DATE: Sunday, April 27, 1997                TAG: 9704250223

SECTION: CHESAPEAKE CLIPPER      PAGE: 04   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY ERIC FEBER, STAFF WRITER 

                                            LENGTH:   71 lines

RUDY WEST, AN R&B PIONEER, TO BE HEARD ON WFOS TODAY

Today at 4:05 p.m., WFOS-FM 88.7, the radio station of the Chesapeake public schools, will present live in the studio a legendary singer who led the influential '50s singing group, The Five Keys.

On the fourth Sunday of each month, the weekly WFOS music series ``The Music Goes Round and Round'' presents early rhythm and blues/doo-wop expert Larry Eberhardt, station engineer David Desler and student announcer Jason Campen in a monthly three-hour look at the best, rarest and most compelling recordings of tight-knit street corner vocal harmonies and early R&B vocals in ``The Best of Doo-Wop.''

Eberhardt, Desler and Campen will host an appearance by Rudy West who was lead singer for the now-legendary doo-wop/R&B singing group The Five Keys.

West is now in his early '60s and lives in the Western Branch area of Chesapeake. He'll be in the studio to talk about the group's glory years and its history. He'll also be on hand to offer anecdotes about performing, recording and the '50s doo-wop era and bring along some of his own very rare recordings.

Eberhardt said listeners also will be able to call in with song requests or to ask West questions about his career or the doo-wop era.

To have someone like West guesting on a doo-wop archive show, Eberhardt said, is akin to having Bach as guest on a classical program or Louis Armstrong appear on a jazz history show.

``Their music represents the early efforts of the '50s vocal groups,'' Eberhardt said. ``They were a remarkable group with a great vocal harmony sound. And Rudy West's defining vocals made an impact on the groups that would follow. He had that high, sweet tenor voice. He was a great lead singer and he and the Five Keys set the style for groups like The Ravens, The Orioles, the Moonglows and the Platters.''

Getting West on the program was nothing less than a bit of serendipity.

``One afternoon about a year ago I was co-hosting the show with Larry,'' Desler said. ``On the show I remarked how great it would be if we could get Rudy West on as a special guest. That show was repeated on television (WCTV-23) during the late-night hours as background when the station scrolls community messages across the screen. Apparently the right person heard it, contacted Mr. West, who lives in the area, and five months later he called me out of the blue.''

Eberhardt said the group, led by West's tenor voice, began out of Newport News as the Sentimental Four. They later added another singer and changed the name to the Five Keys.

The group began recording for the Aladdin record label, then worked for Capitol Records and later hooked up with King Records.

``Their stuff with Aladdin was simpler and more R&B oriented,'' Eberhardt said. ``When they went over to Capitol their sound became more polished, smoother and many times included full orchestration and backing strings. But Rudy's wonderful vocals and the group's great harmonies were still intact.''

Some of its biggest hits and well-known songs include ``Ling Ting Tong,'' ``Close Your Eyes,'' ``Out of Sight, Out of Mind,'' ``You Were Mine,'' ``Let There Be You'' and their own version of ``Red Sails In the Sunset.''

West still performs, fronting a group called Rudy West's 5 Keys.

``I think he has the type of voice that never changes and never goes out of style,'' Eberhardt said. ``He's very excited about appearing on the show. I think this particular program will be satisfying, interesting and exciting.'' MEMO: Rudy West, legendary lead singer with the mid-'50s Five Keys vocal

group, will make a live guest appearance on the WFOS-FM 88.7 radio

program ``The Best of Doo-Wop,'' today, beginning at 4:05 p.m. Listeners

can call to make requests or pose questions to West by calling 547-1036. ILLUSTRATION: Photo by JAMES WESTON CSP STUDIO

Rudy West, in rear, who lives in Western Branch, still performs,

heading up a group called Rudy West's 5 Keys with Oliver Sydney,

left, William Griffin, Edwin Hall and George Winfield.

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