One of the most successful and enduring vocal groups of all time. The Drifters had three distinctly seperate phases: The first line up of the legendary group was fronted by Clyde McPhatter in 1953. Bill Pinkney was one of the backing vocalists to McPhatter, and in fact still performs these 'early hits' in the United States. Ben E King replaced McPhatter in 1959 before embarking on his own solo career with Stand By Me and Spanish Harlem. Rudy Lewis superceded King, but unfortunately he died tragically in 1964. Johnny Moore was then re-introduced into the group and in fact reigned longer and recorded more songs than any other member. In the early / mid 50's they were a 5 man 'doo - wop' group, with influences of gospel. Hits - Money Honey, Such A Night, Ruby Baby, and What'cha Gonna Do soon followed. Ten years on, the group entered a 'golden era'... the 60's with a series of 'classic latin - tinged hit recordings such as On Broadway, Save The Last Dance For Me, There Goes My Baby and Up On The Roof.

By the turn of the 70's, The Drifters seemed to be consigned to 'the out-tray'! However, in 1971 they relocated in the United Kingdom, where the group had always enjoyed a legendary status. This move coincided with a timely re-issue programme by Atlantic Records, which placed a trio of their 60's hits back into the UK Top 10 - At The Club, Come On Over To My Place and not forgetting... Saturday Night At The Movies.

Coming to England proved to be an excellent 'career move' for The Drifters. They were teamed to work with the formidable song-writing talents of Roger Greenaway, Roger Cook, Les Reed, Barry Mason and Dave McAuley - all of whom were of course 'big Drifters fans' having grown up listening to the hits from earlier years.

The group now consisted of three new members along side Johnny Moore; Clyde Brown, Joe Blunt and Mr. Billy Lewis. Although The Drifters have had numerous 'member changes' throughout their history, these four men are probably the most recognised from the general publics perspective. By the late 70's / early 80's, the public's notoriously fickle taste-buds changed virtually overnight. The third and final hit-making phase of their career was drawing to a close. However, touring the UK and Europe proved to be the next lucrative step. By the mid 80's, the original line-up finally fragmented. The whereabouts of Clyde Brown and Joe Blunt are still unknown today, although they are thought to be back in the United States.

Johnny Moore and Billy Lewis continued to perform together as the core, with a string of 'fresh young hopefuls' eager to cash in on a short-cut to fame. However not one of them performed on the hit records, or TV programmes like BBC's 'Top Of The Pops'! Several of them are touring in so called 'Drifters Shows' around the world, (and even on Spanish islands, like Tenerife and Majorca), and yet they have no credibility whatsoever! They are simply misleading the public. Likewise, are the tour companies who sell the tickets to see these performances. It is outrageous! These individuals are obtaining money fraudulently, by deliberate deception.

Regrettably, Johnny Moore passed away in December 1998. Billy Lewis (now in his 60's) remains therefore, as the only credible member still performing today from this phenomenal group of singers during their 70's reign, with hits like Kissin' 'In The Back Row, Down On The Beach Tonight, Love Games, Hello Happiness, There Goes My First Love, More Than A Number In My Little Red Book and Reggae track - Every Night's A Saturday Night With You.

Source: www.thedrifters.com