The Dells grew up in Harvey, Illinois and began singing together while attending Thornton Township High School. Forming in 1952 under the name the El-Rays, the group initially consisted of Marvin Junior, Mickey McGill, Lucius McGill, Verne Allison, Chuck Barksdale, and Johnny Funches. Lucius soon left the group and the remaining quintet signed with Checker Records, releasing their first single, "Darling I Know," which flopped.
In 1955, the group renamed themselves the Dells and signed with Vee-Jay Records. In 1956, they recorded their first hit, "Oh, What a Nite" (a song co-written by Johnny Funches, who also sang lead on the recording alongside Marvin Junior), which hit the Top 5 of the R&B singles chart. It sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc. The song is ranked #260 on the Rolling Stone magazine's list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. In November 1958, the Dells suffered a car accident that left McGill in a hospital in Ohio for six months. The group temporarily disbanded and Barksdale sang as a member of Harvey Fuqua's spinoff Moonglows act, Harvey and the Moonglows, which included a young Marvin Gaye. In 1961, the Dells reunited and auditioned for Dinah Washington. After Washington agreed to hire them, Johnny Funches left the group to take care of his family. Funches was replaced by Flamingos founding member Johnny Carter and sang background for Washington for two years. In 1966, they were hired to open for Ray Charles, only to be fired after a performance resulted in several standing ovations. The group would also sing background for Barbara Lewis, mainly on Lewis' 1963 hit, "Hello Stranger", while also working with Quincy Jones, who helped to fine-tune their vocals for standards and jazz material.
In 1966, the Dells returned to Chess under the label's Cadet subsidiary working with Bobby Miller and future Earth, Wind & Fire arranger Charles Stepney. In 1967, the Dells issued the album There Is which included their first R&B chart-topper in years with the title track, which showcased the sharp baritone of Marvin Junior and the harmonies with the four other Dells. The song was also their first top 20 pop hit.
Subsequent R&B hits included "Wear It on Our Face," "Always Together" (Top 20 Pop, "I Can Sing a Rainbow - Love is Blue (medley)" (UK #15), and their first #1 R&B hit and first Top Ten pop hit, 1968's "Stay in My Corner," which reached #10 on the pop chart and showcased both Carter and Marvin in lead vocals. In the following year, 1969, The Dells' soulful remake of their debut hit, "Oh What a Night" gave the group their second chart-topping R&B single and also reached the top ten on the Billboard Hot 100. For a second time, the song sold over a million copies. Subsequent hits included "Open Up My Heart," "Oh What A Day," and "On the Dock of the Bay." In 1971, the Dells' "The Love We Had Stays on My Mind" became another Top Ten hit on the R&B charts, also reaching the pop Top 30. By this time Charles Stepney had taken over production duties from Bobby Miller. 1973's "Give Your Baby a Standing Ovation" was their third certified gold record. The song was written by L.V. Johnson and produced by Don Davis.
Leaving Cadet around the end of 1974 with the parent company in financial difficulties, the group would continue recording in order under the Mercury, ABC, and Virgin labels finding some hits, including 1980's "I Touched a Dream", which returned the group to the top 40 on the R&B charts. The Dells were confined mostly to the oldies market afterwards until they were asked to be creative consultants to Robert Townsend's acclaimed 1991 film, The Five Heartbeats, which was loosely based on the lives of The Dells and other groups of its era. The group recorded a composition titled "A Heart Is a House for Love". The song reached number 13 on the Billboard R&B chart, making them only one of two groups to have hit singles in five decades. The following year, signing with PIR, they released the album, I Salute You. The Dells continued performing and recording sporadically in the early years of the new millennium. In 2004, the group were inducted to both the Vocal Group Hall of Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The group continued performing until 2012.
Original Dells vocalist Johnny Funches died of pneumonia on January 23, 1998, at the age of 62.
Johnny Carter died of cancer on August 21, 2009, at the age of 75. Carter is one of the few artists to be a double Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee, having been inducted with The Flamingos in 2001, and the Dells in 2004.
On May 29, 2013, founding member Marvin Junior died in his sleep at his home in Harvey, Illinois, succumbing to complications of kidney failure and a weak heart at the age of 77.
Chuck Barksdale died on 15 May 2019, at the age of 83.
Members
Marvin Junior (born Marvin Curtis Junior, January 31, 1936, Harrell, Arkansas – May 29, 2013) - lead baritone, lead vocals (1952-1958, 1960–2012)
Verne Allison (b. June 22, 1936, Chicago) - second tenor, background vocals (1952-1958, 1960-2012)
Mickey McGill (b. February 17, 1937, Chicago) - baritone, background vocals (1952–1958, 1960-2012)
Chuck Barksdale (January 11, 1935 - May 15, 2019) - bass, background vocals (1952–1958, 1960-2012)
Johnny Funches (July 18, 1935, Chicago – January 23, 1998) - first tenor, lead vocals (1952–58, 1960-1961)
Lucius McGill (b. 1935, Chicago) - second tenor, background vocals (1952–54)
Johnny Carter (June 2, 1934, Chicago – August 21, 2009) - first tenor/falsetto, lead vocals (1961–2009)
Wear It on Our Face
The Dells Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
With all our heart and soul
Let's put our love somewhere
For the whole world to behold
A love like ours
Must have a special place
I've got the answer, baby
Let's wear it on our face
Love is bubbling over, baby
Flowing everywhere
Our hearts can't hold no more
And it's got to go somewhere
Whoa, yeah
A love like ours
Must have a special place
I've got the answer, baby
Let's wear it on our face
Let's wear it on our face
This love's got to go somewhere
This love's got to go somewhere
This love's got to go somewhere
This love's got to go somewhere
Yeah, yeah, yeah...
I've got the answer
Let's wear it on our face
A love like ours
Got to go someplace
Look at the answer, baby
Let's wear it on our face
This love's got to go somewhere
This love's got to go somewhere
This love's got to go somewhere
This love's got to go somewhere
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah...
We've got the answer
Let's wear it on our face
Oh, yeah
A love like ours
Got to go someplace
Look at the answer, baby
Let's wear it on our face
Oh, yeah (on our face now, hey)
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah...
We've got the answer
Let's wear it on our face
The Dells's song "Wear It on Our Face" is a soulful ballad that speaks about the intensity and depth of a couple's love for each other. The singer addresses his lover, saying that their love is so strong that it should be displayed for the world to see. He proposes that they "wear it on our face" so that everyone can witness the love they have for each other. The lyrics use the symbol of the face as a way to express the externalization of an internal emotion. By wearing their love on their face, they can show their love to everything and everyone around them.
The song talks about how their love has reached a level where it is overflowing their hearts and souls, and it is something that cannot be contained. They express their need to find someplace where their love can reside in a special way, and their faces provide that solution. The song's repeated refrain emphasizes the idea of the need for their love to go somewhere, and the face is the perfect outlet. The song's message is that love should not be confined to the private domain, but it should be displayed as a form of expression.
Overall, "Wear It on Our Face" is a song that encourages couples to express the depth of their love to the world. The face is a powerful symbol for this externalization of an internal feeling, and the song emphasizes the importance of displaying one's emotions openly and meaningfully.
Line by Line Meaning
We're falling in love, my darling
Our love is growing more and more, my dear
With all our heart and soul
We are deeply passionate about our love
Let's put our love somewhere
Let's find a way to show our love to the world
For the whole world to behold
So that everyone can see and recognize our love
Love is bubbling over, baby
Our love is overflowing with joy and happiness
Flowing everywhere
Our love is spreading and touching everything around us
Our hearts can't hold no more
Our love is so strong that it cannot be contained
And it's got to go somewhere
Our love needs a place to be expressed
A love like ours
Our love is unique and special
Must have a special place
It deserves a special way to be displayed
I've got the answer, baby
I know what we should do about it
Let's wear it on our face
Let's show our love to the world, like a smile on our face
This love's got to go somewhere
Our love needs to be expressed and shared
We've got the answer
We know what to do about it
Oh, yeah (on our face now, hey)
Yes, let's show it on our face right now, hey
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah...
Reinforcing and emphasizing their determination and excitement
Contributed by Nathaniel E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.