Hard Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: The Drifters Quiz / Test | Music

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. The Drifters had many members over the years, featuring many great singers on lead vocals. Which of these men was never in The Drifters?

Answer: Sam Cooke

Clyde McPhatter was also inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a solo artist the year prior to his induction with The Drifters. McPhatter only played with the group for two years before his stint in the US Army, after which he went on to a stellar solo career.
Ben E. King, born Ben E. Nelson, was with The Five Crowns before his stint in The Drifters.
Similar to McPhatter, Johnny Moore was in the group before his draft into the US Army. Upon his completion of service, he returned to the music world as a solo performer, using the name Bobby Darrow. Moore would eventually rejoin The Drifters as lead singer in 1964.

2. The Drifters produced some of the greatest songs of their genre. With the revolving door in and out of the group, it was very difficult to remember which singer appeared on which hit song. Do you remember who was the lead singer on the 1962 classic "Up on the Roof"?

Answer: Rudy Lewis

One of my favorite songs by The Drifters featured Rudy Lewis on lead vocals. Mr. Lewis was also featured on the songs "Some Kind of Wonderful" and "On Broadway". Unfortunately for the fans of his, Mr. Lewis passed away in 1964 due to a drug overdose.

3. Johnny Moore lent his voice to several great songs by The Drifters. Which of the following songs featured Moore as the lead vocalist?

Answer: Under the Boardwalk

"Under the Boardwalk" was released in 1964. After Rudy Lewis passed away, Johnny Moore stepped right in and released this instant hit. The song peaked at number four on the US Hot 100 chart.
The three wrong answers were all hits which featured Ben E. King as the lead vocalist.

4. Which was the first hit song released by The Drifters?

Answer: Money Honey

Clyde McPhatter sang lead on this classic song released in September of 1953. Many people had heard his voice while he was a member of Billy Ward and The Dominoes, but it was with the release of this song that McPhatter became popular as a lead man. Elvis Presley did a great version of this song in 1956.

5. Which Christmas standard became a hit for The Drifters in 1954?

Answer: White Christmas

Only Bing Crosby's version of "White Christmas" is more successful. The Drifters version of the song featured both Clyde McPhatter and Bill Pinkney on lead vocals. The song reached number five on the US Black Singles chart and number 80 on the US Hot 100 charts upon its release.

The song reappeared on the charts again in 1956 (reaching number number 12 on the Black Singles chart), in 1960 (reaching number 96 on the Hot 100) and finally again in 1962 (peaking at number 88 on the Hot 100).

6. Which fantastic song by The Drifters featured these lyrics: "You can dance every dance with the guy Who gives you the eye, let him hold you tight You can smile every smile for the man Who held your hand 'neath the pale moonlight"?

Answer: Save the Last Dance for Me

Ben E. King did a great job with this song. The song was written by the team of Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman. The song was a great hit for The Drifters reaching number one in the US on both the Black Singles and Hot 100 Singles charts. The song only managed a number two ranking in the UK.

7. Obviously a song as popular as "Under the Boardwalk" would be covered by many artists. Which unlikely US actor performed a cover version of this song and released it on an album in 1987?

Answer: Bruce Willis

Bruce Willis included this cover on his album "The Return of Bruno" which was released in 1987. Bruce Willis fancied himself as some sort of a singer apparently and felt compelled to release an album featuring songs such as "Secret Agent Man", "Flirting with Disaster" and "Respect Yourself". I'll give Willis some credit, he at least seemed to be having a good time as a vocalist.

8. The song "Up on the Roof" was written by the great songwriting team of Carole King and Gerry Goffin and recorded by The Drifters in 1962.

Answer: True

King and Goffin were responsible for many of the songs recorded by The Drifters including "Some Kind of Wonderful", "At the Club" and "When My Little Girl is Smiling".

9. Many groups bring a certain US city to mind and The Drifters are a good example of that. Where were The Drifters formed?

Answer: New York

The Drifters were originally formed in New York in 1953. Many of their songs referenced New York and the New York way of life. The song writing team of Leiber and Stoller had a large reason for this as they had several New York references in their songs.

10. The Drifters were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame along with The Beatles, The Beach Boys, Bob Dylan and The Supremes. Of the following, which member of The Drifters was not named during their induction ceremony?

Answer: David Baughn

With over 60 members passing through the ranks, and many more in spin-off versions of the group, there was no way that the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame was going to recognize every singer who ever could lay claim as performing with one of the incarnations of the group. For that reason, the induction class from The Drifters only included Clyde McPhatter, Ben E. King, Rudy Lewis, Johnny Moore, Bill Pinkney, Charlie Thomas and Gerhart Thrasher.

Although Baughn was one of the very first members to be named a Drifter (along with William Anderson, Dave Baldwin and James Johnson) their body of work did not warrant inclusion in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Source: Author ralzzz

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor agony before going online.
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Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: The Drifters Quiz

The Drifters had a such a great sound that Ahmet Ertegun once claimed they were the greatest artists on his Atlantic Records. This quiz features their impressive body of work.

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