Backing up Charlie Rich
Headed to Vegas in 1975!
How the Cherry Sisters got started….
I had been working as a freelance studio singer /fiddle player/violinist for about a year and a half, and I often worked for a producer named Pat Patrick.
One fateful day, Pat decided to hire me along with two other freelance singers, Diane (Tidwell) Vanette and Sheri (Kramer) Huffman on a session for a soulful singer named Tommy Dougherty. It was a live session, in a small studio with a rhythm section and the singers.
Diane and Sheri and I had never sung together before, but for some reason we instantly clicked.
We each gravitated to the part that was best for our vocal range, our voices blended and we made up some great background vocal parts on the spot.
Something special.
We all realized there was something special going on and decided to pursue getting background vocal work as a trio. We started to get hired often, as word spread among studio musicians, engineers, producers and arrangers.
Top Nashville arranger Bergen White was one of our biggest champions. It was on a session with Bergen that famed arranger Bill Justis jokingly said, “Well, if it isn’t BW and the Cherry Sisters!”* and our vocal group name was born.
* There was a terrible group in the early 1900’s named the Cherry Sisters, but we think Bill Justis was referring to a group of musicians in Arthur Godfrey’s band who dressed in drag for fun and called themselves the Cherry Sisters on the Arthur Godfrey TV show.
The Cherry Sisters & The Righteous Brothers
Some musical ‘siblings’ – The Cherry Sisters and The Righteous Brothers. This was early-mid ’80s, at a Kenny Rogers concert in Memphis.
The Righteous Brothers and Sylvia were on the bill with Rogers. The Cherry Sisters were performing with Sylvia.
Lou Bradley
Here we are, still enjoying each other’s company after all these years! With legendary studio engineer Lou Bradley.
Performing with Jerry Reed
The Cherry Sisters in Reno with Jerry Reed.
The Cherry Sisters at the Wheeling Jamboree in the mid-70s performing with Charlie Rich.
2016 Reunion
We happened to be in town for our annual Cherry Sisters reunion and each signed about 150 albums!!! True story! Amazing realization of the number of artists and musicians we worked with during the 70s and 80s. What a great walk down our musical memory lane!
Special Thanks to Albumman Compton for collecting all the albums over all those years!
The Cherry Sisters – First Fruit, Monument Records – 1981 (Never released)
Produced by Clayton Ivey and Terry Woodford for Wishbone Productions, Inc.
Three of our Recordings
Listen to our recordings of “Fire on Ice,” “Somebody’s Gonna Get Hurt” and “One More Try for Love.”