Song:Stay Awhile
Album:20th Century Masters: The Millennium Collection: The Best Of The Bells
After success in their native Canada, The Bells scored a top ten pop hit with Stay Awhile in 1971. You have probably heard the song but know nothing about the group. And the song is probably too creepy to get airplay on oldies radio today. The Bells are from Montreal. Cliff Edwards and future wife Anne Ralph started out as a duo performing in local clubs. It turned into a full band called The Five Bells. They scored a minor hit in Canada with Moody Manitoba Morning in 1969. They released the album Dimensions on Polydor and went on tour. But Edwards didn't like touring and Anne got pregnant. Edwards decided to end the band. But Anne's sister Jackie Ralph and drummer Doug Gravelle decided to continue as The Bells. They added pianist Frank Mills, guitarist Charlie Clark and bassist Michael Waye. When Mills left to go solo, he was replaced by Dennis Will. Edwards was still producing and they released the album Fly, Little White Dove, Fly. After the title song was a top ten hit in Canada and then Stay Awhile topped the Canadian charts, Polydor released it in the US and it reached #7 on the Billboard Hot 100. Cliff and Anne sang lead despite Cliff not wanting to be in the group. Stay Awhile was written by Ken Tobias who would go on to some success as a solo artist in Canada. The Bells recorded two more albums and then Edwards went solo to get off the road. One of the problems I see with Edwards is he isn't a songwriter. If you check out The Bells discography, he certainly made some questionable song choices. This budget comp was released by Universal Canada. Jackie Ralph and Charlie Clark continued The Bells and recorded another album before Polydor dropped them. The group has reunited occasionally and the Edwards' daughter Jessica Edwards released The Bells documentary Stay Awhile in 2014. Here's a video for Stay Awhile by The Bells.
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