Page "The Orioles" Paragraph 7

Around 1947, Sonny Til sang regularly in amateur shows at the Avenue Cafe in Baltimore, where he met Nelson, Sharp and Gaither.

They decided to form a group, calling themselves The Vibra-Naires, and aspiring songwriter Deborah Chessler became their manager.

In April 1948 the group appeared on the Arthur Godfrey radio talent show in New York, with Richard Williams as bass singer, but he was then replaced by Johnny Reed.