The Jive Bombers, distinct from the unrelated rockabilly act sharing that name, earned lasting recognition through their 1957 Savoy release “Bad Boy,” which climbed to the seventh position on the R&B charts. Comprising Earl Johnson, Al Tinney, William Tinney (known as “Pee Wee”), and lead singer Clarence Palmer, the quartet arose from the union of two earlier ensembles, Sonny Austin & the Jive Bombers and the Palmer Brothers. Initially performing under the name the Sparrows—a designation unrelated to the group that cut “Why Did You Leave Me?” for Jay Dee—they cut their first sides for Coral in 1949 before reverting to the Jive Bombers moniker upon moving to Citation Records in 1952.
Their lone chart entry, “Bad Boy,” credited to Avon Long and Lillian Hardin Armstrong (the pianist better remembered as Lil Hardin and Louis Armstrong’s spouse between 1924 and 1938), reached number 36 on the pop listings while repeating its R&B peak of seven. Clarence Palmer’s vocal interpretation has since been revisited by numerous acts, among them the Escorts in the 1950s, Mink DeVille, Ringo Starr, and Sha Na Na. The track also figured prominently in John Waters’s film Cry Baby.
