By: Jake Parenteau, Jared Larson, Sarita Diaz, Joshua Jansen, Alex Puls

Hank Ballard and the Midnighters

Introduction-One of the first Rock and Roll artists to emerge

in the 1950's

-Hit songs- "Work with me Annie" & "The twist"

"Work with me, Annie" spent about seven weeks at the top of the billboard list.

-Unheard of at that time in 1950's & 60's

Background Information-Hank Ballard was born November 18th, 1927

in Detroit, Michigan, and died March 2nd, 2003.

-Hank Ballard's birth name was John Henry Kendricks.

Background Information- Hank Ballard's father passed away at an early

point in Hank's life, which was said to have influenced some of his more emotional songs.

-Attended School in Alabama with his brother at in his early years of education, after the passing of their father.

Background Information- In Ballard's teenage years he returned to

Detroit and worked on the assembly line for Ford Motor Company.

- Influenced by what Ballard called a particularly "smooth style" like that of the musical group: Sonny Til & the Orioles.

Band MembersHank Ballard - Vocals (baritone)

Henry Booth - Vocals (tenor)

Charles Sutton - Vocals (tenor)

Sonny Woods - Vocals (bass)

Cal Green - Guitar

Early Years-1953 Hank Ballard joined The Royals as he

replaced the previous lead singer.

-1954 The Royals became The Midnighters as to not be confused with The "5" Royales.

Early Years-1954 "Work With Me, Annie" was written by

Ballard and spent seven weeks at #1 on the R&B charts.

-1955 The Midnighters had four more R&B chart hits.

Later Career-1959 The Midnighters become Hank Ballard

and The Midnighters

-1959-1962 the band created many songs, 13 of which made it onto the R&B and Pop top charts.

Later Career-1963-1965 the band did not make any more hit

songs and eventually broke up.

-1968 Hank Ballard launched a solo career and produced a few hit songs for about a decade after going off on his own.

Later Career-1972 Ballard produced a hit single, "From the

Love Side" and it was ultimately credited to Hank Ballard and the Midnight Lighters.

-1986-2002 Hank Ballard brought the band back together and they performed a myriad of shows at various popular venues.

Other Information- Hank Ballard has a cousin, Florence Ballard,

who was a member of The Supremes: an all female group from Detroit

- Hank Ballard is the Great Uncle of Christian Ballard, who is better known as: No. 99 playing defensive end for the Minnesota Vikings since 2011!

Musical Analysis -Very influential group due to their suggestive lyrics and

rhythmic and soulful style

-Although their main hits were considered rhythm & blues, their music was influenced by pop and country & western as well.

-The group was given a rocking and up tempo persona

Conclusion-Hank Ballard and the Midnighters contributed to shaping

Rock 'n' Roll by making popular music, in a time period that had not yet seen much of this musical style.

-1990 Hank Ballard was inducted into the Rock 'n' Roll hall of fame, however the other midnighters were not.

-#1 R & B Hits throughout his career 1. "Work With Me Annie" (1954)

2. "Annie Had A Baby" (1954)

3. "Let's Go, Let's Go, Let's Go" (1960)

ConclusionTop 10 Total Hits R& B throughout his career:

"Get It" (1953)"Sexy Ways" (1954)

"Teardrops On Your Letter" (1959)"Finger Poppin' Time" (1959)

"The Twist" (1960)"Let's Go, Let's Go, Let's Go" (1960)

"The Switch-A-Roo" (1961) "Nothing But Good" (1961)

"Do You Know How To Twist?" (1962)"From the Love Side" (1969)

Conclusion-Died of throat cancer at age 75 years old.

-Ballard was buried in Atlanta, Georgia.

-He continues to be recognized as one of the nation's most influential Rock 'n' Roll musicians.

References 1. Silwicki, S. (August 23, 2011). Goldmine. Retrieved from

http://www.goldminemag.com/article/hank-ballard-the-midnighters-helped-to-shape-rock-and-roll

2. Robert Fontenot. (undefined). About.com. In History of Hank Ballard. Retrieved June 25, 2013, from http://oldies.about.com/gi/o.htm?zi=1/XJ&zTi=1&sdn=oldies&cdn=entertainment&tm=15&f=11&su=p284.13.342.ip_p504.6.342.ip_&tt=11&bt=5&bts=5&zu=http%3A//www.rockhall.com/inductee/hank-ballard.

3. '60's, t. l., single, B. w., & revue, o. w. (n.d.). Hank Ballard and the Midnighters.The History of Rock and Roll. Retrieved June 25, 2013, from http://www.history-of-rock.com/hank_ballard_and_the_midnighte

4. Benicewicz, L., & B.B.S.. (n.d.). Hank Ballard. BLUES WORLD. Retrieved June 25, 2013, from http://www.bluesworld.com/Ballard.html

5. Huey, S. (n.d.). Hank Ballard - Music Biography, Credits and Discography : AllMusic. AllMusic : Music Search, Recommendations, Videos and Reviews. Retrieved June 25, 2013, from