Biography
Although some prefer to label him a blues singer, Ollie Nightingale remains most closely associated with the intensely emotive Memphis soul he recorded between 1968 and 1970 while serving as lead vocalist for Ollie & the Nightingales.
Emerging directly from gospel traditions like many other standout soul vocalists, Ollie Hoskins assumed the role of front man for the Dixie Nightingales, a Memphis-based spiritual ensemble, by 1958, the year the group issued its first recording on the small Pepper label. Shaped by gospel figures Kylo Turner and Ira Tucker, Hoskins stayed with the aggregation through its 1962 transition to Nashboro and its subsequent move to Stax’s brief Chalice gospel imprint.
Stax executive Al Bell persuaded the ensemble to pursue secular material in 1968, yet their sanctified roots surface vividly in the melismatic delivery of the R&B successes “I Got a Sure Thing,” “You’re Leaving Me,” and “I’ve Got a Feeling.” At the decade’s turn Hoskins launched a solo career under the name Ollie Nightingale, placing two titles—“It’s a Sad Thing” and “May the Best Man Win”—on the R&B charts in 1971–72. The Nightingales persisted without him, enlisting Tommy Tate as his studio replacement.
Nightingale continued to enjoy popularity as a blues and soul performer in the Memphis area. In 1993 he appeared in a cameo role in the film The Firm, the thriller featuring Tom Cruise. Shortly afterward he began issuing a series of albums on Ecko Records, ultimately completing four for the label. His final effort, Ollie Style, appeared after his death from complications of untreated pneumonia.
Emerging directly from gospel traditions like many other standout soul vocalists, Ollie Hoskins assumed the role of front man for the Dixie Nightingales, a Memphis-based spiritual ensemble, by 1958, the year the group issued its first recording on the small Pepper label. Shaped by gospel figures Kylo Turner and Ira Tucker, Hoskins stayed with the aggregation through its 1962 transition to Nashboro and its subsequent move to Stax’s brief Chalice gospel imprint.
Stax executive Al Bell persuaded the ensemble to pursue secular material in 1968, yet their sanctified roots surface vividly in the melismatic delivery of the R&B successes “I Got a Sure Thing,” “You’re Leaving Me,” and “I’ve Got a Feeling.” At the decade’s turn Hoskins launched a solo career under the name Ollie Nightingale, placing two titles—“It’s a Sad Thing” and “May the Best Man Win”—on the R&B charts in 1971–72. The Nightingales persisted without him, enlisting Tommy Tate as his studio replacement.
Nightingale continued to enjoy popularity as a blues and soul performer in the Memphis area. In 1993 he appeared in a cameo role in the film The Firm, the thriller featuring Tom Cruise. Shortly afterward he began issuing a series of albums on Ecko Records, ultimately completing four for the label. His final effort, Ollie Style, appeared after his death from complications of untreated pneumonia.
Albums
