Three Dog Night | |
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Background information | |
Also known as | Redwood (1967-1968) |
Origin | Los Angeles, California, United States |
Genres | Pop rock,soft rock,blue-eyed soul |
Years active | 1967–76, 1981–present |
Labels | Dunhill, MGM, MCA, Epic, Columbia |
Associated acts | The Enemys, Cory Wells Blues Band, SS Fools |
Members |
Danny Hutton Michael Allsup Paul Kingery Pat Bautz Eddie Reasoner David Morgan |
Past members |
Cory Wells (deceased) Chuck Negron Jimmy Greenspoon (deceased) Floyd Sneed Joe Schermie (deceased) Ron Morgan Jack Ryland Skip Konte Mickey McMeel James "Smitty" Smith Dennis Belfield Al Ciner Jay Gruska Ron Stockert Mike Seifrit Richard Grossman Mike Keeley Scott Manzo Steve Ezzo Gary Moon T.J. Parker Richard Campbell Mike Cuneo |
Three Dog Night is an American rock band. They formed in 1967 with a line-up consisting of vocalists Danny Hutton, Cory Wells, and Chuck Negron. This lineup was soon augmented by Jimmy Greenspoon (keyboards), Joe Schermie (bass), Michael Allsup (guitar), and Floyd Sneed (drums). The band registered 21 Billboard Top 40 hits (with three hitting number one) between 1969 and 1975. It helped introduce mainstream audiences to the work of many songwriters, including Paul Williams, Hoyt Axton, Laura Nyro, Harry Nilsson, Randy Newman, and Leo Sayer.
The official commentary included in the CD set Celebrate: The Three Dog Night Story, 1964–1975 states that vocalist Danny Hutton's girlfriend, actress June Fairchild (best known as the "Ajax Lady" from the Cheech and Chong movie Up In Smoke) suggested the name after reading a magazine article about indigenous Australians, in which it was explained that on cold nights they would customarily sleep in a hole in the ground while embracing a dingo (wild dog). On colder nights they would sleep with two dogs and, if the night was freezing, it was a "three dog night".
The three vocalists, Danny Hutton (who got his start with Hanna-Barbera Records in 1964), Chuck Negron and Cory Wells (who landed a recording contract with Dunhill Records) first came together in 1967 and made some recordings with Brian Wilson and initially went by the name of Redwood. Shortly after abandoning the Redwood moniker in 1968, the vocalists hired a group of backing musicians – Ron Morgan on guitar, Floyd Sneed on drums, Joe Schermie from the Cory Wells Blues Band on bass, and Jimmy Greenspoon on keyboards – and soon took the name Three Dog Night, becoming one of the most successful bands in the United States during the late 1960s and early 1970s. Ron Morgan left the band early on and subsequently went on to join the Electric Prunes. Michael Allsup was quickly recruited to replace him on guitar.