Many interactions were insignificant, brief and singular events, whereas others were more substantial. A majority of them occurred while the stars were either performing or visiting in the area where I was working. Such was the case with John Ellison.
John Ellison is one of the original members of the Soul Brothers Six, a 1960’s rhythm and blues group whose signature song, “Some Kind of Wonderful”, was all the rage in 1967. Once released the song quickly hit the Top 20 on the Rhythm and Blues Singles Chart. Although I prefer the Soul Brothers Six version, the ultra popular hit was redone by Grand Funk Railroad in 1974 with much fanfare.
Afterward, the song enjoyed a new surge in popularity to the point of reaching third place on the Billboard Hot 100 Pop Singles Chart of that year. That, however, wouldn’t be the end of the song’s popularity. Today, “Some Kind of Wonderful” is considered to be the third most played song in the world.
Born in 1941 in West Virginia, Ellison’s soulful voice and multitude of musical talents would not go to waste during his time with Soul Brothers Six. In addition to being the lead singer, Ellison also played guitar and wrote songs. Other Soul Brothers Six songs include the infectious “Your Place or Mine”, “Love Don’t Get Better than This”, “its Not Easy Being a Woman” and “Good Dose of Love.” He also spent time combining talents with the likes of many other renowned figures. Among them are Smokey Robinson, James Brown, Little Richard, Diana Ross, Patti Labelle and Curtis Mayfield.
I first met John Ellison when he reserved a room at one of the hotels I use to work for. He would often perform on stage at various venues near the hotel and as such became somewhat of a regular guest for a while. I was the person he would usually contact to make his hotel reservations and more often than not was also the person to register him in upon his arrival.
What I can say about my interactions with John Ellison is that in addition to being a talented artist, the man is both gracious and humble. A quintessential gentleman, he was very pleasant to deal regardless of the circumstances. During one of his many visits in the area he presented me with a special gift; a signed copy of his Welcome Back CD. The autographed CD remains a treasured piece in my memorabilia collection.
To this day John Ellison continues to perform throughout the world both on stage and in the kitchen. He has his own restaurant and food business known as Some Kind of Wonderful Restaurant and Some Kind of Wonderful Food Company. Those that would like to learn more about the man, his music and foray into the food industry should log onto the official John Ellison website.
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