The Ames Brothers

During the 1950s few vocal groups could rival the Ames Brothers for polished close-harmony singing. The quartet, whose legal surname was Urick rather than Ames, scored a number-one single in 1950 with “Sentimental Me” and reached an even greater commercial peak three years later with “You, You, You.” Joe, Gene, Vic, and Ed, all born within a four-year span in Malden, Massachusetts, first gained notice by winning local talent contests, after which they relocated to Boston and began working nightclubs. From there the brothers advanced to engagements in New York and Los Angeles, eventually signing with the Coral label in late 1958. Following several modest successes, they broke through in early 1950 with the double-sided chart-topper “Rag Mop”/“Sentimental Me.” The B-side proved the stronger draw, and the group returned to the upper ranks in 1951 with “Undecided.” Their career pinnacle arrived with the 1953 smash “You You You,” and continued momentum in 1954 via “The Naughty Lady of Shady Land” earned them a network television series of their own.

Although the foursome kept recording through the remainder of the decade, the arrival of rock and roll curtailed their momentum; they managed two additional Top Ten entries in 1957 (“Tammy” and “Melodie d’Amour”) before disbanding in 1959. Youngest member Ed sustained a solo career that included the role of Mingo, a Native American character on the Daniel Boone television series, a Broadway stage appearance, and his own Top Ten single, the 1967 release “My Cup Runneth Over.”