Facts and FAQs

Facts

The Drifters were founded 59 years ago by George Treadwell and Ahmet Ertegun - founder of Atlantic Records. Since their creation the band has featured over 65 vocalists, including icons such as Clyde McPhatter, Ben E King and Johnny Moore. Some of the legends returned to perform alongside the current line-up at a unique concert at the O2 arena in 2009.

With the exception of the much loved icon Johnny Moore, the current line up is the only complete line up in the group’s history to have recorded on both of the group’s historic labels – Atlantic Records with the release in 2009 of Five Decades & Moore and, in 2011 on Sony Music.

The Drifters have sold over 214 million singles and 114 million albums worldwide. They were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1988 in recognition of their global success spanning almost six decades.

Since day one, line up members have been replaced, often with new, younger members in order to ensure both the longevity and also the fresh appeal of the group. Johnny Moore, the longest serving member of The Drifters to date, was just 21 years old when he joined The Drifters line up.

Since Faye Treadwell brought The Drifters to the UK in the early 70’s, The Drifters has always included British members in the line up. In fact, when The Drifters performed at the White House in 1993 for President Bill Clinton, the line up at that time consisted of three British members.

In 2010, The Drifters shared the bill on an arena tour in cities across the UK with The Four Tops, The Temptations and The Three Degrees.

The Drifters performed to over 100,000 people in the UK last year.

The Drifters have recently recorded a version of the new track ‘The Whole World’ in Farsi ahead of the release of the song in Asia. The group always perform a song in the language of every country they visit on the tour and there is a special multi-lingual song in the new show for the Masquerade Tour.

Gold Disks for Up On The Roof album were presented to the current line up and former members of The Drifters at a ceremony at the Liverpool Empire in January 2012.

2013 is the 60th anniversary of the group. The year will be marked by the release of material across the world and a 60th anniversary world tour.

FAQs

Are there any original members in The Drifters?
No, the only original member of The Drifters was in fact Clyde McPhatter who founded the group with George Treadwell and Ahmet Ertegun in 1953. Since then there has been a succession of over 65 vocalists throughout the years and many members have come and gone from the line up several times. The Drifters is therefore completely unique in that it has in fact operated as a brand since day one.

How come the line up has constantly changed?
George Treadwell realised in the early 1950’s that the name of the group was in fact much bigger than the sum of its parts and that he could maintain a quality level by replacing members. George would often bring in new, younger line up members to help ensure both the fresh appeal and the longevity of the group. Members left for a variety of reasons including dissatisfaction in pay and working conditions or internal conflicts and many would leave, and sometimes return, due to military call up to the army. One night in 1958, George sacked the entire line up for their behaviour and replaced them with a group called ‘The Five Crowns’ who went on to be known as The Drifters.

Where does the group come from?
Clyde McPhatter honed his skills like many vocal harmony groups at that time, on the streets of Harlem, New York and the group signed to Atlantic, based in New York with whom they remained for almost two decades. When the group was dropped from Atlantic in the early 1970’s, manager Faye Treadwell made the bold move to relocate the group to London. Consequently, The Drifters evolved into an anglo-american group with varying numbers of American/ English members at any one time depending on line up changes over the years. The group remains proud of its American heritage and continues to tour the States and the rest of the world out of its UK base.

How are the vocalists selected for the group?
The members of The Drifters are recruited by management through audition and are selected for their likeness in looks and/or sound to previous members of the group in order to maintain the overall identity, sound and look of the group. Each member spends a minimum of a year as an understudy, in order to learn not only the vocal and choreography elements of the repertoire but also to fully understand the history, identity and to enable them to carry forward the 60 year legacy of the group. The understudy will perform for a variety of reasons, such as illness, or when a line up member leaves the group.

Who manages the group?
The group has always been owned by the same family – The Treadwell Family – right from when the group was founded in 1953 through to present day. George Treadwell managed the group from 1953 to 1967, when his wife Faye Treadwell took over the reins on his death. Faye managed the group from 1967 through to the year 2000 when ill health forced her to retire and hand over to her daughter Tina Treadwell. Tina still owns the group to this day but the day to day management is handled by UK company Prism Music Group. The current manager of the group is Kathy Mashadi.

How has the group changed musically over the years?
The group has progressed through the years and has evolved musically to stay ahead of changing musical trends. There have been numerous musical reincarnations of this group from early doo wop to early rock n roll and pop and on to disco right through to the more recent musical reinvention of the group with brand new contemporary material. The current line perform all of the historic genres of music - all stamped with the group’s authentic signature four part harmonies and sound.