Soul Survivors
The
Explosive Dynamiks
Anorak's Corner!
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This is a promotional picture from 1966 of the second main line-up of the Dynamiks. coutesy of Ruth Stover.
Back row: Greg Adkins, Rick David, Sanford Morgan, Dave Lusk, Steve Varney, and Mike Thomas.
Seated are Lorenzo Batts and Charles (Tyke) Stover.
Above is a picture of the group that actually recorded the disc for Lemco...with one exception...the original bass player was Buck Huntley. From left to right are Wayne Brown - Bass guitar, Larry Sumpter - Lead guitar, Mike Thomas - Lead singer, Rick David - Drums, Lindsey Blair - Singer, Lorenzo Bates - Singer, Charles "Tyke" Stover - Keyboard
Another one-off disc wonder-group that is now revered on the Rare Soul scene World-wide...The Explosive Dynamiks! It was initially played durng the late '80's by DJ Rob Marriott, as 'The Vibrations - Nobody knows'.
I initially posted a brief message on the internet forum board for the Herald-Dispatch newspaper in the US, enquiring as to if anyone was aware of the band as the label, Lemco Records, was based within the area they cover. The intial responce was from Shelly, who's son just happened to have the original lead-guitar player as his uncle, and she kndly and quickly put me in touch with him. His name is Larry Sumpter and he quickly started to fill me in with the details of the group;
"I was surprised to see your article in the Herald-Dispatch regarding the Explosive Dynamiks! My name is Larry Sumpter, from Huntington, West Virginia, and I'm a former member of this group. I was with them in the early 60's, and played lead guitar on the record that was cut in Lexington, Ky. I played guitar with them through my high school years, and thoroughly enjoyed it! "
Larry also added that it was the first time he had recieved any interest in his former band since he had left it back in 1967! They had actually got together and started playing during the 1963/64 school year. There were initially seven of them, drummer, organ/piano, bass guitar, lead guitar, and three singers who alternated lead singing parts, and backup. The brass featured within the tracks was courtesy of session musicians...two guys one playing bass and the other playing both an alto saxophone and a trumpet too, though not at the same time! Larry:
"It was very simple, and we did not have many of the modern techniques of recording. The recording studio was a garage type studio, but we had a great deal of fun making the recording".
They gained some notariety locally by playing the typical prom circuit, special occassions and clubs, gradually working their way up to some larger cities like Lexington, Cleveland, and Cincinnati. One exciting time for them was being invited to play their new release on a television show based in Cleveland called, "UPBEAT". That particular show was headlined by James Brown, and included Bobby Goldsboro and other up and coming stars...anyone got a copy? Their forte was the R & B sound of the day, and of course Motown. Larry cited the Temptations, Aretha Franklin and Gene Chandler amongst his favourites, and also said that they covered popular British group sounds, but that it wasn't their main strength at all.
The disc itself was custom pressed by RCA and has a matrix number of TK4M-6805...and from this we know that it was pressed during 1966 (T), is a 45rpm (K), was a complete mastering, plating and pressing job (4), and that it is in mono (M). We can further pin-point it down as being mastered between July and December of '66, due to the "4" falling after the "K"! The other indication of it's roots lie in the stamped "I" in the deadwax, which indicates that it was manufactured at RCA's Indianpolis plant located in Bloominton at 7900 Rockville Road.
