[8] According to the Vocal Group Hall of Fame: "Through turmoil and changes, the (original) Drifters managed to set musical trends and give the public 13 chart hits, most of which are legendary recordings today.

A 1970s revival in Britain, with both old and new material, was not matched in the United States, although they had their biggest successes on the UK singles chart, peaking with the number-two hit "Kissin' in the Back Row of the Movies".

[9]Wanting to blend gospel and secular sounds, McPhatter's first effort was to get members of his church group, the Mount Lebanon Singers: William "Chick" Anderson, Charlie White, and David "Little Dave" Baughan (tenors); David Baldwin (baritone, and author James Baldwin's brother); and James "Wrinkle" Johnson (bass).

McPhatter received his draft letter in March 1954, but as he was initially stationed in Buffalo, New York, he was able to continue with the group for a time.

McPhatter demanded a large share of the group's profits,[10] which he had been denied in the Dominoes; on his departure, though, he did not ensure that this would continue for his successor.

He sold his share of the group to George Treadwell, manager, former jazz trumpeter, and husband of singer Sarah Vaughan.

Baughan's voice was similar to McPhatter's, but his erratic behavior made him difficult to work with and unsuitable in the eyes of Atlantic Records executives.

[10] Baughan soon left the group to form the Harps (1955) (finding his way back into Bill Pinkney's Original Drifters in 1958), and was replaced by Johnny Moore (formerly of The Hornets).

With declining popularity, the last of the original Drifters were reduced to working the club scene and doing double duty with gigs under the Coasters and the Ravens names.

Pinkney added Bruce Caesar, Clarence Tex Walker, and Duke Richardson, but the lineup changed rapidly.

Their 1995 album Peace in the Valley on Blackberry Records credited vocals to Pinkney, Cockerham, Richard Knight Dunbar, (Vernon Young), and Greg Johnson.

The lineup in the early 2000s was Pinkney, Cockerham, Dunbar, Young, and Ronald Jackson, the son of singer Ruth Brown and Clyde McPhatter.

The present Original Drifters lineup is Russell Henry, Chuck Cockerham, Richard Knight Dunbar, and Roger Whitehead.

In summer 1958, he approached Lover Patterson, the manager of the Five Crowns featuring lead singer Benjamin Earl Nelson—better known by his stage name of Ben E. King—and arranged for them to become the Drifters.

With Leiber and Stoller producing, this new lineup—widely considered the "true" golden age of the group—released several singles with King on lead that became chart hits.

"There Goes My Baby",[17] the first commercial rock-and-roll recording to include a string orchestra, was a top-10 hit, and number 193 on the Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

[18] When King asked Treadwell for a raise and a share of royalties, a request that was not honored, he left and began a successful solo career.

Evans left again in 1963 and was replaced by Johnny Terry, who had been an original member of James Brown's singing group, The Famous Flames (and was co-writer of their first hit, "Please, Please, Please").

In 1972, as a by-product of the Northern Soul scene, the group had three big chart hits in the UK with reissued material from the mid-1960s: "Saturday Night At The Movies", "At The Club", and "Come On Over To My Place".

Blunt and Billy Lewis left in 1979 and were replaced by the returning Johnny Moore and former Temptations lead Louis Price.

Fredericks, Lewis, and Price all left in 1983 and were replaced by the returning Johnny Moore, Joe Blunt, and Clyde Brown.

In 1989, Billy Lewis left and was replaced by the returning George Chandler, then Tony Jackson, Keith John, and Peter Lamarr in 1990.

The court order prohibited Phil Luderman, Mark Lundquist, Rohan Delano Turney, Peter Lamarr, Patrick Alan, or Victor Bynoe from using the Drifters name.

Lifetime achievement awards were presented at this concert to Joe Blunt and Butch Leake by Neil Martin from Sony Music and songwriter Roger Greenway.

In 2012, gold discs (100,000 units sold of Up on the Roof, The Very Best Of) were awarded by Sony Music to Butch Leake, Joe Blunt, and Clyde Brown.

[31] Aside from the official post-2008 lineup, Treadwell managed a second group, The Drifters Legends, composed of former members Rick Sheppard, Butch Leake, Joe Blunt, and Clyde Brown.

[3] In 1988, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inducted the Drifters; naming members Clyde McPhatter, Bill Pinkney, Gerhart Thrasher, Johnny Moore, Ben E. King, Charlie Thomas, and Rudy Lewis.

Bill Pinkney, Charlie Thomas, and Johnny Moore (posthumously) received Pioneer Awards from the Rhythm & Blues Foundation in 1999.

US pop culture today still recognizes famous tracks like "There Goes My Baby"[17] and "This Magic Moment" 34 years later in the movie "The Sandlot" released in 1993.

This familiar 90s classic invites the present and future generations to fully understand the appreciation for Ben E. King's timeless voice.