The Famous Flames

The Famous Flames were an American rhythm and blues vocal group founded in Toccoa, Georgia in 1953 by Bobby Byrd. James Brown began his career as a member of this group, emerging as the lead singer by the time of their first professional recording, "Please, Please, Please", in 1956. On hit songs such as "Try Me", "Think"," I Don't Mind ", and "I'll Go Crazy", the Flames' smooth backing harmonies contrasted strikingly with Brown's own raw, impassioned delivery, and their synchronized dance steps were a prominent feature of his live shows. Altogether, they performed on 12 songs (and 14 singles) that reached the Billboard R&B and pop charts. They are also featured prominently on numerous albums, including the groundbreaking Live at the Apollo, and appeared in the films T.A.M.I. Show and Ski Party as well as on various television programs. In 2012 the Flames were retroactively inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame alongside Brown. On their Rock & Roll Hall of Fame page, they are described as "a group of singers, performers and dancers that created the complementary elements of one of the greatest stage shows of all time."

The Famous Flames are sometimes erroneously identified as James Brown's band, a confusion partly fostered by their record companies' practice of misleadingly giving them label credit on recordings in which Brown is the only singer. Although members of the group did play instruments in some of their earliest shows and recordings, by 1959 Brown had hired a touring band and the Flames contributed primarily as backing vocalists and dancers. The band was billed separately as the James Brown Band, and later as the James Brown Orchestra.

Founded after Byrd had sung with the gospel group, the Gospel Starlighters, the group was founded under the name, the Avons, and performed around the Georgia-South Carolina border. The group was known for launching the career of James Brown, who joined the group in late 1954, replacing singer Troy Collins. After performing under the names the Toccoa Band and the Flames, they became the Famous Flames on the suggestion of a club owner, Clint Brantley, who became their agent.

The group initially found fame with the hit ballads, "Please, Please, Please" and "Try Me". After numerous disagreements that caused group members to leave, the group's name changed to The Famous Flames With James Brown and then to James Brown and The Famous Flames, by 1959. Original group mate Byrd, who left in 1957, rejoined in 1959. The best known lineup of the group included Brown, Byrd, Bobby Bennett and "Baby Lloyd" Stallworth, with Johnny Terry still on Brown's and the group's payrolls as the main songwriter of their material with some additional help from Byrd and Stallworth. This lineup remained together until 1968 when members walked out on Brown due to monetary disputes. Of the Flames members, only Byrd would return and provide Brown with vocals and songwriting and group management until 1973.