Best remembered for their national hit, “Please Love Me Forever”, Cathy Jean and the Roommates never actually met one another until after their hit song had been recorded! The Roommates were formed in Kew Gardens, Queens, New York by 15-year-old junior high classmates and friends Steve Susskind and Bob Minsky. By 1960, their lineup consisted of Susskind (lead and baritone), Jack Carlson (first tenor and falsetto), Felix Alvarez (second tenor), and Minsky (bass). The group often rehearsed in the lobby of the Forest Hills apartment building where one of the tenants, Jody Malis, WMGM’s record librarian, heard them. She and her husband, Gene, signed the Roommates to a contract. Their first release, “Making Believe”, sold lightly.
In the spring of 1960, the Malis’ recorded another local teenager, 14-year-old Cathy Jean Giordano, singing Tommy Edwards’ 1958 hit, “Please Love Me Forever”. Subsequently, the Roommates were brought in to add background harmonies to the finished recording. The overdubbed recording was released on the Malis’ new Valmor label later that year and climbed to #12 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in early 1961 and #2 in New York. On their own, the Roommates followed up with a national hit on their own with their rendition of “Glory of Love” and had a regional best seller with “Band of Gold”. They continued to back Cathy Jean on her recordings, performed together, and recorded an album, but none matched the success of their first hit. Valmor ceased operation in 1962 and the Roommates eventually disbanded in 1965.
In the early 1970s, Cathy Jean (Giordano) Ruiz was invited to perform on the burgeoning rock revival circuit in and around New York City. One early engagement was at the Academy of Music on 14th Street in January of 1972 with the Skyliners, Mary Wells, and Larry Chance and the Earls, among others. Cathy Jean’s Roommates at the time consisted of Nicholas Cardella (1943-2017), known professionally as Nick Cardell, a solo artist and former lead singer of the group Four-Fifths, Artie Loria (1949-2010), Tommy White, and Carmine Graziano. The group had also been working with a female singer, JoAnne Greco, and had cut a record in 1970, “A Place Called Love”. The reformed Cathy Jean and the Roommates also worked local nightclubs and dinner theaters during that period.
At the time of this performance, which took place at the Academy of Music on 14th Street in February of 1974, Cathy Jean was backed by only Loria and Cardell, who were good friends and songwriting partners. Beginning in the early 1970s, Boston-area disc jockey, concert host and producer, historian and enthusiast, Little Walter DeVenne began documenting the pioneers of vocal group harmony, rhythm and blues, and rock and roll using Super 8 movie film, reel to reel tape recorders, and whatever means were available to him. Concerts in New York, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and other locations were preserved. Home video recording was in its infancy, and a typical reel of film ran for less than three minutes. From this footage, comes seven and-a-half minutes of film of Cathy Jean and the Roommates singing “Please Love Me Forever” and “Band of Gold”, led by Art Loria.
Through the efforts of Walter’s friend and longtime disc jockey, Mike Bollea, many of these recordings have been preserved. Through Mike’s generosity and a desire to see Walter’s historic films shared with fans and devotees of this music, we present the Little Walter’s Time Machine Official Archives series, remixed and synched by Todd Baptista, from the original source material.
For the best in “oldies but goodies” from the ‘50s, ‘60s, ‘70s and ‘80s, listen to Mike Bollea on MIXCLOUD and follow his discjockeymike page to hear new shows. To leave comments or connect with Mike, send him a friend request and visit his Facebook page Michael Bollea (Not Just Another DJ) and the Mike Bollea’s Radio Friends Group or e-mail him at [email protected].
Of the original Roommates, Steve Susskind became a successful character actor. He died in an automobile accident in 2005. Bass Bob Minsky died of cancer in 2006. Art Loria later worked with the Belmonts, Earls, and Jive Five before he passed away in 2010. Nick Cardell died in 2017 after a long illness. Cathy Jean Ruiz hosted her own radio talk show on Long Island in the late 1980s and returned to the recording studio in 1991. She continued to perform with a new group of Roommates until she retired due to ill health in the 2010s. Thanks also to Philip Zizema of the Acchords and formerly of Cathy Jean and the Roommates.