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Company Profile

The Harptones

The Harptones are an American doo-wop group which formed in Manhattan, New York in 1953.

Members
1951–1954 • Willie Winfield (lead) • Billy Brown (bass) • Claudie "Nicky" Clark (first tenor) • William Dempsey (second tenor) • William "Dicey" Galloway (baritone) • Raoul Cita (piano; baritone) Early 1955 • Willie Winfield (lead) • Billy Brown (bass) • Claudie "Nicky" Clark (first tenor) • William Dempsey (second tenor) • Freddy Taylor (baritone) • Raoul Cita (piano; baritone) Dicey Galloway was drafted in November 1954. Late 1955 • Willie Winfield (tenor) • Billy Brown (bass) • Claudie "Nicky" Clark • William Dempsey (second tenor) • Bernard "Jimmy" Beckum (baritone) • Raoul Cita (piano; baritone) Early 1956 • Willie Winfield (tenor) • Bobby Spencer • William Dempsey (second tenor) • Bernard "Jimmy" Beckum (baritone) • Raoul Cita (piano; baritone) 1956 movie ''Rockin' The Blues'' • Willie Winfield (tenor) • Freddy TaylorBilly Brown • William Dempsey (second tenor) • Raoul Cita (piano; baritone) Early 1957 • Willie Winfield (tenor) • Billy Brown • William Dempsey (second tenor) • William "Dicey" GallowayToni Williams • Raoul Cita (piano; baritone) Billy Brown died of a drug overdose in spring 1957. Late 1958 • Willie Winfield (tenor) • William Dempsey (second tenor) • William "Dicey" Galloway • Toni Williams • Curtis Cherebin Dicey Galloway left in October and was replaced by Milton Love of The Solitares for a short time, before splitting. Galloway died on July 18, 2017, in Houghs Neck in Quincy, Massachusetts at age 84 after suffering from multiple illnesses. 1959–1963 • Willie Winfield • Nicky Clark • William Dempsey • Curtis Cherebin • Raoul Cita Nicky Clark left after a few months, to be replaced by Wilbur "Yonkie" Paul, who was in turn replaced by Hank "Pompi" Jernigan. Early 1964 • Willie Winfield • Nicky Clark • William Dempsey • Jimmy Beckum • Raoul Cita Late 1964 • Nicky Clark • William Dempsey • Curtis CherebinHank "Pompi" Jernigan • Raoul Cita Nicky Clark died In July 1978, at the age of 43. 1970–1972 • Willie Winfield • Curtis Cherebin • Jimmy Beckum • William Dempsey • Raoul Cita 1972–mid-1990s • Willie Winfield • Marlowe Murray • Linda Champion • Raoul Cita Mid 1990s–1999 • Willie Winfield • Marlowe Murray • Linda Champion • William Dempsey • Raoul Cita The line-up appeared on Doo Wop 50. Linda Champion left due to health problems around 2000. 2000–2008 • Willie Winfield • Marlowe Murray • Vicki Burgess • William Dempsey • Raoul Cita 2008–2014 • Willie Winfield • Don Cruz • Vicki Burgess • William Dempsey • Raoul Cita • Tommie Shider ==Legacy==
Legacy
Billy Brown died of a drug overdose in 1957. Marlowe Murray died on December 11, 2008, from cancer, at the age of 73. Raoul J. Cita died on December 13, 2014, from liver and stomach cancer, at the age of 86. Willie Winfield died from a heart attack on July 27, 2021, aged 91. William Dempsey is the only original surviving member of The Harptones. ==Awards and recognition==
Awards and recognition
The Harptones were featured more times than any other group in the United in Group Harmony Association's official top 500 vocal group recordings list, compiled 1996–2000. They were inducted into The Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 2002. ==References==
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