Song:Color Him Father
Album:Dick Bartley Presents Collector's Essentials: On The Radio, Vol. 5
The 1969 top ten hit Color Him Father was the only hit for Washington, DC based soul group The Winstons. But don't worry. They've made a lot of money from sampling. The group was led by lead singer and tenor sax player Richard Spencer along with G.C. Coleman on drums, Ray Maritano on alto sax, Quincy Mattison on lead guitar, Sonny Pekerol on bass and Phil Tolotta on organ. Most of them had backed up Otis Redding and then signed with Curtom Records and backed up The Impressions. They only recorded one single at Curtom and then signed with Metromedia Records. Metromedia primarily owned TV and radio stations across the US. They got into the record business in 1969. Their biggest star was Bobby Sherman and they closed in 1974 after mixed results. Spencer obviously wrote Color Him Father as a tribute to his father. It reached #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #2 on the R & B singles chart. The B-side Amen Brother features what is now known today as The Amen Break, a drum break that has been sampled in hundreds of hip hop songs including Straight Outta Compton by NWA. That's a ka-ching for Spencer each time it is used. Richard Spencer left the music business in 1970 and went back to school and had a long career with the Washington Metro rapid transit. After retiring in 2000, Keb' Mo' covered Color Him Father on his 2001 CD Big Wide Grin. Spencer has led a version of The Winstons since then and records on his own label. You wouldn't know it by the title and cover of this various artists comp from Varese but this is a great soul sampler so check it out. Dick Bartley is a DJ and has hosted sydicated radio shows for years. Here's The Winstons performing Color Him Father 2009.
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