The Ink Spots

“墨跡斑斑”樂(lè)團(tuán)。樂(lè)團(tuán)始創(chuàng)于1932年，在印第安納州首府Indianapolis四個(gè)年輕人：Deek Watson，Charles Fuqua，Orville Hoppy Jones 和 Jerry Daniels。樂(lè)團(tuán)成立后，成員曾數(shù)度更迭，但樂(lè)團(tuán)仍然“墨跡斑斑”，歷久彌新，活力驚人，在2004年還在全美巡演歌唱，前后長(zhǎng)達(dá)70余年的樂(lè)團(tuán)經(jīng)營(yíng)，在Jazz樂(lè)壇也可謂絕無(wú)僅有！樂(lè)團(tuán)拿到最初的合同是在紐約。1936年Bill Kenny替換了Daniels成為主唱。三年后，樂(lè)團(tuán)迎來(lái)了他們的第一張百萬(wàn)銷量金唱片If I Didnt Care（若是我不在意）。此曲大獲成功，成為樂(lè)團(tuán)最有名的金曲，最終銷量更是高達(dá)1900萬(wàn)張。1945年Bill Kenny單飛后，新主唱Jim Nabbie繼任，開始了新的十年。此間，首首金曲綿綿不絕：I Dont Want To Set The World On Fire，To Each His Own，My Prayer，Ill Never Smile Again，A Lovely Way To Spend An Evening，Java Jive不勝枚舉。此后，除Nabbie之外的樂(lè)團(tuán)元老們相繼離開了樂(lè)團(tuán)。但Nabbie決意繼續(xù)書寫樂(lè)團(tuán)的Jazz神話。他注冊(cè)申請(qǐng)了The Ink Spots的名稱所有權(quán)和商標(biāo)。在50年代中期，雖然金曲產(chǎn)量有所放慢，但樂(lè)團(tuán)影響了一大批當(dāng)時(shí)正在形成的doowop組合，如后來(lái)青出于藍(lán)的Temptations。1987年，樂(lè)團(tuán)的輝煌成就終獲官方肯定，入選Grammy Hall of Fame（格萊美名人堂）；1989年，又乘勝進(jìn)入Rock and Roll Hall of Fame（搖滾名人堂）。樂(lè)團(tuán)還進(jìn)入了Apollo Hall of Fame（阿波羅名人堂）。1997年，進(jìn)入Vocal Group Hall of Fame（演唱組名人堂）。Nabbie和團(tuán)員們沒(méi)有停息，每年都要舉行約200場(chǎng)演出。特別是其中的10到20場(chǎng)高校巡演，要知道這些年輕人的父母?jìng)冊(cè)赥he Ink Spots推出第一張專輯的時(shí)候都還沒(méi)有出生呢。1992年9月，Mr Ink Spots for 47 years的Nabbie在歐洲巡演開始之前不幸故去。樂(lè)團(tuán)甚至來(lái)不及給他們的老朋友、老同事送行，就不得不匆匆上路。但樂(lè)團(tuán)沒(méi)有止步不前。The Ink Spots依然活躍在全美的Jazz舞臺(tái)上，正像過(guò)去的70多年來(lái)一樣，繼續(xù)用“墨”香書寫著美國(guó)爵士樂(lè)的傳奇。
 
by Bill Dahl
 
The Ink Spots played a large role in pioneering the black vocal group-harmony genre, helping to pave the way for the doo wop explosion of the '50s. The quavering high tenor of Bill Kenny presaged hundreds of street-corner leads to come, and the sweet harmonies of Charlie Fuqua, Deek Watson, and bass Hoppy Jones (who died in 1944) backed him flawlessly.
 
Kenny's impeccable diction and Jones's deep drawl were both prominent on the Ink Spots' first smash on Decca in 1939, the sentimental &If I Didn't Care.& From then through 1951, the group was seldom absent from the pop charts, topping the lists with &We Three (My Echo, My Shadow, and Me)& (1940), &I'm Making Believe& and &Into Each Life Some Rain Must Fall& (both in 1944), and &The Gypsy& and &To Each His Own& (both in 1946).
 
Watson eventually split to form his own group, the Brown Dots, and appeared in numerous low-budget film musicals, while Kenny attempted a solo career, notching a solo hit in 1951 with the uplifting &It Is No Secret.& Countless groups masquerading as the Ink Spots have thrived across the nation since the '50s.