Joey Dee and The Starliters - Early Singles

Early Singles

With lead singer Rogers Freeman, Joey Dee and The Starliters' first single was "Lorraine," backed with "The Girl I Walk To School," during 1958, distributed by the company Little. That same year, Joey Dee recruited David Brigati for the team after meeting him during a gig at Garfield High School in New Jersey. David and Joey would subsequently share lead vocal honors for The Starliters, with Joey ultimately becoming the primary lead singer. Another early single for the group was "Face of an Angel," with David as lead vocal, released on Scepter Records; the flipside was "Shimmy Baby." An album entitled The Peppermint Twisters and credited to "Joey Dee and The Starlighters" was subsequently released by the company Scepter as well.

Various members of The Starliters, such as vocalist Freeman and drummer Don Martin, came and went during the next few years; the most famous team of Joey Dee and The Starliters is considered to be Joey Dee, David Brigati, Larry Vernieri (vocals), Carlton Lattimore (organ), Sam Taylor (guitar) and Willie Davis (drums). Later members of the touring group would include Eddie Brigati (David's brother), Gene Cornish, and Felix Cavaliere - three-quarters of The Young Rascals - as well as guitarist Jimmy James (later known as Jimi Hendrix), Charles Neville of The Neville Brothers and a young Joe Pesci on guitar.