Biography
During the late 1950s and into the mid-1960s, doo wop acts by the thousands supplied the soundtrack for street-corner gatherings, teen clubs, and local dances throughout New York and many other American cities. A few, among them the Belmonts, reached national stardom and even international notice, while the bulk stayed unknown beyond their immediate blocks. The Bob Knight Four occupied an intermediate position: a Bedford-Stuyvesant quartet from Brooklyn—when that neighborhood still contained a sizable white population—secured a major-label release yet never climbed above the bottom rungs of the Billboard Hot 100.
Their story began with an amateur ensemble called the Dolphins at Franklin K. Lane High School in East New York, started by Ralph Garrone, Louie Martino, John Roper, and Joe Nappier. The group cut John Roper’s original “Hymn of Love,” a session that revealed promise in Roper and Garrone without leading to further work under that lineup. Seeking stronger local voices, they soon assembled a new act with Bob Bovino—already known locally from his appearances on the pre-teen showcase Star Time—handling lead, Paul Ferrigno as first tenor, Garrone taking second tenor and baritone duties, Nappier on bass, and Charlie Licata rounding out the sound. They adopted the name the Bobby Dells, began regular neighborhood performances that built a following, and cut demos in pursuit of a recording contract. Licata’s draft notice in 1959 reduced the Bobby Dells to a quartet.
A local manager and promoter arranged an introduction to Laurel Records owner Tony Sepe, who agreed to record the group but insisted on a fresh name. The resulting Bob Knight Four issued their first single, “Good Good Bye,” which became a regional success, reaching the local Top Ten on some New York charts as well as playlists in Philadelphia and parts of California. Their next two Laurel releases underperformed, partly because airplay for the first follow-up split between its A- and B-sides. Larger prospects arrived when Michael Eichner, then at Jubilee Records and later a Columbia Records vice president, secured the quartet a deal with his label. In April 1962 Jubilee issued their fourth single, “Memories” b/w “Somewhere.” While the group worked on additional Jubilee sides over the ensuing months, Laurel began licensing their earlier masters—sometimes with newly recorded backing tracks and unrelated B-sides—to other independent labels. The Bob Knight Four also supplied demos for Jubilee-affiliated songwriters and artists, most notably Bob Nemser’s “Cara Mia,” which later became a hit for Jay & the Americans. Nemser assumed management of the group during the mid-1960s, a period when the original lineup fractured under the weight of the British Invasion and waning interest in harmony vocal music.
Charlie Licata rejoined Garrone and Nappier in a reconstituted Bob Knight Four that featured Eddie Delmar and Frank Iovino on lead. The ensemble persisted into 1966, at one point crossing paths with the Tokens, and hoped to record for the Tokens’ B.T. Puppy label, though that arrangement never materialized. A version of the group remained active into the early 1970s and benefited from the oldies revival, releasing a greatest-hits LP on the Kape label. The Bob Knight Four continued appearing on the oldies circuit into the 1990s until Garrone succumbed to cancer; performances carried on through the middle of the decade with his younger brother taking his place.
Their story began with an amateur ensemble called the Dolphins at Franklin K. Lane High School in East New York, started by Ralph Garrone, Louie Martino, John Roper, and Joe Nappier. The group cut John Roper’s original “Hymn of Love,” a session that revealed promise in Roper and Garrone without leading to further work under that lineup. Seeking stronger local voices, they soon assembled a new act with Bob Bovino—already known locally from his appearances on the pre-teen showcase Star Time—handling lead, Paul Ferrigno as first tenor, Garrone taking second tenor and baritone duties, Nappier on bass, and Charlie Licata rounding out the sound. They adopted the name the Bobby Dells, began regular neighborhood performances that built a following, and cut demos in pursuit of a recording contract. Licata’s draft notice in 1959 reduced the Bobby Dells to a quartet.
A local manager and promoter arranged an introduction to Laurel Records owner Tony Sepe, who agreed to record the group but insisted on a fresh name. The resulting Bob Knight Four issued their first single, “Good Good Bye,” which became a regional success, reaching the local Top Ten on some New York charts as well as playlists in Philadelphia and parts of California. Their next two Laurel releases underperformed, partly because airplay for the first follow-up split between its A- and B-sides. Larger prospects arrived when Michael Eichner, then at Jubilee Records and later a Columbia Records vice president, secured the quartet a deal with his label. In April 1962 Jubilee issued their fourth single, “Memories” b/w “Somewhere.” While the group worked on additional Jubilee sides over the ensuing months, Laurel began licensing their earlier masters—sometimes with newly recorded backing tracks and unrelated B-sides—to other independent labels. The Bob Knight Four also supplied demos for Jubilee-affiliated songwriters and artists, most notably Bob Nemser’s “Cara Mia,” which later became a hit for Jay & the Americans. Nemser assumed management of the group during the mid-1960s, a period when the original lineup fractured under the weight of the British Invasion and waning interest in harmony vocal music.
Charlie Licata rejoined Garrone and Nappier in a reconstituted Bob Knight Four that featured Eddie Delmar and Frank Iovino on lead. The ensemble persisted into 1966, at one point crossing paths with the Tokens, and hoped to record for the Tokens’ B.T. Puppy label, though that arrangement never materialized. A version of the group remained active into the early 1970s and benefited from the oldies revival, releasing a greatest-hits LP on the Kape label. The Bob Knight Four continued appearing on the oldies circuit into the 1990s until Garrone succumbed to cancer; performances carried on through the middle of the decade with his younger brother taking his place.
Albums