The Excellents

Originally assembled in the Bronx as the Premiers during 1960, the six-member lineup that included siblings John Kuse and George Kuse along with Denis Kestenbaum, Phil Sanchez, Joel Feldman, and Chuck Epstein soon adopted the name the Excellents. Their performances drew the attention of Vinny Catalano at Sinclair Records, prompting a 1961 studio session that produced an uptempo reading of Al Jolson’s 1926 standard “Red Red Robin,” later issued on Mermaid Records. The same year the group cut a rocked-up rendition of the Cleftones’ “You Baby You,” which Blast Records paired with Catalano’s own composition “Coney Island Baby” as its B-side. Regional disc jockeys in New York began favoring the flip in 1962, lifting “Coney Island Baby” into the national Top 20. After that brief breakthrough, the Excellents remained largely silent; their designated final Blast single, the 1963 release “I Hear a Rhapsody,” was in fact performed by a different ensemble, the Ultimates. An additional 1964 single coupling “Helene” with “Sunday Kind of Love” surfaced on Bobby Records under the name the Excellons, although it still featured the original members. Decades later the lasting appeal of the doo wop staple “Coney Island Baby” prompted the formation of a touring iteration of the Excellents. Reduced to a quartet that continues to spotlight John Kuse’s lead vocals, the current lineup also includes Mal Bronson, John Accardo, and Joe Noto.