Hank Ballard

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Biography

Hank Ballard (born John Henry Kendricks) (November 18, 1936 - March 2, 2003) was an African American R&B/rock singer and the lead vocalist of Hank Ballard and the Midnighters. He played an integral part in the development of rock music, releasing the hit singles “Work With Me, Annie” and “Annie Had a Baby” with The Midnighters, and later wrote and recorded “The Twist”, covered by Chubby Checker.

Ballard grew up in Bessemer, Alabama, where he began singing in church and later aspired to a career in music. In 1951, Ballard moved back to Detroit and formed a doo wop group. He was discovered by Johnny Otis, of the Little Esther Revue, and was signed to sing with a group called The Royals, along with Henry Booth, Charles Sutton, Sonny Woods and Alonzo Tucker. The Royals had already signed to Federal Records in Cincinnati when Ballard joined.[1]

The group then changed its name to The Midnighters to avoid confusion with The 5 Royales. Sutton was replaced by Lawson Smith, while Thrasher was replaced by Sonny Woods. Tucker was replaced first by Arthur Porter and then by Cal Green. The group soon released “”Get It” (1953), an R&B song with sexually oriented lyrics, which many radio stations refused to play.[1]

In 1954, Ballard wrote a song called “Work With Me Annie” that was drawn from “Get It”.[1] It became The Midnighters’ first major R&B hit and also sold well in mainstream markets, along with the answer song “Annie Had a Baby”. [2]
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