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Champion Jack Dupree to its newest imprint, Vik Records. Piano Red and Frankie
Brunson were assigned to RCA proper. Ex-Groove guitar prodigy Roy Gaines ended
up on Victor after a brief spell on the DeLuxe logo.
RCA reactivated the Groove name in 1961, but it was more of an all-purpose label
that went heavy on country and pop (artists included Charlie Rich, Jack Scott, Justin
Tubb, Narvel Felts, and Ray Griff), scattering in a smattering of R&B and soul from
Johnny Nash, Lenny Miles, The Channels, and The Avons for good measure. That
second iteration of Groove closed up shop before the end of 1965.
Whoever Big Connie was, he left
us one great Groove single to
remember him by. On one side was
his revival of the decidedly un-PC
Mumbles Blues
, introduced by co-
writer Bobby Lewis on Chess in 1952 (Leroy
Kirkland happened to be Bobby’s collaborator). The other side
of Connie’s single contained an equally jumping
Wait Till Next Week, Baby
(co-
author Carl LeBow had worked closely with The ‘5’ Royales during their hitmaking
run on Apollo Records, also serving as their manager). Rolontz gathered together a
stellar combo for Connie’s February 21, 1956 Groove debut session at Studio 3,
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