Biography
The Dell-Vikings, known variously as the Del Vikings or Del-Vikings, possess one of the most triumphant yet labyrinthine and exasperating sagas among doo wop acts that reached national prominence. Possessing two major hits—“Come Go with Me” and “Whispering Bells”—one more than the typical successful ensemble from the style, they gained an edge over nearly every peer. Internal rifts, avarice, and misguided ambition nevertheless shattered their prospects for securing a permanent position at the summit of their field just as fame peaked. What remained were the pair of chart successes, an extensive catalog of strong yet lesser-known sides, and recognition as one of the period’s few integrated vocal groups to achieve commercial traction.
Five Black servicemen—first tenor Corinthian “Kripp” Johnson, bass Clarence E. Quick, second tenor Don Jackson, Bernard Robertson, and Samuel Paterson—formed the unit in 1955 while stationed at Pittsburgh Air Force Base, harmonizing initially in the camp recreation hall. After winning a base talent contest early the following year, they advanced to national competitions in New York and Bermuda, finishing first and second. Local disc jockey Barry Kaye soon expressed interest in recording the then-named Del Vikings.
Accounts of the name’s origin differ. One version holds that the members encountered the term Vikings in an encyclopedia and favored its resonance, the prefix “Del” remaining unexplained. Another maintains that Clarence Quick recalled a Brooklyn basketball squad called the Vikings and proposed the moniker.
Military transfers rendered the lineup unstable; by early 1956 Robertson and Paterson had been reassigned to Germany. Norman Wright (lead tenor) and David Lerchey (baritone) stepped in. Lerchey’s arrival as the first white member arose from immediate availability rather than deliberate planning, lending the group a modest distinction at a time when the Meadowlarks (“Heaven and Paradise”) and the Mariners—frequent guests on Arthur Godfrey’s television program—had already gained national visibility as integrated ensembles.
This configuration recorded nine a cappella tracks for Barry Kaye, among them nascent versions of Clarence E. Quick’s “Come Go with Me” and Kripp Johnson’s “How Can I Find True Love.” Major labels declined the rudimentary demos, yet Joe Auerbach of the small Pittsburgh imprint Fee Bee ultimately signed the act. A subsequent session produced a fully arranged “Come Go with Me,” supported by the group’s own band that included saxophonists Joe Lopes—later a prominent RCA engineer—and Gene Upshaw, with Norman Wright handling lead vocal duties.
Released late in 1956, the Fee Bee single exceeded the label’s distribution capacity, prompting Auerbach to lease it to Dot Records. The Dot edition surfaced in early 1957 and logged a 31-week chart run, peaking at number four pop and number three R&B during spring and early summer. National tours and a featured slot in one of Alan Freed’s Brooklyn Paramount presentations followed. Gus Backus replaced Don Jackson as second tenor, becoming the second white member, although military commitments periodically restricted full participation in live dates.
Fee Bee attempted to capitalize on momentum with an early-1957 single featuring the group as backup vocalists, yet it vanished without impact. Their crucial second hit, Clarence Quick’s “Whispering Bells,” arrived in late summer 1957 and climbed to number nine on the pop chart.
Behind the scenes, the success of “Come Go with Me” triggered competing label overtures. The group’s manager, who also served as legal counsel for the air base, identified a contractual loophole: several members had been under twenty-one when they signed with Fee Bee. He therefore negotiated a new Mercury contract covering those underage singers. Meanwhile the Fee Bee–Dot version of “Whispering Bells” remained in circulation, producing two rival aggregations—one styled the Dell-Vikings (retaining the spelling from the Dot release) featuring Kripp Johnson and the returned Don Jackson, the other the Del-Vikings on Mercury led by Clarence E. Quick alongside Norman Wright, David Lerchey, Gus Backus, and new arrival William Blakely.
Mercury controlled the majority of personnel from the original “Come Go with Me” recording plus its composer and lead singer, yet those members remained bound by military service and limited touring availability. Dot possessed founding member Kripp Johnson and another key vocalist, and its contingent, now free of service obligations, could tour freely. Further complications arose when Barry Kaye sold the 1956 a cappella demos to Luniverse Records, co-owned by Dickie Goodman and George Goldner. During the Dot single’s chart ascent, Luniverse overdubbed the tracks with a full band and issued eight of the nine songs in edited form on the LP Come Go with the Del-Vikings, along with a single pairing “Over the Rainbow” and “Hey Senorita.”
Dot’s Dell-Vikings follow-up “Whispering Bells” preceded Mercury’s “Cool Shake,” a brisk rocker fronted by Gus Backus that underperformed amid growing retailer and programmer confusion over two similarly named acts on separate labels. By summer 1957 both Mercury and Dot asserted ownership of the same coupling, “When I Come Home” backed with “I’m Spinning.” Litigation ensued; Mercury secured rights to the group name and all variants. Another configuration, with Joe Lopes substituting for David Lerchey, appeared with Fats Domino and the Diamonds in the 1957 film The Big Beat.
Kripp Johnson’s faction, rebranded the Versatiles and including Don Jackson, Chuck Jackson, Arthur Budd, and Ed Everette, continued recording without success. By year’s end Johnson rejoined the Mercury lineup, restoring the classic roster. National hits nevertheless ceased.
After the Mercury contract lapsed in 1959, the sextet—now comprising Johnson, Quick, Ritzy Lee, Billy Woodruff, Willie Green, and Douglas White—moved to ABC-Paramount following interim detours. Despite producing strong material, they enjoyed no further commercial breakthroughs, their arrangements increasingly echoing those of the Drifters. Activity concluded by 1965.
Clarence Quick revived the act amid the 1972 oldies resurgence; a new rendition of “Come Go with Me” on Scepter attracted Billboard notice in early 1973. In 1980 Kripp Johnson assembled another Dell-Vikings with Norman Wright, Ritzy Lee, John Byas, and David Lerchey. The two camps navigated separate touring routes until Quick’s death in 1985 and Johnson’s in 1990.
The shifting memberships, spellings, and label affiliations render discographical collection intricate. The primary Dot “Come Go with Me” personnel largely transferred to Mercury without additional major successes, rendering ownership of both Dot and Mercury sides advisable. Mercury’s 1957–1959 roster encompassed every key original member before the eventual ABC-Paramount transition; MCA now controls both Dot and ABC catalogs. MCA’s Best of the Del-Vikings compiles the group’s early and late classic phase (late 1956–mid-1957 and 1960–1963), Mercury documents the central period (mid-1957–1959), and both anthologies include “When I Come Home” and “I’m Spinning.” Collectables preserves the original 1956 demos under yet another Dell-Vikings lineup.
Regardless of spelling—Del-Vikings, Del Vikings, or Dell-Vikings—the ensemble produced one of the most rewarding bodies of R&B and doo wop outside the Drifters’ catalog. Enduring popularity of “Come Go with Me” and “Whispering Bells,” featured in George Lucas’s American Graffiti and Rob Reiner’s Stand by Me, has sustained their accessibility well into the compact-disc era. Former member Chuck Jackson died February 16, 2023, in Atlanta, Georgia, aged 85.
Five Black servicemen—first tenor Corinthian “Kripp” Johnson, bass Clarence E. Quick, second tenor Don Jackson, Bernard Robertson, and Samuel Paterson—formed the unit in 1955 while stationed at Pittsburgh Air Force Base, harmonizing initially in the camp recreation hall. After winning a base talent contest early the following year, they advanced to national competitions in New York and Bermuda, finishing first and second. Local disc jockey Barry Kaye soon expressed interest in recording the then-named Del Vikings.
Accounts of the name’s origin differ. One version holds that the members encountered the term Vikings in an encyclopedia and favored its resonance, the prefix “Del” remaining unexplained. Another maintains that Clarence Quick recalled a Brooklyn basketball squad called the Vikings and proposed the moniker.
Military transfers rendered the lineup unstable; by early 1956 Robertson and Paterson had been reassigned to Germany. Norman Wright (lead tenor) and David Lerchey (baritone) stepped in. Lerchey’s arrival as the first white member arose from immediate availability rather than deliberate planning, lending the group a modest distinction at a time when the Meadowlarks (“Heaven and Paradise”) and the Mariners—frequent guests on Arthur Godfrey’s television program—had already gained national visibility as integrated ensembles.
This configuration recorded nine a cappella tracks for Barry Kaye, among them nascent versions of Clarence E. Quick’s “Come Go with Me” and Kripp Johnson’s “How Can I Find True Love.” Major labels declined the rudimentary demos, yet Joe Auerbach of the small Pittsburgh imprint Fee Bee ultimately signed the act. A subsequent session produced a fully arranged “Come Go with Me,” supported by the group’s own band that included saxophonists Joe Lopes—later a prominent RCA engineer—and Gene Upshaw, with Norman Wright handling lead vocal duties.
Released late in 1956, the Fee Bee single exceeded the label’s distribution capacity, prompting Auerbach to lease it to Dot Records. The Dot edition surfaced in early 1957 and logged a 31-week chart run, peaking at number four pop and number three R&B during spring and early summer. National tours and a featured slot in one of Alan Freed’s Brooklyn Paramount presentations followed. Gus Backus replaced Don Jackson as second tenor, becoming the second white member, although military commitments periodically restricted full participation in live dates.
Fee Bee attempted to capitalize on momentum with an early-1957 single featuring the group as backup vocalists, yet it vanished without impact. Their crucial second hit, Clarence Quick’s “Whispering Bells,” arrived in late summer 1957 and climbed to number nine on the pop chart.
Behind the scenes, the success of “Come Go with Me” triggered competing label overtures. The group’s manager, who also served as legal counsel for the air base, identified a contractual loophole: several members had been under twenty-one when they signed with Fee Bee. He therefore negotiated a new Mercury contract covering those underage singers. Meanwhile the Fee Bee–Dot version of “Whispering Bells” remained in circulation, producing two rival aggregations—one styled the Dell-Vikings (retaining the spelling from the Dot release) featuring Kripp Johnson and the returned Don Jackson, the other the Del-Vikings on Mercury led by Clarence E. Quick alongside Norman Wright, David Lerchey, Gus Backus, and new arrival William Blakely.
Mercury controlled the majority of personnel from the original “Come Go with Me” recording plus its composer and lead singer, yet those members remained bound by military service and limited touring availability. Dot possessed founding member Kripp Johnson and another key vocalist, and its contingent, now free of service obligations, could tour freely. Further complications arose when Barry Kaye sold the 1956 a cappella demos to Luniverse Records, co-owned by Dickie Goodman and George Goldner. During the Dot single’s chart ascent, Luniverse overdubbed the tracks with a full band and issued eight of the nine songs in edited form on the LP Come Go with the Del-Vikings, along with a single pairing “Over the Rainbow” and “Hey Senorita.”
Dot’s Dell-Vikings follow-up “Whispering Bells” preceded Mercury’s “Cool Shake,” a brisk rocker fronted by Gus Backus that underperformed amid growing retailer and programmer confusion over two similarly named acts on separate labels. By summer 1957 both Mercury and Dot asserted ownership of the same coupling, “When I Come Home” backed with “I’m Spinning.” Litigation ensued; Mercury secured rights to the group name and all variants. Another configuration, with Joe Lopes substituting for David Lerchey, appeared with Fats Domino and the Diamonds in the 1957 film The Big Beat.
Kripp Johnson’s faction, rebranded the Versatiles and including Don Jackson, Chuck Jackson, Arthur Budd, and Ed Everette, continued recording without success. By year’s end Johnson rejoined the Mercury lineup, restoring the classic roster. National hits nevertheless ceased.
After the Mercury contract lapsed in 1959, the sextet—now comprising Johnson, Quick, Ritzy Lee, Billy Woodruff, Willie Green, and Douglas White—moved to ABC-Paramount following interim detours. Despite producing strong material, they enjoyed no further commercial breakthroughs, their arrangements increasingly echoing those of the Drifters. Activity concluded by 1965.
Clarence Quick revived the act amid the 1972 oldies resurgence; a new rendition of “Come Go with Me” on Scepter attracted Billboard notice in early 1973. In 1980 Kripp Johnson assembled another Dell-Vikings with Norman Wright, Ritzy Lee, John Byas, and David Lerchey. The two camps navigated separate touring routes until Quick’s death in 1985 and Johnson’s in 1990.
The shifting memberships, spellings, and label affiliations render discographical collection intricate. The primary Dot “Come Go with Me” personnel largely transferred to Mercury without additional major successes, rendering ownership of both Dot and Mercury sides advisable. Mercury’s 1957–1959 roster encompassed every key original member before the eventual ABC-Paramount transition; MCA now controls both Dot and ABC catalogs. MCA’s Best of the Del-Vikings compiles the group’s early and late classic phase (late 1956–mid-1957 and 1960–1963), Mercury documents the central period (mid-1957–1959), and both anthologies include “When I Come Home” and “I’m Spinning.” Collectables preserves the original 1956 demos under yet another Dell-Vikings lineup.
Regardless of spelling—Del-Vikings, Del Vikings, or Dell-Vikings—the ensemble produced one of the most rewarding bodies of R&B and doo wop outside the Drifters’ catalog. Enduring popularity of “Come Go with Me” and “Whispering Bells,” featured in George Lucas’s American Graffiti and Rob Reiner’s Stand by Me, has sustained their accessibility well into the compact-disc era. Former member Chuck Jackson died February 16, 2023, in Atlanta, Georgia, aged 85.
Albums
Whispering Bells
2023
The Pennsylvania Vikings
2022
The Best of... 20th Century Masters The Millennium Collection
2003
Come Go With Me: The Best Of The Del-Vikings
1997
The Best Of The Del Vikings
1996
Singles
