The Collegiates

A popular musical group for most of the 1960s, The Collegiates were known for their musical versatility and their regional recording successes. The combo was highly regarded in the Tri-State area of Kentucky, Ohio and West Virginia, as well as part s of the south and eastern seaboard where their records charted.

The combo was formed by four high school friends in the summer of 1960 in Huntington, West Virginia. While several personnel changes were made throughout its eight-year run, the grou p’s reputation and popularity grew while its members were attending Marshall University. Even after graduation The Collegiates continued their quest for national success, finally disbanding in 1968 after several key members moved on.

The group featured the basic instrumentation of bands of that era—lead guitar, bass, drums and a saxophone. It also utilized an unusual (at the time) combination of electric piano and organ that allowed The Collegiates to cater to a wide-range of musical tastes. With versatile skills and contrasting musical interests, the members were able to easily adapt their performances for the audience at hand. No question that they were a tight rock and roll band, but the group had no problems with jazz, old stand ards, folk, country, and rhythm and blues.

As a result The Collegiates were popular in a variety of venues—nite spots, country clubs, college and high school dances, civic and service club events and rock and roll shows (now called concerts). The y also appeared on local, regional, and nationally syndicated television programs.

The Collegiates frequently opened for well-known acts including Jerry Lee Lewis, the Beach Boys and Gary Lewis and the Playboys. They also worked on the road opening for and backing such performers as Little Anthony and the Imperials, Johnny Tillotson and the Chiffons.

The group promoted its public appearances and pursued a career breakout by producing eight recordings during a four year period from spring of 1963 to the fall of 1967. Most of the records were released on a local label owned by their manager and sold well regionally. Their biggest seller, “I Can’t Get You Out of My Mind”, was picked up by Mercury Records’s Smash label and distributed nationally.

Two members—bassist David Groves and drummer Larry Levine--were with the group from start to finish. Others Collegiates included Larry Ascough, lead singer; Jack Dorsey, saxophone; Eddie Nenni, sa xophone and clarinet; John Thabit, guitar; Jim Thornburg, guitar; and John Wilson, keyboards.

A RECORDING HISTORY OF THE COLLEGIATES

1. “Say Hello To My Angel” was recorded at Cincinnati’s King Studios in January 1963. Ba nd members financed the 3-hour recording session and an initial order for 1,000 45 rpm copies. The flip side was “What Is A Dream?” Both songs were written by lead singer Larry Ascough and his wife, Kay. Three female Marshall students (du bbed The Classmates) sang background. The record was released in March and several local radio stations put the song on their play lists. Modest local popularity of the tune led Francis J. (Mac) McGlynn to become interested in the group. Mac owned David son’s Record Shop in Huntington, WV, and also ran Music Man, Inc., the one-stop record distributor (wholesaler) for the West Virginia/Ohio/Kentucky Tri-State area. He became The Collegiates manager and provided financing for their subsequent recor dings.

2. “Won’t Ya Let Me Be Your Baby” and “Just You” were recorded in March, 1964 at the Bur-K Studios in Ashland, Ky. The lead singer collaborated with guitar player Jim Thornburg on “…Baby” wi th Ascough penning the B side. It was popular at the group’s live performances and with McGlynn’s promotion efforts it sold moderately in the region.

3. “There Must Be Somethin’”, another original by the lead singer, w as one of 4 sides cut at King Studios in Cincinnati in the spring of 1965. Bo Diddley’s “Road Runner” was on the flip side. Released in early summer, the disc had moderate sales success in the regional Tri-State market and parts of the east coast.

4. “I Can’t Get You Out Of My Mind” and “My Babe”, the other two sides from the King session were released in the fall of 1965. The latter, a cover of the oft-recorded classic by Willie Dixon, was the B side. Co-written by the lead singer and guitar player, the A side did extremely well regionally, becoming #1 in both Huntington and Charleston. The record also fared well on a Cleveland radio station’s weekly “battle of the band s” where callers voted for the competing songs over a week period. Due to this regional success Smash Records, a subsidiary of Mercury Records, released the disc nationally. The record received a positive review from Billboard Magazine and did fairly well on the east coast and in the south. As a result the group was asked to appear on the nationally syndicated “Upbeat” TV show. A number of popular acts were on the show including live performances by Jerry Lee Lewis and Otis Redding. The program was taped in Cleveland where the group remained to promote its record and to open a series of shows for Jerry Lee Lewis (who was also on the Smash label) at the Garden Theater.

5. “Who Needs Enemies” and the flip side “Only You Can Make Me Well” were written by Chuck Howard a country music artist. He had seen The Collegiates at a hotel engagement in Ironton, Ohio where he was also booked. A singer/writer/and aspiring record producer, Howard convinced the group to journey to Nashville and record some of his material. Both songs were recorded at the Monument Studios in Nashville in August 1965. Joining the basic band were Grammy winning musician Charlie McCoy and Wayne Moss, a popular session guitarist. Vocal background was provided by the Jordanaires of Elvis Presley fame. The country-pop sound was a little ahead of its time and the record enjoyed only moderate success.

6. “Think Back” was written by a Canadian g uitarist named Mike Kamenar who played on the recording session at Cincinnati’s King Studios in September 1966. The back side was “I’ve Tried Everything”, written by the lead singer. It was released in the late fall and be came regionally successful. 7. “The Rains Came”, a cover of the Sir Douglas Quintet hit, was the 2nd recording from the King session. It was released in February 1967 and became another #1 in Huntington and Charleston, doing very well regionally. It was at the top of area charts when the group opened for the Beach Boys (who had the nation’s #7 hit at the time) at Charleston’s Civic Center. The B side was The Collegiates’ version of the Huey Smith song, “High Blood Pressure.”

8. “Raindrops, Parts I & II” was recorded at a Lexington, Kentucky studio in July 1967 with horn accompaniment from a popular area group The Magnificent Seven. It was released in the fall along with a strong review from Cash Box Magazine. Sales did not live up to the reviewer’s prediction, although the tune remained one of the group’s most popular at live performances.

Several songs recorded in the Nashville and Lexington sessions were never released. Due to changes in band personnel, including the lead singer’s move to New York, the group which was formed in 1960 disbanded in August 1968.

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