Biography
Music historians long puzzled over the story of the Cabineers, the R&B harmony ensemble. Marv Goldberg’s December 2001 Discoveries profile clarified that a Cleveland quartet using the name had formed as early as 1935, yet that unit never entered a studio; the recording group instead originated in New York City with lead tenor William Westbrook, alto Maggie Furman—who later married Westbrook—baritone and arranger Count Cablo, and bass Matthew McKinney.
Frequent weekday broadcasts on WINS quickly built a following, prompting a late-1940 Decca contract; their first release, “How Was I to Know,” reached stores only in summer 1941. Following the autumn 1941 single “Let the Party Go On,” Cablo and McKinney entered military service for World War II, temporarily replaced by future Ink Spots members Herb Kenny and Adriel McDonald. By mid-1946, when the original members headlined a month-long engagement at Harlem’s Murrains nightclub, the founding lineup had reassembled, although no further recordings appeared until the group joined the new Abbey label in summer 1949 for “Whirlpool.” “How Can I Help It?” arrived that autumn, yet neither side attracted buyers. The Cabineers resurfaced on Prestige with “My, My, My” in 1951; after the October release “Each Time,” Cablo and McKinney departed once more, and James Peele (tenor) and Samuel “Brother Brown” Copney (bass), formerly of the Keys of Harmony, took their places. This configuration cut “Baby Mine,” issued by Prestige in January 1952—the quartet’s last record. When Peele and Copney returned to gospel, the Cabineers disbanded around 1954.
Frequent weekday broadcasts on WINS quickly built a following, prompting a late-1940 Decca contract; their first release, “How Was I to Know,” reached stores only in summer 1941. Following the autumn 1941 single “Let the Party Go On,” Cablo and McKinney entered military service for World War II, temporarily replaced by future Ink Spots members Herb Kenny and Adriel McDonald. By mid-1946, when the original members headlined a month-long engagement at Harlem’s Murrains nightclub, the founding lineup had reassembled, although no further recordings appeared until the group joined the new Abbey label in summer 1949 for “Whirlpool.” “How Can I Help It?” arrived that autumn, yet neither side attracted buyers. The Cabineers resurfaced on Prestige with “My, My, My” in 1951; after the October release “Each Time,” Cablo and McKinney departed once more, and James Peele (tenor) and Samuel “Brother Brown” Copney (bass), formerly of the Keys of Harmony, took their places. This configuration cut “Baby Mine,” issued by Prestige in January 1952—the quartet’s last record. When Peele and Copney returned to gospel, the Cabineers disbanded around 1954.