The Cardinals

The Cardinals were a successful American R&B group of the 1950s. Although overshadowed by the legendary Orioles, The Cardinals are still remembered as one of the best R&B ballad acts to come out of Baltimore.

The Cardinals’ career began in 1946 (one year before The Orioles) when Leon Hardy and Meredith Brothers convinced Donald Johnson to join them in harmony on the corner of Gay Street and Forest. Johnson drafted his friend Ernie Warren to round out a quartet and the new group on the block became The Mellotones. They did the usual round of Baltimore bars and nightclubs for experience, singing the songs of black and white pop groups like The Fourtunes, The Ink Spots, And The Ames Brothers. They picked up a fifth member, Jack Aydelotte, when he and they were separately scheduled to perform on The Major Baumgartner Show, a local TV talent show. They never got on the air as the show ran overtime, but thanks to the booking they now had five members including an accompanist (Jack also played guitar).

The years passed and a record contract came their way with the help of Super Music Record Shop store owner Sam Azrael. With group member Donald Johnson working in the store for years, Azrael had had plenty of exposure to the crooners. When Herb Abramson, co-founder of Atlantic Records, passed through Baltimore in 1951 on a talent search, Azrael gave the act an audition, and it’s reported the group left the shop that very night as the newest artists on Atlantic.

In March 1950 the group came to New York, cutting four sides for their first release and simultaneously becoming The Cardinals. Five months later Shouldn’t I Know peaked at #7 on the Billboard Best Seller R&B chart. It is a pretty ballad that was written by Meredith Brothers, but in a maneuver that was typical of the music business at time, store owner Azrael wound up listed as a co-writer.

Their next session of songs, recorded on October 6, 1950, included their second single I’ll Always Love You, another ballad that featuring Warren’s strong lead ably supported by the warbling Cardinals. They also recorded an R&B version of Wheel of Fortune later to be released as their 3rd single in February 1951. Between February and March 1951, various versions of the song were pop hits for Kay Starr (#1), Bobby Wayne (#6), The Bell Sisters (#10) and Sunny Gale (#13). The Cardinals, with the only R&B version, scored a #6 hit R&B record.

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