Five Americans

The Five Americans are an American rock band from Durant, Oklahoma, formed in the early 1960s as The Mutineers, before adopting their definitive name in 1965 after a move to Dallas, Texas. The band consists of Mike Rabon (vocals, guitar), John Durrill (keyboards), Norman Ezell (guitar), Jim Grant (bass) and Jimmy Wright (drums). Their style, a blend of garage rock, playful pop and touches of light psychedelia, brought them notable success in the mid-1960s. They made a national name for themselves in 1967 with the track "Western Union", characterized by its distinctive organ riff imitating the sound of a telegraph, which reached #5ᵉ on the Billboard Hot 100 (#36 in Germany). The band followed up with other popular songs such as "I See the Light" (#26 as early as 1965), "Sound of Love" and "Zip Code" (both ranked #36 in 1967), then "7:30 Guided Tour" (#96 in 1968), all in an energetic, accessible pop-rock vein. Although their commercial career was relatively brief, The Five Americans recorded four albums between 1966 and 1968 on the Abnak Records label: I See the Light (most garage rock, 1965), Western Union - Sound of Love (most pop, June 1967), Progressions (psychedelic and sunshine pop, December 1967) and Now and Then (conceptual and psychedelic, 1969). The group disbanded in 1969, with several members pursuing musical careers: John Durrill joined The Ventures before becoming a composer for artists such as Cher and Engelbert Humperdinck. John Durrill remains the only surviving member after the successive deaths of Jim Grant on November 29, 2004 at the age of 61, Norman Ezell on May 8, 2010 at the age of 68, Jimmy Wright on January 30, 2012 at the age of 84 and Mike Rabon on February 11, 2022 at the age of 78.

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