THE NUTMEGS
Story Untold
Street corners were where '50s-era vocal harmony groups usually practiced in cities like New York and Philadelphia, but even in New Haven, Connecticut. Leroy Griffin and his friends could be found staking out a spot on any given day in 1953, though for Leroy, it was songwriting that fueled his creative fire. He put together a group with the unusual name The Lyres, his lead tenor backed by brother James "Sonny" Griffin's first tenor, James "Coco" Tyson's second tenor, Billy Emery's baritone and the bass notes of Leroy McNeil. The Lyres later became The Nutmegs, under which they were widely known, but there was another name they tried on for size when the going got tough.
"Ship of Love" was the song Griffin staked his future on and it wasn't too hard to get a recorded version pressed and circulated. Well, in the New Haven area, anyway. James stepped aside and let Billy Emery take the lead; the recording was crude by later standards, but sounded fine at the time (and retains a certain demo-type appeal). Released in 1953 on 78 RPM by a small, makeshift New Haven label, J&G records, it generated little interest but served as a calling card for potentially interested record biz types. On a visit to New York the Lyres met hitmaking quartet The Du Droppers at one of their shows, which led to RCA Victor A&R man Danny Kessler taking interest, helping get them in the door at Al Silver's Herald Records, a label that had started in 1952 and within two years was riding high with hits by Joe Morris and Faye Adams. Silver had been keeping an eye out for appealing vocal group acts he could add to his roster.
A new name seemed logical and the members, proudly hailing from "The Nutmeg State," agreed on Nutmegs as a suitable moniker. Griffin penned two more original songs, uptempo romper "Make Me Lose My Mind" with seasoned big band arranger Leroy Kirkland and sad ballad "Story Untold" (about '...the girl who left me standing, standing in the cold') on which he took the lead. The ballad got the push in the spring of 1955 and its dynamic perfomance resonated with fans; the disc enjoyed an eleven-week ride in Billboard's rhythm and blues top ten, peaking at number two exactly halfway through, in June, behind "Ain't it a Shame," Fats Domino's insurmountable smash. "Story Untold" had no such luck in the pop arena, beaten to the punch by a timely cover the momentum-riding Crew Cuts put out right after the original appeared.
The group reworked "Ship of Love" for the follow-up (including some seafaring sound effects on the intro), James on lead again, and while it wasn't a best seller, it showed up on the R&B "disc jockey" chart in October. Then the road got bumpier. "Whispering Sorrow" and "Key to the Kingdom (Of Your Heart)" (the latter composed by Dickie Goodman of "Flying Saucer" novelty notoriety) were good songs...but were also the third and fourth consecutive ballads. "Gift O' Gabbin' Woman" was over-the-top, probably a little too wild...and chosen as a B side anyway. "Comin' Home," a strong, uptempo number, was a better choice...but strayed pretty far from the "signature" Nutmegs sound. This was a very talented group, but the stars just weren't aligning.
In 1956, Tyson decided to leave and pursue a gospel path; he was replaced by James "Sonny" Washburn, who'd been with Providence, Rhode Island group The Five Dukes. Not long after that, Emery decided to leave and his spot was taken by Eddie Martin, who'd left The Five Satins (but rejoined them after the huge success of "In the Still of the Nite" on Ember, a Herald label). Renaming themselves The Rajahs, Griffin's group had one single on the even-smaller Connecticut label Klik; "I Fell in Love," with a slightly different approach, stiffed nonetheless (but it's infectious). Herald took them back for "My Sweet Dream" in '59 and "Rip Van Winkle" in '62. Several singles appeared in 1963 and '64 on Times Square, typically a reissue label, though in this case the songs were unreleased, acapella recordings from the group's Klik demo sessions; Griffin and Washburn traded lead duties on some of these tracks.
Tragedy struck in September 1966 when a fluke accident at Coca Cola's Connecticut factory, where Leroy Griffin was working, took his life. The group had quit recording and performing by that time, but reunited in 1971, with Harold Jaynes as a new lead and Sonny Griffin, Coco Tyson, Leroy McNeil and Sonny Washburn eagerly resuming their places. They did several shows in New York and parts of New England for the next couple of years. Billy Vera, a fan of the group, produced a single with them, "Tell Me" (backed by Vera's band), flipped with "Story Untold '72." Vera produced an entire album, Street Corner Soul, issued on Strawberry Records in 1976. McNeil had died in a stabbing just a few months earlier. More devastation occurred when, in 1991, a robbery resulted in Tyson's death. Jaynes and Washburn, who hadn't been in the original quartet, performed under the group's name for several more years.
The importance of "Story Untold" can't be understated. It's one of a select handful of classics that ushered in the unofficial start of the rock and roll era, post-"Rock Around the Clock," in the spring and summer of 1955. These include "I've Got a Woman" by Ray Charles, "Ain't That a Shame" by Fats Domino, "Bo Diddley" by Bo Diddley, "Maybellene" by Chuck Berry, "Only You" by The Platters and a number of other trailblazing tunes that are world famous. The Nutmegs' ballad was right there in the thick of it all and stands today as an influential early rock and roll and doo wop hit.
