The Drifters: The Best "White Christmas"
When composer Irving Berlin wrote "White Christmas" in 1941, he insisted that the superstar of the day, crooner Bing Crosby, be the first to record it. Crosby's version, recorded for Decca on May 29, 1942, became the best-selling record of all time. But is it the best version of the song of wishing to be home for the holidays?
Facts of how and where Berlin wrote the song are murky, with accounts that he may have written it at one of his homes in New York or Beverly Hills; one account has the song composed poolside at the Biltmore Hotel in Phoenix, Arizona.
Though written in 1940, the song made its first appearance in the 1942 movie Holiday Inn. As troops left home in the shadow of World War II, the song's tale of longing to be home for Christmas became more poignant... and ensured its success.
More than a hundred cover versions of "White Christmas" have been recorded, from country (Chet Atkins) to gospel (Mahalia Jackson) to rock (Elvis Presley) to modern R&B (Babyface). Even Twisted Sister recorded the song. But for many, the Drifters' 1954 version remains the gold standard.
The Drifters of the early 1950s was a group that had scored hits on the rhythm & blues charts like "Money Honey" and "Honey Love." Built around high tenor Clyde McPhatter, who had just left Billy Ward and the Dominoes, the group included Bill Pinkney, brothers Andrew and Gerhart Thrasher and Willie Ferbie.
McPhatter was a revolutionary figure, fusing his gospel style with the R&B of the era to create the template for soul music. But McPhatter, singing falsetto, shared lead vocal duties on "White Christmas" with bass man Bill Pinkney, resulting in a unique and memorable sound. But it would be years before the song would even be heard by most of America... white America.
In the early 1950s, racism prevented black groups like the Drifters from getting airplay on radio stations with white audiences. When "White Christmas" was released, it reached number 2 on Billboard's R&B chart, but only made number 80 on the pop charts. The song was rarely heard until used in the 1990 film Home Alone, lip-synched by a young Macauley Culkin, who sings into a comb as he applies his father's after shave.
The song's appearance in that hit movie (and subsequently in The Santa Clause) made the Drifters' version a staple on rock, pop and country stations every Christmas season. It even became a popular Internet cartoon by animator Joshua Held. Ironically, the song's release signaled the end to the first chapter of the Drifters' story.
Clyde McPhatter was drafted into the Army soon after the song's release and thanks to its success, Atlantic Records decided to make McPhatter a solo act. McPhatter followed with two big hits, "A Lover's Question" and "Lover Please," but his success was soon eclipsed by the soul singers he had inspired. McPhatter died in 1972.
What happened to Bill Pinkney and the other Drifters is part of rock history. In 1958, Drifters' manager George Treadwell fired the entire group at the Apollo theater, replacing them overnight with the members of the Crowns. These "new" Drifters - Ben E. King, Charlie Thomas, Doc Green and Elsbeary Hobbs - and their successors went on to become one of the most popular singing groups in history, recording iconic hits like "There Goes my Baby," "Save the Last Dance for Me," "Under the Boardwalk," and "Up on the Roof."
The last of the original Drifters, Bill Pinkney, continued to record and perform with his group until his death in 2007.
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