Billy Valentine
Williams-Tompson
Armo-Big Star BMI
Federal Records
1959
His last?
Read Billy Valentine story HERE
NEW YORK, July 1949—This is one of those show business success stories. It's about a young Fort Worth pianist-singer, Billy Valentine.
Johnny Moore's Three Blazers, a hot group in the blues-and-rhythm market for several years, received a tough blow at the box office when singer-pianist Charles Brown decided to go out on his own some months ago. A replacement, Lee Barnes, proved totally inadequate.
Two weeks ago the Blazers were due for a series of recording dates with the Victor company. Desperate for a singer-pianist replacement, the remainder of the group, Johnny Moore, Oscar Moore and Johnny Miller, headed out on the road in different directions in search of a "new Charles Brown."
In Washington, leader Johnny Moore was told of a pianist-singer in Fort Worth who, the informer claimed, "would make them cats forget Charlie Brown." So Johnny placed a person-to-person call to Fort Worth and had the prospect sing for him over the phone. The youngster was told to hop a plane for New York.
The Fort Worth product was in New York the next evening and auditioned an hour later. Milton Ebbins, group's manager, hired him on the spot and two days later sliced wax with the group.
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