1. Welcome to SportsJournalists.com, a friendly forum for discussing all things sports and journalism.

    Your voice is missing! You will need to register for a free account to get access to the following site features:
    • Reply to discussions and create your own threads.
    • Access to private conversations with other members.
    • Fewer ads.

    We hope to see you as a part of our community soon!

RIP Ben E King

Discussion in 'Sports and News' started by EStreetJoe, May 1, 2015.

  1. EStreetJoe

    EStreetJoe Well-Known Member

  2. swingline

    swingline Well-Known Member

    Saw that movie twice at the theater when it came out -- partly because of the song.
     
  3. casty33

    casty33 Active Member

    Stand By Me is one of the greatest songs of the 60s.
     
  4. DanOregon

    DanOregon Well-Known Member

    Another one.
     
  5. da man

    da man Well-Known Member

    That little obit is wrong. He didn't start with the Drifters. Before that, he was lead singer of a group called The Five Crowns. He was Benjamin E. Nelson at the time.

    In 1958, the Crowns were opening for the Drifters, who were already a big draw. The Drifters' manager, George Treadwell, had been battling with the group's members for months over several issues (including excessive drinking), and one night, during a show at the Apollo Theater, one of the Drifters cursed at the theater's owner. Treadwell, who owned the rights to the name Drifters, promptly fired the entire group, turned to the Crowns and basically told them, "Congratulations! You're the new Drifters!"

    That's when Ben E. Nelson became Ben E. King. I always thought it was because his former group was the Crowns (Get it? King? Crowns?) but I just read something that said it was the surname of his favorite uncle.

    He wasn't with the Drifters all that long -- less than two years, I think -- but he wrote and sang a number of their big hits of the time, including "There Goes My Baby" and "Save the Last Dance for Me," which was the Drifters' only No. 1 pop hit.

    His first big hit as a solo act was "Spanish Harlem," followed, of course, by "Stand By Me."
     
  6. exmediahack

    exmediahack Well-Known Member

    Percy Sledge. Ben E. King. If I'm Wilson Pickett, I stay on the couch for a few days.
     
  7. Drip

    Drip Active Member

    Wilson Pickett died Jan. 19, 2006. He was 64.
     
  8. Drip

    Drip Active Member

    RIP
     
  9. da man

    da man Well-Known Member

    Then he'll damn sure stay on the couch.
     
  10. da man

    da man Well-Known Member

    Wait, how was Ben E. King only 76 years old?
     
  11. da man

    da man Well-Known Member

    Wow, just looked it up, born in Sept. 1938. He was 18 when he joined the Five Crowns and 19 when he was promoted to the Drifters.
     
  12. exmediahack

    exmediahack Well-Known Member

    Really?? Damn.

    That's explains why I haven't seen him on tour.
     
Draft saved Draft deleted

Share This Page