The group consisted of:
Gene Puerling, bass-baritone, arranger and leader
Bob Strasen, baritone
Bob Morse, baritone and occasional soloist
Clark Burroughs, tenor
The Hi-Lo's tower among the most innovative and influential close harmony quartets of the postwar era, expanding the parameters of traditional pop via sophisticated, jazz-inspired arrangements that profoundly shaped the rock & roll generation who followed in the group's wake. So named for their expansive vocal range, the Hi-Lo's formed in Hollywood in early 1953 -- bass baritone Gene Puerling and baritone Bob Strasen first teamed in the Milwaukee-based Four Shades, while baritone Bob Morse and tenor Clark Burroughs previously collaborated as members of the Encores, a short-lived ensemble led by session vocal legend Randy Van Horne. After bandleader (and future film composing icon) Jerry Fielding recommended the Hi-Lo's to the fledgling L.A. label Trend, the group cut its debut EP in April 1953, scoring a minor local hit with "Georgia." "Love Me or Leave Me," recorded in support of singer Herb Jeffries, soon followed on Olympic.
While Burroughs' astounding lead vocals enabled Puerling the flexibility to create daring, stunningly complex arrangements some distance removed from the current chart fare, Trend resisted the Hi-Lo's more radical impulses, and in mid-1954 the quartet exited the label in frustration. They soon signed with Starlite, teaming with orchestral arranger and conductor Frank Comstock at the now-legendary Gold Star Studios, a facility famed for its singularly rich acoustics -- their debut album Listen! followed by year's end, trailed in 1955 by The Hi-Lo's, I Presume.
Although commercial success continued to elude the Hi-Lo's, the quartet emerged as a critical favorite, and successive LPs including Under Glass and On Hand further expanded their palette, with Puerling's increasingly challenging and beautiful arrangements over time incorporating elements of contemporary pop, barbershop, calypso and musical theater. In late 1956, the Hi-Lo's signed to Columbia, where their label debut Suddenly It's the Hi-Lo's sold in excess of 100,000 copies thanks to promotion via television's Nat King Cole Show; -- Rosemary Clooney then invited the group to join the cast of her syndicated variety show, and together they cut an album, Ring Around Rosie. A third Columbia date, Now Hear This, followed in 1957, the same year the Hi-Lo's made their feature film debut in Calypso Heat Wave.
Despite their growing media profile, the quartet's albums remained cult favorites at best, however, and Columbia A&R chief Mitch Miller consistently pressured Puerling to simplify his approach in favor of a more radio-friendly formula. The Hi-Lo's resisted, and while 1958's Marty Paich-produced And All That Jazz was their most consistent and rewarding release to date, sales were disappointing, and a year later Bob Strasen announced his resignation.
With the addition of tenor Don Shelton, the Hi-Lo's cut Broadway Playbill in 1960. It too failed to chart, and when the same fate met its follow-up This Time It's Love, Columbia cut its losses and let the group go. Avowed fan Frank Sinatra telegrammed the Hi-Lo's in 1962, inviting them to join his fledgling Reprise label; their two Reprise albums, The Hi-Lo's Happen to Folk Songs and The Hi-Lo's Happen to Bossa Nova, both aimed squarely at commercial trends and fell wide of the mark, and their tenure with the company proved brief. Don Shelton left the lineup in 1964 to join the Chicago vocal group the J's with Jamie, and the Hi-Lo's soldiered on, briefly adding singers Frank Howren and Milt Chapman before the commercial onslaught of rock & roll's British Invasion finally spelled their demise in 1965. While Bob Morse opened an antiques store, Clark Burroughs teamed with wife Marilyn in a folk-rock duo, and Gene Puerling assembled a new group, Singers Unlimited, recruiting Shelton as well as newcomers Len Dresslar and Bonnie Herman.
As the Hi-Lo's were celebrated as a seminal influence on West Coast harmony pop acts including the Beach Boys and the Mamas & the Papas, Singers Unlimited went on to cut a series of LPs for the German label MPS, which in 1977 suggested Puerling organize a Hi-Lo's reunion: Back Again hit retail a year later, its release announced with an appearance at the 1978 Monterey Jazz Festival. Now followed in 1980, and the group continued touring throughout the decade to come, finally calling it quits in 1994. Bob Morse died in 2001.
~ Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide
Afterward, Puerling, Shelton and Burroughs still appeared very occasionally as the Hi-Lo's in and around Southern California. An accomplished reed player, Shelton has been a member of Clare Fischer's bands. Clark Burroughs is semi-retired and can sometimes be heard on film soundtracks.
On March 25, 2008, Gene Puerling died just shy of his 79th birthday.
One Note Samba
The Hi-Lo's Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Built upon a single note
Other notes are bound to follow
But the root is still that note
Now this new one is the consequence
Of the one we've just been through
As I'm bound to be the unavoidable
consequence of you
There's so many people who can
talk and talk and talk
And just say nothing
Or nearly nothing
I have used up all the scale I know
And at the end I've come to nothing
Or nearly nothing
So I came back to my first note
As I must come back to you
I will pour into that one note
All the love I feel for you
Anyone who wants the whole show
Re mi fa sol la si do
He will find himself with no show
Better play the note you know
The Hi-Lo's's song "One Note Samba" is a simple yet profound song about the power of simplicity and the importance of love. The song speaks to the idea that sometimes one simple note can be the foundation for a beautiful song, and in the same way, one person can be the foundation for a deep and meaningful relationship. The first verse of the song sets the tone for this idea, with the lyrics "This is just a little samba / Built upon a single note / Other notes are bound to follow / But the root is still that note". Here, the singer is making the point that while there may be many other notes that come after the initial note, it is that first note that sets the foundation for the entire song.
The second verse of the song deals with the idea of communication and the importance of saying something meaningful. The lyric "There's so many people who can / talk and talk and talk / And just say nothing / Or nearly nothing" suggests that there is a lot of noise in the world, but often what people say has little substance. The singer then admits that he himself has used up all the scales he knows and has come to nothing, but he has found his way back to the first note, which is symbolic of the love that he feels for his partner. The song concludes with the lyric "Better play the note you know", which is a reminder to focus on what is true and authentic, and to not get distracted by all the noise and complexity of the world.
Line by Line Meaning
This is just a little samba
This song is a simple samba tune
Built upon a single note
The song is constructed around one note
Other notes are bound to follow
Other notes will likely be included in the song
But the root is still that note
The central, unchanging element of the song is that note
Now this new one is the consequence
The next note in the song follows logically from the first
Of the one we've just been through
It is a product of the previous note
As I'm bound to be the unavoidable consequence of you
Just as the next note follows from the previous note in the song, the singer is the inevitable result of their relationship with the subject
There's so many people who can talk and talk and talk
Many people are capable of talking at great length
And just say nothing
But they may not actually have anything important to say
Or nearly nothing
Or their comments may be mostly insignificant
I have used up all the scale I know
The singer has exhausted all their musical ideas
And at the end I've come to nothing
But all their efforts have amounted to nothing
Or nearly nothing
Their creative output has been almost entirely insignificant
So I came back to my first note
The singer has returned to the starting point of their musical idea
As I must come back to you
Just as they inevitably return to the first note of their song, the singer is bound to return to their relationship with the subject
I will pour into that one note
The artist will invest all their emotions into that initial musical idea
All the love I feel for you
That musical note represents the artist's love for the subject
Anyone who wants the whole show
Someone who wants the complete performance
Re mi fa sol la si do
Will be left with nothing but the notes of the scale
He will find himself with no show
Their desire for a grand production will be unfulfilled
Better play the note you know
It is more important to focus on creating something honest and genuine, even if it is simple
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: DORIVAL SEN CAYMMI
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind