb Deep on their promotional single Drop a Gem on 'em.
 * "And the Beat Goes On" would later be sampled on Will Smith's 1998 song, "Miami".
 * It can also be heard in the video game Grand Theft Auto: Vice City; on the fictional radio station Fever 105; it is available on the game's additional merchandise item called Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Official Soundtrack Box Set.
 * The Rippingtons recorded a version of "Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now" on their CD album, Brave New World. The recording included samples of both "And the Beat Goes On" and "Rock Steady".
 * "No Pain, No Gain" would later be sampled on Surkin's 2008 track "Next Of Kin".
 * "So Good" was sampled by Madlib for Madvillain's "Eye Featuring Stacy Epps"

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:17.9200000762939px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:14.3999996185303px;">The Whispers were winners of the Rhythm and Blues Foundation's prestigious Pioneer Award in 2008. ===SoulMusic Hall Of Fame at SoulMusic.com<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] ===
 * Inducted: Group Or Duo* (December 2012)