CINCINNATI — In the early 1950s, a group of young men from Withrow High School wanted to be the next big music group.
Otis Williams was good enough at baseball it’s said he could have played for the Cincinnati Reds. Instead, he chose singing and in 1952 joined a group he named "The Charms."
Shortly after, "Otis Williams and the Charms" released the song "Heaven Only Knows," which was reissued after its initial release on the DeLuxe label, a King Record subsidiary.
The group didn’t strike gold from the start. They recorded several songs that didn’t seem to hit the right note among listeners. Then in 1954, they hit the magic mark by releasing "Hearts of Stone," which went on to sell over a million copies and topped the R&B charts for nine weeks.
“We came out of school is when we had the hit record,” Williams said in a 2018 interview with WCPO.
Williams said that by August they were on the road touring. The group would have much success over the next several years with songs in the top 10 charts.
Roughly six years after "Hearts of Stone," the draft for the Vietnam War would catch up to Williams and he’d have to temporarily say goodbye to the recording studio.
“He talks about the time transitioning from King Records going into the military and going over there and serving his country and having to come back and re-kick start his career,” said Don Reilly, a friend of Williams.
When Williams returned, he got back into the studio and back to his passion. He shared the studio and hallways of King Records with several other big names like the Godfather of Soul, James Brown, among others.
“I understand the passion of creating music, you find a way, you know what I mean,” said Eliot Sloan, lead singer of Blessid Union of Souls.
Sloan said the music recorded at King Records continues to influence the music of today and that Otis Williams's story is an inspiration for any up-and-coming singers.
“He was an inspiration maybe not even trying to be an inspiration just following his heart you know what I mean,” he said. “Serving his country, singing what’s in his heart.”
Aside from being friends with Otis Williams and his son Kent, Don Reilly is the founder of Back Home Patriots, a nonprofit that does free home renovation projects for veterans to give them a hand up.
“That’s what we’re all about making sure these guys or gals have accessibility to make their life a little bit easier and let them know someone cares about them,” he said.
Reilly is holding a fundraiser that intends to honor Otis Williams for his service to song and country and acknowledge the 80th anniversary of King Records on Oct. 7.
There will be a number of music performances and auction items that include autographed guitars from Toby Keith, Jason Aldean and Taylor Swift.
You can find out more about the ticketed event by visiting the Back Home Patriots website.
If you have a veteran story to tell in your community, email homefront@wcpo.com. You also can join the Homefront Facebook group, follow Craig McKee on Facebook and find more Homefront stories here.
