JAY AND THE TECHNIQUES
Apples, Peaches, Pumpkin Pie
Here's one recipe for success: take a black singer - on second thought take two, put them together with a white backing band and you've got yourself a seldom-seen configuration. Jay and the Techniques, led by John Wesley "Jay" Proctor, enjoyed one demanding, satisfying year with two major hits, a better run than most. Never mind that their signature song is the bubble-gummish, fairy-tale-like "Apples, Peaches, Pumpkin Pie"...millions of people loved that song at the time and still do.
Proctor began life in Philadelphia in 1941, singing in church choir as a youngster. His family moved a short distance north to Allentown, around which the Lehigh River winds before heading even further north. In the late '50s he sang with a vocal group called Hambone. Around that time, George "Lucky" Lloyd moved there from his home in Jacksonville, Florida. He joined The Joylarks and in '59 they recorded one single, "Betty My Love," for New Jersey label Candlelite. Some months later, Jay waxed "You're Too Young" on the Jordan label as bass vocalist for The Sinceres. The groups merged and changed the name to The Floridians, landing a one-off deal with ABC-Paramount; "I Love Marie" received limited airplay in early '61, but it never led to anything. A few years went by and around 1965, Jay and Lucky resumed performing around Allentown and other Lehigh Valley burgs with a band they called The Techniques.
That same year, the group auditioned for Philly producer Jerry Ross (who'd written and produced a few hits including "When We Get Married" by The Dreamlovers on his own Heritage label). Ross signed a long-term deal with Mercury Records in 1966, tasked with the goal of finding potential, hit-worthy stars, which he was quite good at. Some of his discoveries over the next couple of years included Bobby Hebb, Keith and Spanky and Our Gang. Jerry liked Jay and his group and when a demo recording of a song by Maurice Irby titled "Ready or Not" landed on his desk in early 1967, he thought it would be a good fit for them. Turns out the song had already been recorded by Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs and was included on their just-released Best of... album.
Changing the title to "Apples, Peaches, Pumpkin Pie," another phrase from the song's lyrics, he offered it to Jay and the Techniques. Lucky had a problem with what he considered a "nursery rhyme," which was about the same reason Hebb had scoffed when it was offered to him. Not wishing to blow the opportunity to record for a major record company, Jay and Lucky (but none of their band members) entered the studio in March to record a cover version of the song with producer Ross, arranger Joe Renzetti, experienced musicians and backing vocalists Nick Ashford, Valerie Simpson and Melba Moore. It took several months, but the single (on Mercury's Smash imprint) finally reached the top ten in September '67. They appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show on Sunday, December 31, at which time Ed presented them with a gold record for sales of over one million copies. What better way to celebrate the New Year?
Jay, Lucky and the band had spent most of 1967 on the road. After scoring another big hit late in the year with Denny Randell and Sandy Linzer's catchy "Keep the Ball Rollin" ('...girl, the name of the game is love!'), bookings across America kept coming in. The band's members were Danny Dancho on lead guitar, Ronnie Goosley on saxophone, John Walsh on trumpet and beat-keeper Karl Landis, whose bass drum was stenciled, in psychedelic lettering, with the following: "Jay and the Techniques Karl on drums" (alas, it had to be replaced when Karl quit and Paul Coles, Jr. took his spot). They were a tight bunch, though; if, for example, during a lunch stop in the south, a restaurant refused to allow Jay and Lucky inside, the entire band would walk out, even if meant buying sandwiches and eating them while they traveled.
Speaking of eating, Maurice Irby must have had a fixation on food and desserts; he supplied the next A side, "Strawberry Shortcake," which reached the top 40 in February '68. The fourth single, Linzer and Randell's "Baby Make Your Own Sweet Music" (a more symphonic arrangement than usual by Jimmy Wisner), landed mid-chart and was followed by the barely-a-blip "The Singles Game." The music was tightly produced and expertly performed, but radio was showing less interest. Walsh was replaced in the band by Danny Altieri while organist Jack Truett was added, making them an eight-man outfit, for what was still a full touring schedule. Three more singles were released: "Hey Diddle Diddle" (penned by Motowners Harvey Fuqua, Johnny Bristol and Marvin Gaye), "Change Your Mind" (with dual lead vocals for a different sound, it briefly "Bubbled Under" Billboard's chart in the spring of 1969) and "Dancin' Mood," their Smash label swan song. Lucky got weary of touring and decided the best times were behind them, so he quit the group. For many years he toiled in the workforce with no plans to resume his music career.
A few years went by before The Temptations, who'd been fans all along, put a bug in Berry Gordy's ear to give the group a shot with Motown. What resulted was "Robot Man" in late 1972, their only release on the Gordy label. In 1974, Jay was performing at the Caboose, a tavern in Allentown, when it caught fire; nine people died and several others were seriously injured, including Jay. After a lengthy recovery, he formed a new band and, in place of long-gone sideman Lloyd, was flanked by female singers Eileen Dover and Anita Antolik. "Number Onederful," a dance tune credited to Jay and the Techniques (produced by Ross and arranged by Renzetti) on the Event label, was popular in disco clubs and reached the R&B singles chart in February 1976.
In 1980, the Philadelphia Eagles of the NFL adopted "Keep the Ball Rollin'" as its theme song. A new version by Jay and the Techniques was frequently heard as the team won its way to a spot in Super Bowl XV on January 25, 1981 (though they lost the championship game to the Oakland Raiders). In May 1986, the group reunited for a Lehigh Valley "Dance for Our Town" concert. Over 1300 people attended the benefit show at Allentown's Agricultural Hall. Jay, Lucky Lloyd and most of the original band members were on hand, as was '60s group The Cyrkle. Jay Proctor, still in his forties, had by that time retired from his music career and taken a blue collar job. The enthusiastic response from attendees made him change his mind...and he resumed performing and recording for another 30 years or so.
