The Silhouettes

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The Silhouettes
The Silhouettes

The Silhouettes were an American doo wop/R&B group whose single "Get A Job" was a #1 hit on the Billboard R&B singles chart and pop singles chart in 1958. The doo-wop revival group Sha Na Na derived their name from the song's lyrics. "Get A Job"' is included in the soundtracks of the movies, American Graffiti, Trading Places and Stand By Me.

[edit] Group Members

  • Richard Lewis (tenor, 1933 - 2005)
  • Bill Horton (lead, 1929 - 1995)
  • Earl Beal (baritone, 1924 - 2001)
  • Raymond Edwards (bass, 1922 - 1997)

[edit] Career

The Silhouettes were formed in Philadelphia Pennsylvania in 1956, at first using the name The Thunderbirds. Their classic hit "Get A Job" - originally the B-side to "I Am Lonely" - was issued by their manager on the local Junior Records label before being sold to the nationally distributed Ember label in late 1957. It reached #1 on both the R&B and pop charts in U.S. and the group performed it on television's American Bandstand.

The lyrics of "Get a Job" are notable for the depiction of a household in tension because of unemployment, despite the man's desperate attempts to find work, all delivered in a relentlessly upbeat style. A second release, "We're Heading for the Poorhouse" continued the economic theme. It was one of the few songs to allude to inflation, the trip to the poorhouse being because "all our money turned brown". It was less successful, though also rollicking.

The Silhouettes toured with Sam Cooke, Jackie Wilson, Clyde McPhatter and others but the group never reached the top of the charts again. They disbanded in 1968, but the four original members reformed the group in the 1980s and continued to work until 1993.

[edit] External links