Bobby Doyle
Birth nameRobert Glen Doyle
Born14 August 1939
Houston, Texas, United States
Died30 July 2006 (2006-07-31) (aged 66)
Austin, Texas, United States
GenresJazz, R&B, rock
Occupation(s)Musician
Instrument(s)Piano, bass, vocals
Years active1957–2006
LabelsDomino, Liberty, Capitol, Columbia, Back Beat, Bell, Warner Bros., CBS

Robert Glen "Bobby" Doyle (August 14, 1939 – July 30, 2006) was an American singer, bassist, and pianist. He is best known for his early work with a young Kenny Rogers and for a brief stint with Blood, Sweat & Tears. He played piano on two tracks on BS&T's 1972 album New Blood.[1]

Doyle joined the doo-wop group The Spades (later The Slades) in 1957 while still at McCallum High School in Austin. In 1960 he formed The Bobby Doyle Three with Don Russell and standup bass player Kenny Rogers, then a student at the University of Texas. Rogers soon dropped out of college to join Doyle full-time, singing high harmony and playing bass on the 1962 album In A Most Unusual Way. The group appeared at clubs across the country including the New York Playboy Club in 1962.[2] The trio disbanded in 1965, and Rogers went on to become a country-pop sensation.

Doyle continued as a solo artist, releasing multiple singles and albums including an appearance on the soundtrack for the 1971 film Vanishing Point. In the 1980s, Doyle on piano, Rick Moses on bass and William Walton on drums, backed Brunswick recording artist Sunny Nash.

In the mid-1990s, Rogers (now a long established superstar) reunited with Doyle and Russell as part of a special concert called "Going Home" where Rogers sang a selection of his greatest hits and favorite songs. The original Bobby Doyle Trio line-up performed "It's A Good Day" with Doyle on lead vocals.

Doyle was born blind as a result of his mother contracting German measles during pregnancy. An operation in 1959 to restore his sight, paid for by his high school friends, was unsuccessful.[3]

Discography

Singles[4][5]

The Spades (Don Windell Burch, John Goeke, Tommy Kaspar, Bobby Doyle (bass), Joyce Webb)

OR200/OR100: "Baby"/"You Mean Everything To Me"
F-55118: "Baby"/"You Mean Everything To Me" (also released in Canada on London Liberty F-55118 (45 rpm) and LI.55118 (78 rpm))

The Slades (Don Burch, John Goeke, Tommy Kaspar, Bobby Doyle, Jimmy Davis, Joyce Webb (Liberty single only))

F-55118: "Baby"/"You Mean Everything To Me"
OR300/OR400: "Right Here"/"After You've Gone" (Joyce Webb with The Slades), 1957
R-500: "You Cheated"/"The Waddle", July 1958 (also released in Canada on Sparton 4-635R (45 rpm) and 636R (78 rpm)
R-800: "You Gambled"/"No Time", 1958 (also released in Canada on Reo 8316X)
R-901: "It's Better To Love"/"Just You", 1959 (promo release was R-900)
1000: "You Must Try"/"Summertime", June 1959
R-903: "I Cheated (Joyce Harris and The Slades)/"Do You Know What It's Like To Be Lonesome?" (Joyce Harris), 1961
R-906: "It's Your Turn"/"Take My Heart", 1961

Bobby Doyle and The Ideals (Bobby Doyle, Chuck Joyce, George Millard, Merle Moden, Jeff Rampy, Jerry Squyres)

AR-112: "Too Late"/"Chug-a-Lug"

Bobby Doyle Three (Bobby Doyle, Ken Russell, Kenny Rogers)

4-42613: "Empty Pockets Filled With Love" (Kirby Stone Four with Bobby Doyle Three)/"The Eyes Of Texas" (Kirby Stone Four)
TH-112: "Don't Feel Rained On"/"(Just A Summer Ago) Maggie", 1964
WB 5462: "Don't Feel Rained On"/"(Just A Summer Ago) Maggie", August 1964

Bobby Doyle

BB 528: "Pauline"/"Someone Else, Not Me", September 14, 1959, music by Jimmy Duncan
BB 531: "Hot Seat"/"Unloved", March, 1960, music by Jimmy Duncan
WB 7207: "Nobody There At All"/"So Long Good Times", June 1968
WB 7252: "River Deep – Mountain High"/"Blowin' in the Wind", December 1968
WB 7273: "I Just Can't Help Believin'"/"We're All Born Free", 1969
WB 7303: "Yesterday And You"/"I'll Be Going Back Home", 1969
45-294 promo: "Sail Away (mono)"/"Sail Away (stereo)", November 1972
45-329 promo: "Hey Buddy (mono)"/"Hey Buddy (stereo)", March 1973

Albums

Bobby Doyle Three

  1. "I Got Rhythm"
  2. "People Will Say We're in Love"
  3. "It's a Most Unusual Day"
  4. "It's a Good Day"
  5. "Fly Me to the Moon (In Other Words)"
  6. "My Mammy"
  7. "Come Rain or Come Shine"
  8. "Old Folks"
  9. "Over and Over"
  10. "And the Angels Sing"
  11. "In the Still of the Night"
  12. "When the Feeling Hits You"

Bobby Doyle

Al Capps (arranger), Harold Battiste (arranger), Mike Post (producer); released in UK with different cover
  1. "Back on The Road"
  2. "Don't Look Back"
  3. "Nobody There at All"
  4. "Poor Boy"
  5. "Just One More Time"
  6. "So Much Love"
  7. "Baby, I'd Be Lost"
  8. "So Long Good Times"
  9. "Right On Time"
  10. "We're All Born Free"
Recorded at Sun Records Studio, Memphis, Tennessee; reissued on CD in 2014
  1. "Touch Me"
  2. "How Can a Poor Man Stand Such Times and Live?"
  3. "Hey Buddy"
  4. "One More River to Cross"
  5. "Sail Away"
  6. "Remedies"
  7. "I'm Just a Country Boy"
  8. "Brownsville"
  9. "I Think It's Gonna Rain Today"

Appearances

Spades/Slades

Bobby Doyle Three

Bobby Doyle

Honors

References

  1. ^ "Bobby Doyle Obituary". Austin American-Statesman. August 1, 2006. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
  2. ^ Grevatt, Ren (December 22, 1962). "Nothing Stays Those Bunnies" (PDF). Billboard magazine. Retrieved June 10, 2019.
  3. ^ "Make It Beautiful: The Bobby Doyle Story". Arts+Labor Magazine. July 11, 2014. Archived from the original on February 5, 2015. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
  4. ^ Label scans available at www.45cat.com
  5. ^ Lee, Brian. "Coloradio.com - The Spades/Slades". Retrieved 6 February 2015.
  6. ^ Bobby Doyle May 31, 1969 performance on Playboy After Dark. – images YouTube.
  7. ^ Texas Senate Resolution 323, 74th Regular Session, February 27, 1995
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