Emile Ford & The Checkmates
Although they're not too well-remembered today, Emile Ford & the Checkmates accomplished the serious feat of charting a number one British single in 1959, opening up a recording career that lasted four years. Ford was born Emile Sweetman on October 16, 1937, in Castries, St. Lucia in the British West Indies. He came to England in the mid-'50s from the Bahamas with the hope of becoming a sound engineer, and his knowledge in that field contributed directly to his subsequent success fronting a band. Changing his name to Emile Ford, he put together a combo called the Checkmates, whose members included his two half-brothers, George Sweetman and Dave Sweetman, on sax and bass, respectively, along with Ken Street, Pete Carter, Les Hart, Alan Hawkshaw, and John Cuffley. As Emile Ford & the Checkmates, they won a talent contest sponsored by Pye Records and were awarded an audition and a contract that resulted in their first single, "Don't Tell Me Your Troubles" b/w "What Do You Want to Make Those Eyes at Me For," which was produced by the legendary Joe Meek. Fortunately for all concerned, Pye's management liked the proposed B-side better and flipped the single before release, and "Why Do You Want to Make Those Eyes at Me For" hit the number one spot in England, immediately establishing the band as a major act.
They followed this up in 1960 with five singles, three of which charted in the U.K. Top 40, two in the Top Ten, and one of those -- "On a Slow Boat to China" b/w "That Lucky Old Sun" -- at number three. That was the last year in which the group enjoyed that kind of appreciation or recording success, though three of their records released in 1961 and 1962 did brush the lower regions of their charts, one of them ("What Am I Gonna Do") just nudging into the Top 40. The truth is that Ford wasn't really a very good singer, but he had a good band behind him, and unlike every other rock & roll act in England during this period, the group only used their own sound system -- devised by Ford -- at their performances, rather than the usual PA-system level equipment; as a result, they sounded better than any of the competition, sufficiently so to keep them working for years. The Checkmates themselves got to record separately on Pye, even doing an album of their own.
By the end of 1962, however, Emile Ford & the Checkmates found themselves brushing up against the earliest recordings of what proved to be a new wave of British rock & roll, represented by the Beatles, among other acts. Their record of hits and their sound were enough to keep the band going until late 1963, and the Checkmates later recorded on their own for Britain's Decca Records (under Joe Meek) and Parlophone Records, sometimes using the name the Original Checkmates. Founding members George Sweetman and Dave Sweetman (who sometimes billed themselves as Sweetman-Ford to remind people of their familial connection with Emile Ford) and drummer Barry Reeves later formed the core of the psychedelic-soul group the Ferris Wheel, while Hawkshaw ended up working in film music. Emile Ford kept his hand in singing for a few more years before returning to audio engineering -- by that time, rock & roll had caught up with Ford's real talent; it was routine for bands to travel with their own sound systems, and Ford found lots of other acts happy to avail themselves of his technical abilities and use his audio systems. At last report, he was living in California after residing in Scandinavia for several years.
© Bruce Eder /TiVo
Discographie
19 album(s) • Trié par Meilleures ventes
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The Golden Years (Remastered)
Rock - Paru chez Master Tape Records le 26 juin 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Counting Teardrops (The Pye/Piccadilly Anthology)
Pop - Paru chez Castle Communications le 28 févr. 2000
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
What Do You Want to Make Those Eyes At Me For?
Rock - Paru chez Sanctuary Budget le 1 janv. 1960
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Them There Eyes
Pop - Paru chez Legend World Music OMP le 11 déc. 2010
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
What Do You Want To Make Those Eyes At Me For?
Soul - Paru chez Red Bullet le 1 janv. 1959
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Don't Tell Me Your Troubles / What Do You Want to Make Those Eyes at Me For?
Rock - Paru chez OBX Records le 31 juil. 2015
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Dreamboat
Jazz - Paru chez Black & Partner Licenses LLC le 2 avr. 2019
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Red Sails in the Sunset
Rock - Paru chez Mocking Bird le 8 févr. 2015
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
You'll Never Know What You're Missin' / Still
Rock - Paru chez OBX Records le 31 juil. 2015
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Les idoles du rock 'n' roll : Emile Ford & The Checkmates, Vol. 1
Rock - Paru chez Mpm le 20 août 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Vintage British Pop Singles: Emile Ford & The Checkmates
Pop - Paru chez Golden-Tone le 29 nov. 2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Les idoles du rock 'n' roll : Emile Ford & The Checkmates, Vol. 2
Rock - Paru chez Mpm le 27 août 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
So Many Ways
Musique vocale (profane et sacrée) - Paru chez Music Manager le 31 juil. 2015
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Golden Oldies
Musique vocale (profane et sacrée) - Paru chez Music Manager le 1 sept. 2015
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Don't Tell Me Your Troubles
Rock - Paru chez Birdy Music le 15 mars 2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Counting Teardrops
Pop - Paru chez Sunday Club Records le 25 nov. 2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Don't Tell Me Your Troubles
Pop - Paru chez Sunday Club Records le 25 nov. 2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo