DATE: Thursday, October 2, 1997             TAG: 9710010151

SECTION: SUFFOLK SUN             PAGE: 08   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY FRANK ROBERTS, STAFF WRITER 

DATELINE: FRANKLIN                          LENGTH:   97 lines

PLATTERS BRING THEIR TIMELESS SOUND TO FRANKLIN FRIDAY FOR FALL FESTIVAL

``You-who-who've got - that mag . . . ic touch.''

``Heavenly shades of night are falling - it's twilight time.''

``My-y-y prayer - and the answer you gi. . . ve.''

Every word is enunciated clearly, every lyric is clearly understood.

That is almost a revolutionary concept in this day and age when so many singers sound as if they're gargling with marbles, but lyric clarity is a trademark of The Platters, one of the reasons that the group is still going strong.

Organized in Los Angeles in 1953, they were heard by the wise Buck Ram, who signed them for Federal Records. Two years later, they inked a contract with Mercury Records, recorded ``Only You.'' Excuse the hackneyed phrase - but, the rest, is history.

Franklin has a great history lesson coming Friday when The Platters join the Fall Festival to perform such gems as ``The Great Pretender,'' ``To Each His Own,'' and ``Smoke Gets In Your Eyes.''

They were all top-of-the-chart pieces, as were the group's ``romance-on-the-water'' songs - ``Harbor Lights,'' ``Ebb Tide'' and ``Red Sails In the Sunset.''

The Platters have sold more than 80 million records - most of them, thankfully, transferred to CDs.

They are still heard on easy listening and oldies stations and they still perform and have toured in 75 countries.

``We were in Beijing about a month ago,'' said leader singer, Derek David. ``They never saw blacks on the street. It was strange to see 200 people following us. They were touching us to see if the color comes off.

``Still, they're familiar with our music,'' he said. ``Phonetically, they know `Only You,' and `The Great Pretender.' ''

David explains the secret of The Platters international success.

``The ballads we do are so universal. They're very dramatic,'' he said. ``You can almost put it as light opera, especially `My Prayer' and `Smoke Gets In Your Eyes.' ''

Those songs had lives of their own even before The Platters. They're classics.

``Because of their lyric content, the tenor has to reach notes that really mean something to you,'' David said.

They are reached dramatically and, at the same time, the lyrics are strongly emphasized.

The Platters do not mouth the words, they feel them.

``The lyric of any song is important,'' David said. ``Our songs say something.''

What about today's songs?

David didn't answer immediately. He laughed. ``I'm not really into the music of today. I'm an anachronism. I should've been born earlier.

``Billy Eckstine - and the big bands are my kind of thing. Glenn Miller - from `Moonlight Serenade' to `String of Pearls' - Count Basie, Tommy Dorsey.''

And what about the White House saxophonist?

David and The Platters were in D.C. for the Bill Clinton inauguration ceremonies.

``I did Jackie Wilson's `Higher and Higher,' '' he said. ``I did it with Chuck Berry and Bo Diddley - with backup by the Drifters and Coasters.''

That is a big time line up from the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The Platters were accepted into that hallowed hall in 1990.

They are not the original Platters, but not far removed.

``I've been with them since 1969,'' David said. ``I started with Tony Williams. I was by his side. When he died, I became lead singer.''

Kristy Brooks, the lady Platter, has been with the group since the early 1970s. Curtis Bridgeforth and Wendell Noble have been with them for a decade.

David notes that longevity is the reason ``our blend is so good.''

It sounded good last month during an appearance on the Today show.

Getting to the NBC studio in New York City was no sweat. All the Platters live in the borough of Queens, the 48-year-old David residing in Woodside where he is a member of the local Kiwanis Club.

You cannot hear medleys by The Platters without inclusion of ``My Prayer.'' You cannot talk to David without talking about it.

``I have two personal favorites,'' he said. ``That's one of them. The other is `Sleepy Lagoon.' ''

That song, more closely connected with Harry James, is not a major Platters hit, but David loves performing the piece.

The Platters loved performing in the movies, appearing in 20 of them including, ``Rock Around the Clock.''

David's favorite flick was ``The Girl Can't Help It,'' which gave the group the opportunity to perform ``The Great Pretender'' and ``Only You'' on the big screen.

A big inspiration for The Platters was The Ink Spots, the '40s quartet that inspired his group, and many others.

``Bill Kenny, their lead singer, was a dramatic tenor. Tony Williams was a lyric tenor - almost like an Irish tenor,'' said David, whose wife is Irish.

``I compare him with John McCormack and Dennis Day.''

Almost every day, somewhere in the world, on the radio, on stage, you can hear The Platters.

They seem to be a musical version of the Fountain of Youth.

``I think,'' David said, ``we found Ponce de Leon's secret.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photo courtesy of EAST COAST ENTERTAINMENT

The Platters will perform from 8 p.m. to midnight Friday with an

intermission at 9 p.m. for a fireworks show by Zimbelli

Internationale.

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