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Donald's Encyclopedia of Popular MusicA B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y ZCHAIRMEN of the BOARDVocal group formed in 1969 by General Norman Johnson (his real name; b 23 May 1941, Norfolk VA, d 13 October 2010, Atlanta GA), who had been lead singer with the Showmen, whose hymn to rock'n'roll 'It Will Stand' was no. 61 USA '61 (re-entered at no. 80 '64), their only hit in seven years of trying (other personnel: Leslie Fenton, Milton Dorsey, Gene Knight). He refused an offer of Frankie Lymon's place in the Teenagers and signed '68 with Invictus, a new label formed by ex-Motown legends Holland/Dozier/Holland. He recruited Danny Woods (b 10 April 1944), Harrison Kennedy (b Canada; ex-Stoned Soul Children), Eddie Custis (ex-Huey Smith and the Clowns) to form Gentlemen, later renamed Chairmen of the Board. Each could handle leads, but Johnson took most of them; their first single 'Give Me Just A Little More Time' (no. 3 USA/UK) was heavily influenced by the Four Tops, but introduced Johnson's 'B-r-r-r' hiccuping vocal delivery to a large audience. 'You've Got Me Dangling On A String' (no. 38 USA/5 UK) suggested greater popularity overseas; in fact top 40 tenure in USA lasted only through '70 with 'Everything's Tuesday', 'Pay To The Piper' etc, the latter featuring lead voice of Woods (a higher, harder sound than Johnson's strangulated tone). The last studio session by the original group took place late '71 (produced as they all were by Holland/Dozier/Holland), but hits in the UK carried on through '73, continuing the dance-floor tradition Motown temporarily lost, making conservative UK soul fans happy: five more top 40 hits UK included the gospelly 'Working On A Building Of Love', 'Elmo James', clavinet-led 'Finders Keepers', reminiscent of Stevie Wonder. But the group was cast too much in a traditional mould: Motown found its second wind with orchestrated social comment by the Temptations and a funky soul/rock fusion from Wonder, and the Chairmen were overtaken by events. Johnson had written for the Three Degrees, Freda Payne ('Bring The Boys Home'), Clarence Carter (transatlantic smash 'Patches' '71, for which Johnson won a Grammy); he now diversified further, writing with producer Greg Perry for Invictus/Hot Wax acts like Honey Cone and 100 Proof Aged in Soul. Solo albums by Johnson (Generally Speaking '72), Wood (Aries), Kennedy (Hypnotic Music) further slowed the group's impetus; Custis had left '72, then Kennedy; Johnson and Woods carried on until '76 with no new records (Skin I'm In '74 was all old tapes), and split after a UK tour as a duo. Johnson made six flop singles for Arista and an eponymous '77 LP; he wrote for Martha Reeves (another soul legend out of favour), e.g. title track on her The Rest Of My Life '76; reunited with Woods on Surfside '81 for 'Success' as the Chairmen. Meanwhile the group had been championed by Style Council's Paul Weller in UK; Kevin Rowland of Dexy's Midnight Runners had a distinctly Johnsonesque vocal quality; the acquisition of the long-defunct Invictus vault by Holland/Dozier/Holland resulted in Salute The General '84, a superb compilation on Demon UK. Weller remixed 'Loverboy' for UK hit '86; Johnson was active on US circuits promoting dance fad 'The Shag' from '84. The Chairmen were still popular in the Southeastern USA; a trio with Johnson and Woods made What Goes Around Comes Around '93 on Surfside in a more contemporary style; Johnson wrote and recorded a solo album Timeless 2002 and Woods was also active recording his own songs. |