From:   "Dik de Heer" 
Date:  Fri Feb 22, 2002  1:15 am
Subject:  Born To Be With You : Bobby Hendricks
 
BOBBY HENDRICKS (Shaun / Dik)

Born 22 February 1938, Columbus, Ohio

Bobby Hendricks was influenced by the group sounds of the East
Coast as he grew up and whilst still in his teens, joined two vocal
groups, the Swallows and The Flyers. His big break came in early
1958 when he joined the Drifters, for whom he sang lead on the
glorious "Drip Drop", the first Drifters session that was produced
by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller. But while "Drip Drop" was climbing
the charts, the entire group was sacked by their manager, George
Treadwell, after frequent bickering. Treadwell owned the copyright
to the group name "The Drifters" and recruited another New York group,
The Crowns, to become the new Drifters. It was this group, led by Ben
E. King, that would make The Drifters a household name. Meanwhile,
the other group, with Hendricks, continued to perform as The Original
Drifters. Bobby stayed with them for a year or so, but also embarked on
a solo career on Sue Records. Backed by the Coasters, he reached the
# 25 spot on the pop charts with "Itchy Twitchy Feeling", but was unable
to capitalise on its success. His other Sue singles - eight in all - were
also in the rock 'n' roll mold, including "Molly B. Goode", a Chuck
Berry take-off. He reached the lower reaches (# 73) of the charts in
1960 with "Psycho" (co-written by Clyde McPhatter), a duet with the
influential New York disc jockey, Dr. Jive. In 1961 he moved to Mercury
and in 1963 he cut some titles for MGM, which remain unissued.
In 1964 he rejoined The Original Drifters, who had finally managed to get
a recording contract, although their records went nowhere. The group was
now made up of Gerhart Thrasher, Bobby Lee Hollis, Bill Pinkney (of
"After The Hop" fame) and Bobby Hendricks. They toured the UK twice,
getting favourable reviews. After Thrasher retired permanently in 1967,
Hendricks went solo once again and The Original Drifters carried on with
a new group led by Pinkney, until 1970.

Further reading: Bill Millar, The Drifters : The Rise and Fall of the Black
Vocal Group. London : Studio Vista, 1971.
CD : Itchy Twitchy Feeling (Collectables, 1996). 19 tracks, including two
versions of "Psycho".