Chairmen Of The Board

Detroit, Michigan-based R&B / soul vocal group Chairmen of the Board was put together in 1967 by songwriters / producers Brian Holland, Lamont Dozier, and Brian’s brother Eddie Holland – better known as Holland-Dozier-Holland - after they left Motown Records and set up two labels, Invictus Records and Hot Wax Records. Formed around vocalist General Johnson, who had scored a few hits with The Showmen in the early 1960s, the group also included vocalists Eddie Curtis, Danny Woods, and Harrison Kennedy. Intended to be Invictus Records’ flagship band, Chairmen of the Board released their debut single, “Give Me Just a Little More Time,” in December 1969 and by early 1970, the song had reached number 3 on Billboard’s Hot 100 and number 8 on the R&B / Soul Singles chart. The song was an international hit and climbed to number 3 in the UK. However, their next single, “(You’ve Got Me) Dangling on a String,” barely made it into the Top 40, stalling at number 38. Their self-titled debut album only reached number 133 on the Billboard 200 but managed to hit number 27 on the R&B / Soul Albums chart. The self-titled album included the original version of the song “Patches” (co-written by General Johnson), which became a Grammy Award-winning hit in 1971when covered by Clarence Carter. Released later in 1970, Chairmen of the Board’s second album, In Session, didn’t set the charts on fire, but the single “Pay to the Piper” reached number 13 on the Hot 100. Because of General Johnson’s distinct voice, the other three vocalists weren’t given enough material to sing on the albums and Eddie Curtis left after In Session. The other three vocalists continued with one more album, Bittersweet, before splitting up. Johnson, Woods, and Kennedy pursued solo careers while Johnson also had a hand in writing songs for Invictus labelmates Honey Cone. General Johnson and Danny Woods – along with Ken Knox – reformed as Chairmen of the Board in 1978 and continued performing live and recording for independent labels but never again achieved commercial success. Their music was embraced by lovers of ‘beach music’ (a melodic style of soul popular in the Carolinas in the US and not surf or harmony-laden pop from the West Coast). Over the years, their music has become synonymous with the ever-growing beach music crowd. Johnson, Woods, and Knox continued to perform as Chairmen of the Board until General Norman Johnson died of lung cancer on October 13, 2010. Ken Knox continues to lead a version of the group although none of the founding members are involved.