Five Red Caps

R&B combo the Five Red Caps formed in New York City in 1943. According to Marv Goldberg's profile in the November 1991 issue of Discoveries, the group was previously known as the Four Toppers, whose Los Angeles-based original lineup -- tenor/drummer Jimmy Springs, second tenor David Patillo, baritone/bass player Richard Davis, and bass singer/guitarist Steve Gibson -- represented a kind of local supergroup assembling the best voices from four other combos. After cutting the 1940 singles "Carry Me Back to Old Virginia" and "Jumpin' Jive" for Otis Rene's Armor label, the Four Toppers appeared in a handful of Hollywood films before relocating to the Big Apple. In 1942, Davis left the lineup, and with the additions of new bassist Doles Dickens and baritone/pianist Romaine Brown, the group renamed itself the Five Red Caps, borrowing the name from the headgear traditionally worn by baggage handlers. After signing with manager/producer Joe Davis, the quintet issued its 1943 debut single, "I'm the One," on his Beacon label -- a series of entries including "There's a Light on the Hill," "No Fish Today," and "Just for You" appeared in quick succession, but only the ballad "I Learned a Lesson I'll Never Forget" was a hit of any consequence, entering the pop Top 20 in early 1944. The Five Red Caps nevertheless renewed their contract with Davis in the spring of 1944, resulting in another flurry of singles including "Somebody's Lyin'," "Don't You Know," and "Sugar Lips." In all, some 20 singles appeared on Beacon in the span of little over a year before the Five Red Caps (who in fact counted six following the addition of second tenor/saxophonist Emmett Matthews) signed to Savoy in late 1944. Their lone single for the label, "If Money Grew on Trees," was credited to the Toppers after...