Fri. Oct. 18: THE WHISPERS -7:30pm- $95.00
In the annals of R & B history, the Whispers have earned a solid and memorable position as one of the world’s longest-running vocal groups. Celebrating over 55 years in the industry, they are the cream of soul, embellishing smooth ballads and upbeat dance favorites. As one of the premier soul groups to ever grace the stage, their musical success can be attributed to an ingenious balance of soul, jazz, pop, disco and blues to the delight of millions of fans. They have had thirty-three top ten hits and twenty Billboard charted albums over a span of five decades.
The Whispers began their legendary career in 1964 when they first organized at Jordan High School in Watts, California, producing a string of hits continuing over the last five decades such as “It Seems Like I Gotta Do Wrong,” “And the Beat Goes On,” “Rock Steady, ” “It’s a Love Thing,” and “A Song For Donny.” They have emerged as the leading romantic singers of their generation, racking up one gold album after another, and charting 46 Billboard hits. They are arguably one of the most celebrated balladeer groups of all time.
The whispers were the first group to be signed to Soul Train Records, but earned most of their greatest hits with Solar Records. Their music has been sampled over 131 times and highlighted in over 600 compilations. Movies have featured their songs in “Waiting to Exhale,” “Madea’s Family Reunion,” and “Diary of a Mad Black Woman,” to name a few. The sang the title track on Jay Leno’s movie soundtrack “Collision Course.” The group has not made any personnel changes since 1973 when Leaveil Degree replaced Gorday Harmon when his larynx was injured in an accident. After the passing of Nicholas Caldwell in 2016, they still consist of Walter Scott, Wallace “Scotty” Scott, and Leaveil Degree. They are one of only a few old school groups that can boast of having a worldwide fan base, while maintaining their vocal dominance and original members. In 2022. the Three remaining Whispers began re-recording their music catalog so they can own their masters.
The Whispers have always been at the forefront of promoting and inspiring social change and human kindness with such hits as “Seems Like I Gotta Do Wrong,” “Help Them See The Light,” “Olivia,” and in 2021 “How Long.” Their five decades of accomplishments have been acknowledged by induction into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame, presentation of the Governor’s Award by the San Francisco Chapter of the Grammy Awards, An NAACP Image Award, induction into the Bay Area Blues Society Hall of Fame, Rhythm and Blues Hall of Fame, the Sammy Davis Jr. “Living Legends” Award by the Black Music Academy of America, the City of Los Angeles “Living Legends” Award, and in March 2022 The Presidential Lifetime Volunteer Service Award from President Joseph R. Biden for their community service in the areas of Children’s education, cancer early detection, domestic violence, human trafficking and social justice. They also received the Doctorate of Humane Letters from the Christian Bible Institute of Houston, Texas. In May 2022, they received the “Legends” award at the 2022 Black Music Honors in Atlanta, GA. On 11-28-2022, they were awarded Soul Track Magazine’s People’s Choice Lifetime Achievement Award and featured on the front cover of Black Link Magazine. Their most historical venture is their goal to re-record their catalog of music in an effort to own their sound recordings. They began in 2022 with the release of their two most popular singles, “And the Beat Goes On, “and “Rock Steady.” It was followed by “Keep On Loving Me” in March of 2023, “OLIVIA” in June 2023, “This Christmas” in November 2023, and their single, “Maybe the Fire Isn’t Out” on New Year’s eve 2023.
