The Paramounts

Label sticker for a 45

A Franklin-based quintet vocal singing group founded by Richard Simmons with an early Robert Peebles on lead, before he became Robert Knight, and white drummer Kenneth Buttrey, who would later be involved with the Escorts, among many others.

This group should not be confused with The Paramount Four, who recorded in Gallatin, on the Southern City label, run by Harold and Jean Gilbert.

History[edit | edit source]

The singing group was started by high school friends in Franklin. Members were Robert Peebles (Robert Knight) (Lead), Clarence Holland, Richard Simmons, Neil Hooper, and Kenneth Buttrey.

The group was signed to Dot Records and produced by Noel Ball and recorded several singles. After a contractual issue with Dot, the group broke up, breaking their contract with Dot in the process, which prevented the members from recording for 4-1/2 years.

Robert Knight returned to his chemistry studies at Tennessee State University and performed with a vocal group called The Fairlanes, not with the intention of recording but simply “because I met these guys and we started singing — everybody was singing on street corners then,” he was quoted by historian Rick Simmons.

In his book "Say It One Time For The Brokenhearted: Country Soul In The American South," author Barney Hoskyns recounts that "Knight formed the Paramounts at sixteen with white drummer Kenny Buttrey. Around the same time as Arthur Alexander, the group was signed to Dot by Noel Ball, who produced two pop singles - one the minor hit "Free Me," under the name simply of Robert Knights," and not as the whole group. Hoskin concludes The Paramounts era by saying, "Their lack of success caused Knight to throw in the towel and commence a career in chemical research at Tennessee State University, where his trumpeter father had taught music."

Robert Knight[edit | edit source]

11 Nov 2017 Obit in the Tennessean

While with Dot, to provide an independence from the Paramounts and, apparently the name Peebles being routinely mispronounced (as "pebbles"), Robert Peebles also recorded as Robert Knight. After the Dot records contract prevented him recording again for several years Robert Knight was rediscovered performing with the Fairlanes at an event at Vanderbilt University. From there he became an international sensation as the original recording artist for "Everlasting Love" by Buzz Cason and Mac Gayden on the new Rising Sons label. His musical career flourished until the late 1970s when he rededicated himself to an academic career. Knight worked for Vanderbilt University as a chemical lab technician and chemistry teacher.

Several sources (all-music, Discogs, The Encyclopedia of Popular Music, and initially Wikipedia) had his birth year recorded as 1945, with his family- sourced obituary referencing 1940. He died November 5, 2017 (aged 77). Buzz Cason and Mac Gayden were honorary pallbearers for Knight.