Chairmen of the Board
Encyclopedia
Chairmen of the Board is a Detroit, Michigan
based soul music
group
active mostly in the 1970s, that is still touring today.
(May 23, 1943, Norfolk
, Virginia
– October 13, 2010 in Atlanta, Georgia
) had a hit
as the lead singer of The Showmen
in the early 1960s, with the New Orleans
rock and roll
anthem "It Will Stand" and Carolina Beach classic "39-21-40 Shape".
When Holland/Dozier/Holland left Motown
in 1967 to establish their own Invictus
/Hot Wax
group of record label
s, they teamed Johnson up with Eddie Custis, Danny Woods and Canadian
born Harrison Kennedy as the new company's flagship act, under the appropriate name "Chairmen of the Board". Custis left the group after their second album
.
Though they all had a turn at lead vocals, it was Johnson's quirky hiccup-laden style and his songwriting
which became increasingly showcased, with the group selling a million plus copies of their single
, "Give Me Just a Little More Time
". The disc
was released in December 1969, reached #3 on the Billboard Hot 100
, with one million sales confirmed in May 1970, when the group were presented with a gold record
by the R.I.A.A.
Chairmen of the Board also scored with "You've Got Me Dangling On A String", "Pay To the Piper", "Everything's Tuesday", "Working On A Building Of Love", "Elmo James", "Finders Keepers", and the original version of "Patches", a Grammy Award
winning ballad
when later covered
with success by Clarence Carter
.
Kennedy, Woods and Johnson all went on to record
solo
albums, whilst Johnson wrote and produced
(with Greg Perry) for other Invictus/Hot Wax acts, notably Honey Cone
. Kennedy having left, Johnson and Woods toured the UK
in 1976 with six musicians as Chairmen of the Board, but were not as successful as before. The act was broken up immediately afterwards, Johnson having signed for Arista Records
as a solo artist
.
In 1978, Johnson reformed the Chairmen of the Board along with Danny Woods and Ken Knox. In 1980, the new Chairmen founded Surfside Records, for which the group still records. Surfside Records is an independent record label
based in Charlotte, North Carolina
. The reformed group had a regional hit with "Carolina Girls
", a popular beach music
song in North and South Carolina.
General Johnson continued to perform with Woods and Knox as the "Chairmen of the Board" until his death from lung cancer
in 2010.
Woods left the group to pursue a solo career, but Knox continued to tour in 2011 as "The Chairmen of the Board" with new members, Thomas Hunter and Richard [Riche Rich] Carey Figueroa. They have plans to record a new album and a live album
.
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
based soul music
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
group
Musical ensemble
A musical ensemble is a group of people who perform instrumental or vocal music. In classical music, trios or quartets either blend the sounds of musical instrument families or group together instruments from the same instrument family, such as string ensembles or wind ensembles...
active mostly in the 1970s, that is still touring today.
Recording career
General Norman JohnsonGeneral Norman Johnson
General Norman Johnson was the frontman of Chairmen of the Board and an American rhythm and blues songwriter and record producer.-Biography:...
(May 23, 1943, Norfolk
Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 242,803 as of the 2010 Census, it is Virginia's second-largest city behind neighboring Virginia Beach....
, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
– October 13, 2010 in Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. According to the 2010 census, Atlanta's population is 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest metropolitan area in...
) had a hit
Hit record
A hit record is a sound recording, usually in the form of a single or album, that sells a large number of copies or otherwise becomes broadly popular or well-known, through airplay, club play, inclusion in a film or stage play soundtrack, causing it to have "hit" one of the popular chart listings...
as the lead singer of The Showmen
The Showmen
The Showmen were a New Orleans based American doo-wop and R&B group. formed in 1961. They are best remembered for their track, "It Will Stand", issued on Minit Records. "It Will Stand" reached #61 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1961, and when re-released in 1964 re-charted and reached #80...
in the early 1960s, with the New Orleans
New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
rock and roll
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
anthem "It Will Stand" and Carolina Beach classic "39-21-40 Shape".
When Holland/Dozier/Holland left Motown
Motown Records
Motown is a record label originally founded by Berry Gordy, Jr. and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation in Detroit, Michigan, United States, on April 14, 1960. The name, a portmanteau of motor and town, is also a nickname for Detroit...
in 1967 to establish their own Invictus
Invictus Records
Invictus Records was an American record label based in Detroit, Michigan created by Edward Holland, Jr., Lamont Dozier and Brian Holland...
/Hot Wax
Hot Wax Records
Hot Wax Records was a Detroit, Michigan-based record label, created by producers/songwriters Holland–Dozier–Holland in 1968 when they left Motown...
group of record label
Record label
In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...
s, they teamed Johnson up with Eddie Custis, Danny Woods and Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
born Harrison Kennedy as the new company's flagship act, under the appropriate name "Chairmen of the Board". Custis left the group after their second album
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
.
Though they all had a turn at lead vocals, it was Johnson's quirky hiccup-laden style and his songwriting
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
which became increasingly showcased, with the group selling a million plus copies of their single
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
, "Give Me Just a Little More Time
Give Me Just a Little More Time
"Give Me Just a Little More Time" is the debut single for Chairmen of the Board, released in 1970 through Capitol Records on Holland–Dozier–Holland's Invictus Records label....
". The disc
Gramophone record
A gramophone record, commonly known as a phonograph record , vinyl record , or colloquially, a record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove...
was released in December 1969, reached #3 on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
, with one million sales confirmed in May 1970, when the group were presented with a gold record
Music recording sales certification
Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,...
by the R.I.A.A.
Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States...
Chairmen of the Board also scored with "You've Got Me Dangling On A String", "Pay To the Piper", "Everything's Tuesday", "Working On A Building Of Love", "Elmo James", "Finders Keepers", and the original version of "Patches", a Grammy Award
Grammy Awards of 1971
The 13th Grammy Awards were held on 16 March 1971, and was the first time the ceremonies were broadcast on television by ABC. They recognized accomplishments by musicians from the year 1970...
winning ballad
Ballad
A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads were particularly characteristic of British and Irish popular poetry and song from the later medieval period until the 19th century and used extensively across Europe and later the Americas, Australia and North Africa. Many...
when later covered
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
with success by Clarence Carter
Clarence Carter
Clarence Carter is a blind American soul singer and musician.-Life and career:Born in Montgomery, Alabama on 14 January 1936, Carter attended the Alabama School for the Blind in Talladega, Alabama, and Alabama State College in Montgomery, graduating in August 1960 with a Bachelor of Science degree...
.
Kennedy, Woods and Johnson all went on to record
Sound recording and reproduction
Sound recording and reproduction is an electrical or mechanical inscription and re-creation of sound waves, such as spoken voice, singing, instrumental music, or sound effects. The two main classes of sound recording technology are analog recording and digital recording...
solo
Solo (music)
In music, a solo is a piece or a section of a piece played or sung by a single performer...
albums, whilst Johnson wrote and produced
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
(with Greg Perry) for other Invictus/Hot Wax acts, notably Honey Cone
Honey Cone
Honey Cone was an American R&B and soul all girl vocal group, who are best remembered for their Billboard #1 hit single, "Want Ads". They were the premier female group for Hot Wax Records, operated by Holland–Dozier–Holland after they had departed from Motown Records.-Career:Honey Cone comprised...
. Kennedy having left, Johnson and Woods toured the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
in 1976 with six musicians as Chairmen of the Board, but were not as successful as before. The act was broken up immediately afterwards, Johnson having signed for Arista Records
Arista Records
Arista was an American record label. It was a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment and operated under the RCA Music Group. The label was founded in 1974 by Clive Davis, who formerly worked for CBS Records...
as a solo artist
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
.
In 1978, Johnson reformed the Chairmen of the Board along with Danny Woods and Ken Knox. In 1980, the new Chairmen founded Surfside Records, for which the group still records. Surfside Records is an independent record label
Independent record label
An independent record label is a record label operating without the funding of or outside the organizations of the major record labels. A great number of bands and musical acts begin on independent labels.-Overview:...
based in Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte is the largest city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the seat of Mecklenburg County. In 2010, Charlotte's population according to the US Census Bureau was 731,424, making it the 17th largest city in the United States based on population. The Charlotte metropolitan area had a 2009...
. The reformed group had a regional hit with "Carolina Girls
Carolina Girls
Carolina Girls is a song by General Norman Johnson of Chairmen of the Board. The song was recorded and released as a single in 1980 on the album Carolina Girl by Surfside Records. While never topping the charts, the song has persisted over the years to become a part of the South Carolina and...
", a popular beach music
Beach music
Beach music, also known as Carolina beach music, is a regional genre which developed from various musical styles of the forties, fifties and sixties. These styles ranged from big band swing instrumentals to the more raucous sounds of blues/jump blues, jazz, doo-wop, boogie, rhythm and blues,...
song in North and South Carolina.
General Johnson continued to perform with Woods and Knox as the "Chairmen of the Board" until his death from lung cancer
Lung cancer
Lung cancer is a disease characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. If left untreated, this growth can spread beyond the lung in a process called metastasis into nearby tissue and, eventually, into other parts of the body. Most cancers that start in lung, known as primary...
in 2010.
Woods left the group to pursue a solo career, but Knox continued to tour in 2011 as "The Chairmen of the Board" with new members, Thomas Hunter and Richard [Riche Rich] Carey Figueroa. They have plans to record a new album and a live album
Live album
A live album is a recording consisting of material recorded during stage performances using remote recording techniques, commonly contrasted with a studio album...
.
Albums
| Year | Album | U.S. Top 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
U.S. R&B Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a chart published by Billboard magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The name of the chart was changed from Top R&B Albums in 1999... |
UK Albums Chart UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... |
||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970 | The Chairmen of the Board 1 | 133 | 27 | - | ||
| 1970 | In Session | 117 | 16 | - | ||
| 1972 | Bittersweet | 178 | - | - | ||
| 1973 | Greatest Hits 2 | - | - | - | ||
| 1974 | Skin I'm In | - | 52 | - | ||
| 2006 | Beach Music Anthology | - | - | - | ||
Notes:
|
||||||
Charting singles discography
| Year | A-side A-side and B-side A-side and B-side originally referred to the two sides of gramophone records on which singles were released beginning in the 1950s. The terms have come to refer to the types of song conventionally placed on each side of the record, with the A-side being the featured song , while the B-side, or... / B-side A-side and B-side A-side and B-side originally referred to the two sides of gramophone records on which singles were released beginning in the 1950s. The terms have come to refer to the types of song conventionally placed on each side of the record, with the A-side being the featured song , while the B-side, or... |
Album | U.S. Hot 100 Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
U.S. R&B Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,... |
UK Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970 | "Give Me Just a Little More Time Give Me Just a Little More Time "Give Me Just a Little More Time" is the debut single for Chairmen of the Board, released in 1970 through Capitol Records on Holland–Dozier–Holland's Invictus Records label.... "/ "Since The Days Of Pigtails" |
The Chairmen of the Board | 3 | 8 | 3 |
| 1970 | "You've Got Me Dangling On A String"/ "I'll Come Crawling" |
The Chairmen of the Board | 38 | 19 | 5 |
| 1970 | "Everything's Tuesday"/ "Patches" |
In Session | 38 | 14 | 12 |
| 1971 | "Pay To The Piper"/ "Bless You" |
In Session | 13 | 4 | 34 |
| 1971 | "Chairman Of The Board"/ "When Will She Tell Me She Needs Me" |
In Session | 42 | 10 | 48 |
| 1971 | "Hanging On to a Memory"/ "Tricked And Trapped" |
In Session | - | 28 | - |
| 1971 | "Try On My Love For Size"/ "Working On A Building Of Love" |
- | - 48 |
20 | |
| 1971 | "Men Are Getting Scarce"/ "Bravo, Hooray" |
Bittersweet | - | 33 | - |
| 1972 | "Everybody's Got A Song To Sing"/ "Working On A Building Of Love" |
- | - 30 |
- | |
| 1972 | "Elmo James"/ "Bittersweet" |
Bittersweet | - | - | 21 |
| 1972 | "I'm On My Way To A Better Place"/ "So Glad You're Mine" |
Fresh | - | - | 30 |
| 1973 | "Finders Keepers"/ "Finders Keepers" (Instrumental Instrumental An instrumental is a musical composition or recording without lyrics or singing, although it might include some non-articulate vocal input; the music is primarily or exclusively produced by musical instruments.... ) |
Skin I'm In | 59 | 7 | 21 |
| 1974 | "Everybody Party All Night"/ "Morning Glory" (Instrumental) |
Skin I'm In | - | 80 | - |
| 1986 | "Lover Boy" (billed as General Johnson and the Chairmen of the Board) |
n/a | - | - | 56 |