The Cardinals

The Cardinals were a successful American R&B group of the 1950s. Although overshadowed by the legendary Orioles, The Cardinals are still remembered as one of the best R&B ballad acts to come out of Baltimore.

Origins

The Cardinals’ career began in 1946 (one year before The Orioles) when Leon Hardy and Meredith Brothers convinced Donald Johnson to join them in harmony on the corner of Gay Street and Forest. Donald drafted his friend Ernie Warren to round out a quartet and the new group on the block became The Mellotones. They did the usual round of Baltimore bars and nightclubs for experience, singing the songs of black and white pop groups like The Fourtunes, The Ink Spots, And The Ames Brothers. They picked up a fifth member, Jack Aydelotte, when he and they were separately scheduled to perform on The Major Baumgartner Show, a local TV talent show. They never got on the air as the show ran overtime, but thanks to the booking they now had five members including an accompanist (Jack also played guitar).

Ryan Adams & the Cardinals

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The Cardinals were an American rock band that were formed in 2004 by alternative country singer-songwriter Ryan Adams and fronted by him until 2009. The band was featured on Ryan Adams and the Cardinals albums, Cold Roses, Jacksonville City Nights, Follow the Lights, Cardinology and III/IV. Though credited as a solo Ryan Adams release, the 2007 album Easy Tiger also features the Cardinals.

Regarding the band's name, Adams states that he "suggested the Cardinals because it was my high school football team."

Along with their work with Adams, The Cardinals recorded an album with Willie Nelson in 2006, and following Adams' departure in 2009, The Cardinals recorded an album with singer-songwriter Gin Wigmore.

History

The Cardinals first began as a duo when singer-songwriter Ryan Adams met J.P. Bowersock through his friend Ryan Gentles, manager of The Strokes, who were also Ryan Adams' neighbors in New York in 2001. J.P. Bowersock and Ryan Adams rehearsed and performed in New York at various clubs under the name The Cardinals and were eventually joined for a short time by G.E. Smith, of the SNL band fame during the late 1980s and 1990s.