As
Bill Dahl points out in his terrific liner notes for the fourth volume of Bear Family's ongoing doo wop history
Street Corner Symphonies, 1952 finds the rise of independent labels specializing in vocal harmony and R&B. They filled the gap left by the slowly retreating major labels and, as they did, they capitalized on the growing shift toward gospel and blues-inflected harmony groups. Again
the Dominoes, fronted by
Clyde McPhatter, lead the charge but right alongside them were
the "5" Royales, whose robust harmonies were rowdier and churchier than those of
the Dominoes, and showcased to great effect on "Baby Don't Do It." While there are, as always, quite a lot of sweet, slow harmonies, overall the rhythms are changing and getting livelier, a shift heard quite clearly in
the Clovers,
the Diamonds, and
the Heartbreakers. Things are starting to rock, doo wop is coming into view, and the results are pretty exciting.