There are all sorts of entertainers dotting the city’s sidewalks. Some are good. Some are not. Few have had the success of Stormy Weather, whom we encountered one early afternoon singing in the parking lot underneath Tribune Tower.
That’s the group in Osgood’s photo, doing its distinctive thing in that lot, warming up for an appearance on Steve Cochran’s lively WGN radio show. But there was nothing labored about this impromptu doo-wop performance. These are people who seem to love what they do so much that they might do it for nothing.
Henry Farag, the guy second from the right and a native of Gary, started the ensemble in 1974 while working as a private eye, a profession he eventually abandoned when the group started getting work. He has produced all of Stormy Weather’s recordings, which include such children’s delights as “Doo-Wop Yule Pop” and two “Doo-Wop & Lollipops” CDs. He also produces oldies concerts and runs Street Gold Records, which has turned out CDs by such legendary artists as Jerry Butler and the Drifters.
The group has had a number of different configurations over the years but currently its members are Farag; Bill Shelton (far right), a native South Sider who has played in and led many jazz, R&B, gospel and pop groups; Jimmy Calinski (far left), known to all as “Jimmy C” and who, as a teenager, sang at parties, schools and “on every street corner that was lit up” before working for Inland Steel for 37 years–he got back into music full-time in 2000; Wilton Crump (center), musical director for the famous group, The Spaniels; and Linda Walla, Stormy Weather’s first female vocalist.
Listening to Stormy Weather, I was reminded of something I wrote in 1987: “A capella singing groups mostly leave me flat, but this gang, with its strong rhythm-and-blues base, has never disappointed. It’s an ebullient bunch and it’s obvious that they are in this for the pure fun of it, spewing forth their favorite oldies. So happy do they appear on stage that we have never seen an audience do anything but share the glee.” It’s nice to know that some things don’t change.
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rkogan@tribune.com
