About Righteous Brothers
The Righteous Brothers are an American musical duo originally formed by Bill Medley and Bobby Hatfield but now comprising Medley and Bucky Heard. Medley formed the group with Hatfield in 1963. They had first performed together in 1962 in the Los Angeles area as part of a five-member group called the Paramours, and adopted the name The Righteous Brothers when they became a duo. Their most active recording period was in the 1960s and '70s, and, after several years inactive as a duo, Hatfield and Medley reunited in 1981 and continued to perform until Hatfield's death in 2003. The term "blue-eyed soul" is thought to have first been coined by Philadelphia radio DJ Georgie Woods in 1964 when describing the duo's music.
Hatfield and Medley had contrasting vocal ranges, which helped them create a distinctive sound as a duet. They each had the vocal talent to perform as soloists. Medley sang the low parts with his bass-baritone voice, with Hatfield taking the higher-register vocals with his tenor. His voice reached the register of a countertenor.
Following a year and a half of Top 40 non-entries on Billboard's Hot 100, the duo hit big with the late-1964 release of what would become their signature record, "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'" – a transatlantic number one produced by Phil Spector, often considered one of his finest works and a landmark recording in popular music. Other notable hits include three US 1965 Top Tens – "Just Once in My Life" and covers of "Unchained Melody" and "Ebb Tide" – and the massive US 1966 number one " Soul and Inspiration", plus the 1974 comeback hit "Rock and Roll Heaven". Both Hatfield and Medley also had for a time their own solo careers. In 2016, Medley re-formed The Righteous Brothers with Bucky Heard and they continue to perform as a duo.
The Righteous Brothers were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2003 and into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 2005. Rolling Stone ranked them no. 16 on its list of the 20 Greatest Duos of All Time.
Bobby Hatfield and Bill Medley were in different groups before they met – Hatfield was in a group from Anaheim called the Variations, and Medley in a group from Santa Ana called the Paramours. Barry Rillera, a member of Medley's band who was also in Hatfield's group, suggested they go see each other's show and perform together. Later, after a member of Paramours left in 1962, Hatfield and Medley joined forces and formed a new Paramours, which included Johnny Wimber . They started performing at a club called John's Black Derby in Santa Ana, and were signed to a small record label Moonglow in 1962. They released a single "There She Goes " in December 1962. However, the Paramours did not have much success and soon broke up, leaving Hatfield and Medley to perform as a duo in 1963. According to Medley, they then adopted the name The Righteous Brothers for the duo because black Marines from the El Toro Marine base started calling them "righteous brothers". At the end of a performance, a black U.S. Marine in the audience would shout, "That was righteous, brothers!", and would greet them with "Hey righteous brothers, how you doin'?" on meeting them.
The Righteous Brothers released three albums under the Moonglow label, one of these and a further compilation album were released after they had joined Phil Spector. They released 12 singles with Moonglow, but only two were moderate hits – "Little Latin Lupe Lu" and "My Babe" from their first album Right Now!. In August and September 1964, they opened for The Beatles in their first U.S. tour. However, they left before the tour finished as they were asked to appear on a new television show called Shindig!; they also felt unappreciated by the audience as they were then little known on the East Coast, and the audience demanded to hear the Beatles while they were performing. They returned to Los Angeles to tape the pilot for the show, and would later appear in the show regularly. Their next album was Some Blue-Eyed Soul; the term blue-eyed soul was first used to refer to The Righteous Brothers by black DJs, but after they became popular, the term became a general term for all white singers who sang what was then considered "black music". In October and November 1964, they opened for The Rolling Stones on their American tour.
Map & Directions To Venue
