Elvis and The Blossoms

[Suspicious Minds]

The first time I saw the Blossoms was on the Elvis 68 Comeback Delux set. I thought it was funny when the camera was on the Blossoms when Elvis was singing Saved. Was there something wrong with the tambourines they were playing? It looked like they was going to burst out laughing.
Has anyone got photo of Blossoms on their own from the Saved outtake?

[Trelane P]

Here's some interesting info about Darlene Love, lead singer of the Blossoms. Did you know in the 80's she played Danny Glover's wife in the four Lethal Weapon movies.


Darlene Love Biograph (source: Wkipedia)

Love began her singing with her local church choir. While still in high school (1960) she was invited to join a little-known "girl group" called The Blossoms, who in 1963 began working with producer Phil Spector. With her powerful voice she was soon a highly sought-after vocalist, and managed to work with many of the legends of 1950s and 1960s rock and soul, including Sam Cooke, Dionne Warwick, The Beach Boys, Elvis Presley, and Sonny and Cher; Darlene and the Blossoms sang back-up vocals on Shelley Fabares's hit, "Johnny Angel" as well as John Phillips' solo album John, Wolfking of L.A. recorded in 1969.

It's important to note that The Blossoms recorded singles - usually with little success throughout; Capitol 1957-58 (pre-Darlene Love), Challenge 1961-62, OKeh 1963, Reprise 1966-67, Ode 1967, MGM 1968, Bell 1969-70, Lion 1972.

With The Blossoms she also sang backing vocals on many of the biggest hits of the 1960s, including Spector's own "Da Doo Ron Ron" (allegedly recorded with her lead, which was later erased by Spector and re-recorded using Crystals' lead Dolores "LaLa" Brooks). Though credited by Spector as singles recorded by The Crystals, "He's A Rebel" and "He's Sure The Boy I Love" actually featured Love singing lead, backed by The Blossoms. "Today I Met The Boy I'm Gonna Marry" was released as a single by Spector, and featured Love's name as the artist. She was also part of a trio called Bob B. Soxx and the Blue Jeans, who recorded a song in 1962, with their rendition of "Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah" from the Walt Disney film, Song of the South, which got into the top ten in 1963. The Blossoms landed a weekly part on Shindig!, one of the top music shows of the era. They were part of the highly acclaimed Elvis Presley's '68 Comeback Special, which aired on NBC.

Into the 1970s Love continued to work as a back-up singer, before taking a break in order to raise a family. In 1973, she recorded vocals as a cheerleader along with Michelle Phillips, for the Cheech & Chong single "Basketball Jones", which peaked at No.15 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart.

Love returned to music in the early 1980s and to an appreciative audience she thought may have long since forgotten her. In addition to singing the songs that made her famous, she has re-explored her gospel roots on several recordings. In the mid 1980s she portrayed herself in the Tony Award-nominated jukebox musical Leader of the Pack, which featured the iconic rock and roll songs written by Ellie Greenwich, many of them for the young Love. The showstopping number of that show, "River Deep - Mountain High" had been recorded for Phil Spector by Ike & Tina Turner and had been less than the success they had expected. Leader of the Pack commenced as a review at the Greenwich Village nightclub the Bottom Line, as did the later show about Love's life, Portrait of a Singer, which never made the move uptown. Portrait included covers of "The Change Is Going to Come" and "Don't Make Me Over" as well as "River Deep, Mountain High" and original music written by some of the instrumental writers of early rock and roll, including Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil.

In the late 1980s and 1990s, Love also began an acting career, playing Danny Glover's wife in the four Lethal Weapon movies, and appeared on Broadway in Grease and in the short-lived musical adaptation of Stephen King's Carrie.

In 1990, Cher invited Love and her sister Edna Wright as her background vocalist for the Heart of Stone Tour.

[Tony Trout]

The first time I saw the Blossoms was on the Elvis 68 Comeback Delux set. I thought it was funny when the camera was on the Blossoms when Elvis was Saved. Was there something wrong with the tambourines they were playing?



Something wrong with the tambourines they were playing? What are you referring to?

[Suspicious Minds]

On one take it look like one tambourine was busted.

[SleepyJack]

There is also a kind of half-interesting clip of them on Youtube performing with Bill Medley.They do a medley(of sorts) of "Swing low sweet chariot" and "Swing down sweet chariot"......A very `68 comeback "Feel" to it.

[alstrada]

Her's some info for 'The Blossoms :

The Blossoms (1968)
Darlene Love - (born Darlene Wright) One of Phil Spector's studio singers, Darlene sang lead on the Crystals' hit, "He's A Rebel", and as a solo artist had quite a few hits as well, including the holiday rock 'n' roll classic, "Christmas (Baby, Please Come Home)"
Jean King
Fanita James
This group of "unsung heroines" backed Elvis for his NBC-TV special "Elvis" (the "comeback" special), recorded in June of 1968. One of the girls does the duet with Elvis on "Let Yourself Go", in the video version of the song (the CD version is just Elvis). They also sing "Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child", as part of the Gospel Medley. The Blossoms appeared briefly in Elvis' last feature film, Change of Habit (1970), as Elvis' neighbors. The "History of Rock" webpage below is a very interesting and very detailed account of the Blossoms' career. The Blossoms can be heard, completely uncredited, on many other Phil Spector girl-group hits, as well as the Darlene Love "solo" songs mentioned above.
The Blossoms - from the "History of Rock" website
Bob B. Soxx and the Blue Jeans - also from the "History of Rock" website. Darlene and Fanita recorded with this group, another from Phil Spector's studio.
The Blossoms - from Excite.com's site.
The Blossoms' Photo Gallery - from "The Girl-Groups Fan Club" website.



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