The Cascades

Ohio-born John Gummoe was managing and singing with a group called "The Silver Strands", a group of US Navy sailors serving aboard a ship based in San Diego, CA. When their hitch was up they left the navy and changed their name to The Thundernotes. They recorded an instrumental single, "Thunder Rhythm", on Del-Fi Records, but it didn't go anywhere. Gummoe changed the group's direction from instrumentalists to vocalists producing the kinds of smooth harmonies of such groups as The Beach Boys. After recording some demo records, they were signed by producer Barry De Vorzon of Valiant Records, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Records. They not only changed their direction but their name, now calling themselves The Cascades (named after a well-known brand of dishwashing detergent). Their first record for Valiant, "There's a Reason", became a minor regional hit in the San Diego area in 1962. Their second record, "Rhythm of the Rain", was recorded at the famous Gold Star Studios in L.A. (Glen Campbell was hired as a session man to play guitar). It was written by Gummoe one rainy night when he was in the Navy on watch during a thunderstorm. The record, released in November of 1962, shot to #3 on the US charts and was a major hit in more than 80 countries, reaching #5 on the UK charts. It sold more than a million copies and earned the group a gold record. They recorded several follow-up singles and an album, but none matched the success of "Rhythm of the Rain", although they were still a draw in their home town of San Diego. Their records got steady airplay there and they played in many clubs in the San Diego area. In 1967 they appeared in a low-budget teenpic shot on Catalina Island, Catalina Caper (1967). Gummoe left the group in 1967 for a solo career. They went through several personnel changes over the next few years, and finally disbanded in 1975. They reunited twice for tours in the US and the Philippines (where they had a loyal fan base) in 1995 and 2005. In 1999 BMI, the performing rights organization for the music industry, published a list of "The Top 100 Songs of the Century" which received airplay on radio or on TV in the US. "Rhythm of the Rain" was #9 on the list.