The “Golden Hits Of The 60s”
Main MenuConcept Refinement The Author..Wayne JancikGolden Age Of The 50sGolden Age Of The 60s1970s and There After
WINSTONS
“COLOR HIM FATHER”
(Richard Spencer)
Metromedia 117
No. 7 July 19, 1969
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As a recording act, the Winstons began and ended in 1969. They are remembered for one song, their
first disk and a Grammy winner for best R & B song, “Color Him Father”
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The band was born in the late ’60s in Washington, D.C. Richard Spencer was the leader, singer, song-
writer, and tenor sax man. G. C. Coleman, their drummer, had been a Motown sessioneer and a member
of the Marvelettes’ touring band. Lead guitarist Quincy Mattison had been with Arthur Conley’s band
when the Otis Redding protege was on the charts with “Sweet Soul Music.” Rich, Quincy, and G. C. had
all played with Otis Redding. Ray Maritano, the Winstons’ alto saxophonist, had attended the Berklee
College of Music and played in the U.S. Air Force Band. Keyboardist Phil Tolotta doubled on lead vocals,
and bassist Sonny Peckrol completed the line-up.
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The Impressions discovered the band, took them out on the road as their back-up players, and eventually
gave them a solo spot on the tour. Spencer’s ode to the ideal dad–protective, kind, and loving–came to
the attention of the Atlanta-based Metromedia label. “Color Him Father” was the Winstons’ first 45, and
it struck a chord with both pop (#7) and R & B (#2) listeners. In just months, the Winstons faded from
view, leaving in their wake only two known 45s–“Love of the Common People” (#54, 1969) and “Birds of
a Feather”–plus a lone LP named after their hallowed hit.