RIP – Willie Winfield of the Harptones (From our friend Bobby J)

It will be with deep sorrow, but also with immense pride this evening on “Great Soul Performances,” when I salute and pay tribute to one of the greatest lead singers in vocal group history, Willie Winfield of the Harptones who passed away on Tuesday July 27th. Many of Willie’s friends and colleagues from the business like Tony Middleton of the Willows, Reggie Barnes of the Fi-Tones and the Cadillacs, Paul Roland Martinez of the Vocaltones & the Solitaires, Thomas Cooke of the Demens/Emersons and others have told me they’ll be with in the studio in spirit. Vocal tributes to Willie will be paid by my group the Laddins with a demo of one of the Harptones’ hits and us on stage; live with Willie, my studio vocal group, Joel & the Dymensions featuring Johnny Maestro, Joel Katz, Timothy Wilson, Cindy Young and me, a tribute from Otis Williams & the Temptations and other special moments. Our tribute to Willie Winfield begins at 7PM ET, 6PM CT, 5PM MT & 4PM PT. I’ll try and get in as many of the Harptones’ hits as possible. Willie was important and special to me from the beginning of my performing career until the very end, and I want you to feel and experience that this evening on “Great Soul Performances” on “The Nation’s Oldies Station” BOSSJOCKRADIO.Com. All we have to keep us are our records and memories of Willie Winfield & the Harptones. I thank Willie and Raoul J. Cita for making me an “honorary” Harptone.
BTW, August 24th would have been Willie’s 92nd birthday