Bill Baker (November 1, 1935 - August 10, 1994) was a doo wop and pop vocalist who was best known as being the lead vocalist for the Five Satins for a few years.
William M. Baker was born in Auburn, Alabama and sang gospel music with his mother as a boy. He moved to New Haven when he was 16, and sang in various local groups. It wasn’t until 1956 when he was contacted by Jim Freeman who was a Five Satin’s member. The group just had a big hit with “In the Still of the Night” and unfortunately their lead singer Fred Paris had to leave left for military service in Japan but they needed to promote the single on tour and decided that Bill was the man for the job.
Baker quickly proved to be a highly capable replacement, however, as this line-up immediately had success with Billy Dawn Smith's "To the Aisle" (Ember 1019), in September 1957 with Mr. Baker as lead tenor singer. He also recorded four more sides as lead, but fame was short-lived as the group disbanded in 1959, over artistic differences with Ember, the recording company. “The Satins wanted to add strings, to keep up with the times,” (Della Camera -Bill’s long time manager said), “but the studio wanted to play it safe with an R&B; sound”. In the early '60s, Parris re-formed the group, but with none of the original members.
After leaving the Five Satins Bill had a short stay with the Five Chestnuts. From 1959 to 1964 he recorded solo and as lead singer with various record labels but without much success, including Elgin Records, Ember, Audicon and Musicnote. During 1961 Bill cut a few sides with The Dell Satins on the VIM label.
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| The Buddies |
In 1962, Roger Koob, who was lead singer of the Premiers, Roger & The Travelers and the Frontiers, teamed up with Bill recording one single as the Buddies. In 1969, Roger teamed up once again with Bill and released a record as David & Goliath on Tomaro Records. During the 1960s and 70s, Baker performed at the Oakdale Musical Theatre and other venues, also working at the G&O Manufacturing Company in New Haven as a tube cutter, a job he held for 32 years.
In 1981, Baker also restarted the group as The Five Satins but changed the name to "Bill Baker's Five Satins" after a complaint from Parris. That move led to a seven-year court battle between Baker and Parris over the right to use the Five Satins name. The issue was settled November 1993 in a New York courtroom, when the judge ruled that Mr. Baker had full title to the original Five Satins picture used on their album cover but that Parris had the right to the Five Satins name, Della Camera said. In 1987 Bill Baker's Satins" recorded the album, "I'll Be Seeing You."
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| Baker's Five Satins with Bob Dylan and show host Wild Wayne |
During 1994 he received honorary induction into the Doo-Wop Hall of Fame of America as he lay in his hospital bed. Ann Della Camera of East Haven gave him the award. Although unable to speak because of a recent stroke, "he had tears in his eyes," Della said.
Bill Baker died on August 10, 1994 at the Hospital of St. Raphael in New Haven of cancer. He was 58 years old.
(Edited from The New York Daily News & The Hartford Courant)
Here’s a clip of Bill Baker and his Satins performing the standard "I'll Be Seeing You" in Falmouth, Massachusetts on July 5, 1991.