They received the Rhythm and Blues Foundation's prestigious Pioneer Award in 1992[2] and were inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 1999.

[3] The Midnighters are also noted for achieving a music industry milestone in 1960, by becoming the first group in history to place 3 singles on the Billboard Hot 100 at the same time.

After several personnel changes, the group stabilized with the lineup of Tucker, Henry Booth, Charles Sutton, Sonny Woods, and Lawson Smith.

Initially, Sutton took over Smith's role as lead singer (usually), while Ballard sang backup with Woods, Booth, and Tucker.

The first record in this series was "Work with Me, Annie" (1953), a controversial song, which reached number 1 on the Billboard R&B chart and sold over a million copies.

The guitarist Cal Green replaced Arthur Porter, who had earlier taken the place of original member Alonzo Tucker.

Tucker went on to become a successful independent songwriter, writing hits for Jackie Wilson "Baby Workout", "No Pity (In the Naked City)", "Squeeze Her, Tease Her (But Love Her)", "You Don't Know What It Means", "Years from Now", the Chi-Lites "Marriage License", Gladys Knight & the Pips "Every Beat of My Heart" (originally recorded by the Midnighters), the Animals, and others.

[7] In 1959, the group, now called Hank Ballard & the Midnighters, had been switched to the parent label, King Records, and released their first hit in 4 years, "Teardrops on Your Letter".

In the meantime, Dick Clark, the host of ABC's American Bandstand, also noticed how local white teens in Philly were dancing to Hank and the Midnighters' original and felt the same as Appell.

The inducted members were Henry Booth, Billy Davis, Cal Green, Arthur Porter, Lawson Smith, Charles Sutton, Norman Thrasher, and Sonny Woods.

In 2015, Hank Ballard & the Midnighters were inducted into the third class of the Rhythm & Blues Music Hall of Fame, in Cleveland.