Posted on 07/19/2015 8:33:23 AM PDT by SMGFan
Dave Somerville, founder and lead singer of the popular 1950s rock-n-roll band The Diamonds, died Wednesday in California at age 81.
Tagged with the moniker "Diamond Dave," Somerville discovered The Diamonds during a talent show audition in 1953; he signed on as their coach and then became their lead singer, Billboard reported.
Somerville told Tom Meros in an interview that he was a radio engineer for the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. in Toronto, Canada, when he saw four guys lined up to audition in a hallway. He asked them to sing a song and started working with the quartet.
(Excerpt) Read more at newsmax.com ...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ysVLzXWnTzA Always heard them on the radio. But they are having fun here.
I have ‘Little Darlin’” on the American Graffiti soundtrack album (on iTunes).
It’s on my travel playlist in my vehicle and comes up once every few weeks
The one hit wonders as well as the big stars are slowy passing us by. RIP
Saw them at Tahoe once. Not a huge body of
work unlike the Drifters. But like the
Drifters there were so many different members
and incarnations throughout the years you
couldn’t tell if you were hearing the
authentic group. I once heard over 50 groups
across the country call themselves The Drifters.
ping
That’s where I heard that song—in American Graffiti. Before that I guess it was all those K-Tel record commercials.
This is one of my all-time favorites from my teenie bopper days.
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I used to watch American Bandstand all the time...i loved it.
RIP Dave Diamond.
“Little Darlin’” is, to me, the greatest rock & roll song ever written.
Very sad to hear of Mr. Somerville’s passing.
RIP
I was in the 6th grade when “Little Darlin’” was released. I was just starting to get into rock ‘n roll. Up to that time, about all I ever heard in my house was Perry Como or Patti Page. I started changing the stations on the radio when my parents weren’t home. That caused some furrowed brows.
The first “concert” I attended was a sock hop in a roller rink in Tulsa. It headlined Chuck Berry and the opening group was the Diamonds. Had to be 57 or 58 getting hard to be that exact.
RIP.
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