courtesy of The Buddah Group
Listen to the PowerhouseRadio.com production of The Curtis Mayfield Story featuring Curtis
10 minutes, 13 seconds
They were Arthur and Richard Brooks and Sam Gooden, the nucleus of a group called The Roosters (Another member, Fred Cash, had stayed behind).
Butler began singing with the group and encouraged Curtis to quit the Alphatones and join them. Although at first he had no intention of breaking with his old group, eventually traveling back and forth across town became too hard -- both time and money were precious -- and Curtis finally consented to join the Roosters as their fifth member.
The initial moves had been made but it wasn't exactly jackpot time for Curtis.
Realizing that their name lacked that certain air of urban cool and sophistication, The Roosters -- Curtis Mayfield, Jerry Butler, Sam Gooden, Arthur and Richard Brooks -- became The Impressions...
(Eddie Thomas, who was then their manager, came up with the new name while driving around in a car one day). Still, it was hard work getting the group through the next few moves, "rehearsals, back and forth, auditioning with record companies, sitting in their lobbies all day."
Continued
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