Peaches & Herb

BIOGRAPHY

Though soul/pop Peaches and Herb was billed as a duo, their group member rotation is more similar to a group’s. The original Peaches, Francine Hurd Barker, a Washington, D.C., native, earned the childhood nickname “Peaches” because of her genteel manner. She sang in neighborhood groups and in her teens she became the lead singer for a group named the Keynotes. Starting her own group, the Darlettes, they auditioned for and were signed to D.C.-area label Date Records, where their name was changed to the Sweet Things. Herb Fame, born Herbert Feemster on October 1, 1942, in Washington, D.C., began singing in church at seven and continued singing through the years in neighborhood groups. After high school graduation, Herb began working at a record store. His friend, Howard University student Freddie Perren, worked at another record store, Sabin’s right around the corner. One day in January 1965, producer Van McCoy came into the store Herb worked in to ask about doing in-store promotion for a group he was working with called the Sweet Things. He and Herb began having conversations that lead to Herb auditioning for and signing with Date Records as a solo artist. While in New York recording the two acts, the Sweet Things and Herb Fame, separately, McCoy decided to use some leftover recording time to record Herb and Francine as a duo. The original A-side, “We’re in This Thing Together,” failed to generate much interest. Then a disc jockey at St. Louis, MO, radio station KATZ flipped the single over and began playing the B-side, “Let’s Fall in Love.” It became Peaches and Herb’s first hit single; it was a remake of a number one pop hit for Eddy Duchin from 1934 that went to number 11 R&B in December 1966. The follow-up, “Close Your Eyes” written by Chuck Willis, hit number four R&B, number eight pop in April 1967. As the hits continued, the duo earned the nickname the Sweethearts of Soul.

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PEACHES & HERB

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BIOGRAPHY