The Whispers formed in 1963 in Watts, California. The original members included identical twin brothers Wallace "Scotty" and Walter Scott, along with Gordy Harmon, Marcus Hutson, and Nicholas Caldwell. After being invited to the San Francisco Bay Area in 1966 by Sly Stone, the group relocated to that area where they began developing a reputation as a show-stopping live act. Walter Scott was drafted to serve in the Vietnam War during that period for eighteen months, returning to the group in 1969 after discharge. After Harmon injured his larynx in a driving accident in 1973, he was replaced by former Friends of Distinction member Leaveil Degree. The group scored many hits on the R&B and Billboard Hot 100 charts throughout the 1970s and 1980s, and they hit #1 on the Hot Dance Club Play chart in 1979/80 with "And the Beat Goes On / "Can You Do the Boogie" / "Out the Box". In 1987, they enjoyed a brief tenure in the Top 10 when "Rock Steady" became their first Top 10 success on the Hot 100, reaching #7, while also capturing the #1 spot on the R&B chart. After a series of singles on Los Angeles label, Dore, the group signed to a small LA label, Soul Clock, run by producer Ron Carson, who was responsible for their breakthrough hit, "Seems Like I Got To Do Wrong" in 1970. Moving to the larger New York-based Janus label, they continued to be produced by Carson, before he sold all of his recordings to Janus with the group then recording mainly in Philadelphia in the mid-'70s. Since that period, most of their studio work has been done in Los Angeles. Their most successful period was in the 1980s with SOLAR Records, which was operated by their manager at the time, Dick Griffey. The Whispers later established their own production company, Satin Tie Productions, through which they released their independent 2006 album For Your Ears Only. The group opened Game 2 of the 1989 World Series at Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum with their rendition of the National Anthem. Marcus Hutson left the group in 1992 due to prostate cancer. According to the Whispers' website, when Hutson died of it on May 23, 2000, they vowed to never replace him and started performing as a quartet. Jerry McNeil resigned from his position as the keyboardist in the latter part of 1993 in order to spend more time with his family. In 2014, The Whispers were inducted into The Official R&B MusicHall of Fame. The Philadelphia soul songwriter team Allan Felder, Norman Harris, Bunny Sigler, and Ronnie Baker provided several of The Whispers' songs, including "A Mother for My Children" and "Bingo". Nicholas Caldwell died of congestive heart failure at his San Francisco home on January 5, 2016.
Personnel
Current members
Wallace "Scotty" Scott
Walter Scott
Leaveil Degree
Former members
Marcus Hutson
Gordy Harmon
Nicholas Caldwell
Former musical directors
Grady "G" Wilkins Jr— musician, writer, producer, vocalist, keyboardist and musical director of the Whispers. Born December 30, 1955 in San Francisco, California and died December 19, 2013.
Fulton L. Tashombe - renowned musician, vocalist, composer, arranger, producer, sound engineer, music educator, actor, keyboardist and musical director of Headlights. Born January 7, 1950 in San Francisco, California and died October 14, 2017.
