Shep & The Limelites was an American doo-wop group of the early 1960s.[1] They are best known for their 1961 hit recording, "Daddy's Home".
James Sheppard ("Shep") and Clarence Bassett, both from Queens County, New York, and Charles Baskerville, originally from Virginia, organized a group in Queens in 1960. This was billed initially as Shane Sheppard And The Limelites, but quickly became Shep and the Limelites. All three had previous experience in other groups: Shep with The Heartbeats (notable for "A Thousand Miles Away"); Bassett with The Five Sharps and then, with Baskerville, in The Videos.[1]
Shep & The Limelites' recording sessions for Hull Records started in August 1960. They recorded the original version of "Daddy's Home" on February 1, 1961. "Daddy's Home" reached no. 2 on the Billboard popular music chart in May,[1] and was covered by Jermaine Jackson (1972), Toots and the Maytals (Funky Kingston 1973), and Junior English. Later songs were not as successful as "Daddy's Home", but still sold well; among these were "What Did Daddy Do", "Ready For Your Love" and "Our Anniversary".[2]
Kahl Music, publisher of "A Thousand Miles Away", an earlier song written by Sheppard, sued Keel Music, publisher of "Daddy's Home", for copyright violation. Keel eventually lost, and this resulted in the end of the Limelites and Hull Records in 1966. Bassett joined The Flamingos and Baskerville joined The Players and then The Drifters.[1] Sheppard re-formed the Limelites in the late 1960s, but died on January 24, 1970.[1] He was found dead in his car on the Long Island Expressway, having been beaten and robbed.[2][3] Baskerville died, at age 58 on January 18, 1995 in New York.[4] Bassett died on January 25, 2005, at age 68 from the complications of emphysema, at his home in Richmond, Virginia.[5]