The Ravens were an American R&B vocal group, formed in 1946 by Jimmy Ricks and Warren Suttles.
Career
Jimmy "Ricky" Ricks was born in Adrian, Georgia. His mother was 14 when he was born. She went to Florida to find a better job. Jimmy lived with his aunt and uncle, Marnie and Luther Ricks until he was 13 and moved to Jacksonville, Florida to be with his mother. During World War II, Jimmy moved to New York City, where he worked as a waiter in Harlem and met Warren "Birdland" Suttles from Fairfield, Alabama which is southwest of Birmingham, Alabama. In early 1946, they decided to form a vocal group and recruited Leonard "Zeke" Puzey, who had recently won a talent contest at the Apollo Theater, and Ollie Jones. They found a manager, Ben Bart, and an accompanist, Howard Biggs and made their first recordings for Bart's small Hub record label. It became their trademark style. Their material was also more varied, including elements of pop, jazz, R&B, and gospel styles.
After their initial single, "Honey", Jones left the group and was replaced by Maithe Marshall. Their run of successes on what came to be known as the R&B chart continued through to early 1950, with the basic line-up of Ricks, Suttles, Puzey, and Marshall essentially remaining together for several years. he was the vocalist for the Count Basie orchestra. In 2006, Suttles accepted the Harlem Jazz & Music Festival 2006 Rhythm & Blues award on the group's behalf. (member 1946–1956)
- Warren "Birdland" Suttles (February 20, 1925 – July 24, 2009) (1946–1948, 1949–1950, 1952–1954, 1974, 1987)
- Leonard "Zeke" Puzey (August 20, 1926 – October 2, 2007) (1946–1951, 1953, 1974, 1987)
- Henry Oliver "Ollie" Jones (December 9, 1923 – October 4, 1990) (1946–1947, 1987)
Later members
- Maithe Marshall (Maithe Williams) (August 31, 1924 – November 1, 1989)<br />(1947–1951, 1974, 1987)
- Joe Medlin (1948)
- Richie Cannon (1948–1949)
- Louis Heyward (1950–1951)
- Austin Cromer (dates unknown)
- Joe Van Loan (December 6, 1926–1976)