The Five Crowns

You won't find the Five Crowns mentioned in most music reference books, even those devoted specifically to '50s rock & roll. Many fans of R&B vocal groups, however, regard them as the definitive Harlem vocal group, and a few simply declare them the greatest vocal group that ever lived. Although the Five Crowns never made any impression on the national charts under their own name, they regularly charted locally in New York and were stars in Harlem. Their late-'50s incarnation, featuring original members Doc Green, James Clark, Elsbeary Hobbs, Ben E. King, and Charles Thomas, be...