Biography
In 1954 H.B. Barnum assembled the Dootones in Los Angeles, California, already a veteran performer at the time. Four years earlier, at age 12, he had cut a record for Imperial Records under the name Pee Wee Barnum; a self-taught piano prodigy, he had already played concerts throughout L.A. The first lineup consisted entirely of teenagers: Barnum (given name Hidle), Ronald Barrett, Charles Gardner, and Marvin Wilkins. The young doo-wop group rehearsed at the Aliso Projects, Barnum’s home, and made their initial recordings in 1955 for Dootone Records owner Walter “Dootsie” Williams, who had previously used them as background singers for the Penguins and the Meadowlarks. That original incarnation issued just one single, “Teller of Fortune,” which moved well in local markets yet never registered elsewhere. After Gardner departed to join Vernon Green & the Medallions, the group soon disbanded. In the early 1960s Dootsie unexpectedly reactivated the Dootones name for two singles, “The Day You Said Goodbye” and “Sailor Boy,” performed by an unrelated set of singers; nevertheless, the flip side of the first release carried “Strange Love Affair,” a track the original members had cut years before. Barnum remained the only participant to sustain a career in music. Following stints singing with the Penguins and the Robins, he moved into production for Lou Rawls and the O’Jays. He established his own imprint, Little Star Records, yet placed all subsequent O’Jays material on Imperial and later Minit Records after the label’s debut release. He also arranged and conducted road shows for Barry White, Tom Jones, and Aretha Franklin, and during Motown’s peak years he served as the favored arranger for the Holland-Dozier-Holland production team.