Biography
The Inspirators ranked among the numerous doo wop ensembles that formed in Brooklyn’s Bedford-Stuyvesant section. Marv Goldberg’s March 1997 Discoveries profile states that lead singer Cleo Perry, first tenor William Massey, second tenor Clifton Johnson, baritone Barney Fields, and bass Buster Boyce were still attending high school when the five began working together in 1949. Local acts the Velours and the Strangers served as their chief models; the group became a steady attraction on Brooklyn’s club scene and finished second in its only appearance at the Apollo Theater’s amateur night, yet remained largely inactive until the mid-1950s, when the members regularly gathered near the Brill Building. Their street-corner harmonies drew the notice of Treat Records general manager Larry Newton, who signed them to a contract. The Inspirators’ first release, “If Loving You Is Wrong,” reached stores in April 1955 but generated scant interest. Newton inexplicably listed the follow-up, “Let’s Fall in Love,” under the name the Five Stars; it likewise made no commercial headway. Several further Treat sessions yielded nothing that saw release. Newton ended the arrangement in early 1958, and the group’s last record, “Starlight Tonight,” appeared on Old Town midway through the year. Its lack of success effectively ended the Inspirators, although Perry subsequently performed in clubs and the Catskills as a soloist and issued singles on Dot under the names Lee Perry and Perry Lee.
Albums