Rhythm of the Rain

On this date in 1963, THE CASCADES achieved their only Billboard Top 40 hit when RHYTHM OF THE RAIN peaked at #3. The song was also a top 5 hit in the UK (Mar 2, 1963)

NOTE: There is no official video for this song so I've edited my own using colorized archive footage.

An intriguing vocal group from San Diego, the Cascades sang in a light, pop-oriented style, but managed a Top Ten R&B hit in 1963, "Rhythm of the Rain" on Valiant.

It was written by guitarist/lead singer John Gummoe, who joined fellow vocalists Eddy Snyder, David Stevens, David Wilson, and David Szabo.

"I wrote 'Rhythm of the Rain' over a period of time, but the lyrics began while I was serving in the US Navy aboard the USS Jason AR8," explained John Gumroe.

"I was standing a mid watch on the bridge while we were underway to Japan. We were sailing up in the north pacific and it was raining heavily and the seas were tossing."

"The title came to me first and I liked the 'ring' of it, the way it flowed, and that night I wrote down most of the lyrics. It was like the rain was talking. It was later on that I sat down at a piano and was fooling around with the black keys and started playing a sequence from E flat down to F sharp, well, if you do it you'll see it's the melody that is now stuck in the heads of millions of people around the world. Later on, when we did a demo on the song, that great little ding ding thing that goes FC-FC, DA, DA came to be. The great arranger Perry Botkin Jr. enhanced that little hook and it was producer Barry De Vorzon who came up with the idea of opening the song with that famous burst of thunder."

The band also became a major attraction in England and Australia. They followed "Rhythm of the Rain" with "Shy Girl" and "Last Leaf," but neither duplicated their earlier success. "My First Day Alone" flopped, and the group moved to RCA.

The Cascades never again scored a hit, despite recording for Charter, Liberty, Arwin, Smash, Probe, UNI, London, and Can Base.

Gummoe left the group in 1967 to pursue a solo career and later formed the band Kentucky Express. Keyboardist/vocalist Gabe Lapano took over the lead chores. The group also added Tony Grasso, with Owens and Snyder the remaining original members. Finally, they split in 1975.

The group reformed twice, in 1995 and 2004, touring the US and the Philippines, where they retained a fan following.

Hundreds of artists have covered this song, including Lawrence Welk, Bobby Darin, Dan Fogelberg, Jan & Dean, Neil Sedaka and Jerry Jeff Walker. A huge worldwide hit, BMI named "Rhythm of the Rain" the 9th most performed song of the 20th century.

Rhythm Of The Rain was recorded at Gold Star Studios in Los Angeles, which is where Phil Spector produced many of his hits. Some of the elite west coast studio musicians played on this song, including the legendary session drummer Hal Blaine and guitarist Glen Campbell.