Bill Pinkney, Oral History
Title
Bill Pinkney, Oral History
Description
Bill Pinkney (b. Aug 15, 1925, d. Jul 4, 2007) born, Dalzell, NC- The original bass of the Drifters vocal group. Bill visited Bob at WJLD twice and sat down for this interview. He reflects on his early career and the creation of one of the best known vocal groups of all times. He also reflects on other groups and their members.
Creator
Bill Pinkney
Bob Friedman
Publisher
Birmingham Black Radio Museum
Date
October 19, 1994
Contributor
Mark Usry
Emily Bibb
Format
JPG
MP3
PDF
Language
English
Identifier
PinkneyOH
Interviewer
Bob Friedman
Interviewee
Bill Pinkney
Transcription
Transcript of audio snippet:
Bill Pinkney: And we’re talking for so many years now and there’s something great about me as old as I am I can remember that’s because it’s entertainment.
Bob Friedman: Uh huh
BP: And anything out of this ballpark and anything out of this league, I can’t remember.
BF: (laughs)
BP: But you want to talk music, I can talk with you.
BF: (laughs) Yeah.
BP: (laughs)...Oh yeah, man. It’s just great. Another thing too I would like to talk a little more about Jimmy Ricks.
BF: Yeah
BP: And even though the late Jimmy Ricks now.
BF: Yeah
BP: I want to give thanks to him because if it wasn’t for him, I wouldn't have done “White Christmas” the way I did.
BF: Mhm, mhm.
BP: Yeah, I've heard so many things from Jimmy Ricks. “Green Eyes”, “Wagon Wheels”, “Old Man River”, you know…
BF: Just never stopped. Endless supply of stuff.
BP: Oh, yeah
BF: “Don’t Mention.” Then those unbelievable tenors and that progressive harmony The Ravens had. Boy, “Don’t Mention My Name”, “Begin the Beguine”…
BP: The Tenors sang it. Maithe Marshall.
BF: Maithe Marshall
BP: Well, yeah.
BF:Joe Van Loan...
BP: He was in before Van Loan. That came later
BF: Yeah, yeah.
BP: Joe and Jim was there, but The Ravens….
BF: They had the Marshall brothers actually put out a record.
BP: Yeah
BF: Yeah, that was really something. Really unbelievable.
BP: Yeah
BF: And Pioneers
BP: Yeah
BF: There were other...while I was collecting….
BP: Well, the guy that sang bass in The Drifters after I left, uh, in 57, was from The Ravens. He took Jimmy Ricks place. When Jimmy went solo, his name was Tommy Evans. He’s this guy here. (shows picture)
BF: Is he on it?
BP: Yeah, that’s him there.
BF: No, that’s one of the Thrashers.
BP: Oh, that’s one of the Thrashers.
BF: Tommy…
BP: That’s a Thrasher in the middle, that’s Tommy Evans right there.
BF: Oh, I thought these guys were brothers.
BP: No, no, no.
BF: So there’s only one Thrasher in here.
BP: There’s only one Thrasher in that picture.
BF: Yeah
BP: The other Thrashers on the original picture
BF: Yeah
BP: The second group of Drifters.
BF: Mhm
BP: See what happened is that this is Tommy Evans and that’s why I’m not on there cuz he’s on there. (laughs)
BF: Unbelievable, so you came and picked up where you left off.
Bill Pinkney: And we’re talking for so many years now and there’s something great about me as old as I am I can remember that’s because it’s entertainment.
Bob Friedman: Uh huh
BP: And anything out of this ballpark and anything out of this league, I can’t remember.
BF: (laughs)
BP: But you want to talk music, I can talk with you.
BF: (laughs) Yeah.
BP: (laughs)...Oh yeah, man. It’s just great. Another thing too I would like to talk a little more about Jimmy Ricks.
BF: Yeah
BP: And even though the late Jimmy Ricks now.
BF: Yeah
BP: I want to give thanks to him because if it wasn’t for him, I wouldn't have done “White Christmas” the way I did.
BF: Mhm, mhm.
BP: Yeah, I've heard so many things from Jimmy Ricks. “Green Eyes”, “Wagon Wheels”, “Old Man River”, you know…
BF: Just never stopped. Endless supply of stuff.
BP: Oh, yeah
BF: “Don’t Mention.” Then those unbelievable tenors and that progressive harmony The Ravens had. Boy, “Don’t Mention My Name”, “Begin the Beguine”…
BP: The Tenors sang it. Maithe Marshall.
BF: Maithe Marshall
BP: Well, yeah.
BF:Joe Van Loan...
BP: He was in before Van Loan. That came later
BF: Yeah, yeah.
BP: Joe and Jim was there, but The Ravens….
BF: They had the Marshall brothers actually put out a record.
BP: Yeah
BF: Yeah, that was really something. Really unbelievable.
BP: Yeah
BF: And Pioneers
BP: Yeah
BF: There were other...while I was collecting….
BP: Well, the guy that sang bass in The Drifters after I left, uh, in 57, was from The Ravens. He took Jimmy Ricks place. When Jimmy went solo, his name was Tommy Evans. He’s this guy here. (shows picture)
BF: Is he on it?
BP: Yeah, that’s him there.
BF: No, that’s one of the Thrashers.
BP: Oh, that’s one of the Thrashers.
BF: Tommy…
BP: That’s a Thrasher in the middle, that’s Tommy Evans right there.
BF: Oh, I thought these guys were brothers.
BP: No, no, no.
BF: So there’s only one Thrasher in here.
BP: There’s only one Thrasher in that picture.
BF: Yeah
BP: The other Thrashers on the original picture
BF: Yeah
BP: The second group of Drifters.
BF: Mhm
BP: See what happened is that this is Tommy Evans and that’s why I’m not on there cuz he’s on there. (laughs)
BF: Unbelievable, so you came and picked up where you left off.
Duration
Full interview: 45 minutes
Audio snippet: 2 minutes
Audio snippet: 2 minutes
Files
Collection
Citation
Bill Pinkney and Bob Friedman, “Bill Pinkney, Oral History,” The Birmingham Black Radio Museum, accessed September 7, 2026, https://www.thebbrm.org/item/71.
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