The El Dorados began as a Chicago, Illinois, group known as the Five Stars, lead by Pirkle Lee Moses, Jr. The other members were Arthur Bassett (tenor), Jewel Jones (1st tenor), Louis Bradley (2nd tenor), James Maddox (baritone) and Richard Nickens (bass).
Moses and the original bass, Robert Glasper, left the group to join the air force. Moses left the air force in ninety days while Glasper remained. Upon leaving the air force, Moses rejoined the Five Stars (actually there were six members now) and the group changed their name to the El Dorados.
At first, both Moses and Arthur Bassett shared lead duties with Moses singing the lead on My Lovin' Baby and Bassett singing the lead on Baby I Need You. Hazel McCollum, a female lead, sang the lead on Annie's Answer.
Bassett later joined the air force and Moses took over lead duties singing most of the groups remaining records. The last records with Bassett in the group were One "More Chance" b/w "Little Miss Love.
" The group scored a big R&B hit and crossover hit with "At My Front Door" a real boppin' number in 1955 (Vee Jay 147). The B side was "What's Buggin You Baby."In 1955, the group had another modest hit with "I'll Be Forever Lovin' You" on Vee-Jay which was originally recorded by a group known as the Five Knights of Rhythm but never released.
Subsequently, the group recorded "I Began to Realize" upon which they lost their bass Richard Nickens who joined the army.In 1957, the group members felt they were being mistreated and they left for Oakland, California.
Moses remained and add members from the Delegates - Johnny Carter, Teddy Long, John McCall, and Douglas Brown. The new El Dorados recorded two more songs for Vee-Jay - "The Lights are Low" and "Three Reasons Why" in 1958.
The group broke up in 1959. The remaining members of the El Dorados (Jones, Maddox, Bradley and new lead Marvin Smith) named themselves the Four El Dorados and recorded for Academy Records. They later added George Kemp and Melvin Morrow of the Moroccos and renamed themselves the Major-Minors.
On December 17, 2000, Pirkle Lee Moses, Jr., died of cancer.
