he Four Freshmen

In September 1948 a quartet formed at Butler University in Indianapolis, IN went on the road as The Four Freshmen and soon drew the admiration of jazz legends such as Dizzy Gillespie and Woody Herman. An outgrowth of an original barbershop quartet that, with some personnel changes, became more jazz oriented and soon developed it's own style of improvised vocal harmony that remains today.

In 1950 Stan Kenton heard the group and was so impressed that he arranged for his label, Capitol Records, to audition them. They were signed and there followed hit recordings and albums as well as live performances through the 50's and 60's.

The Four Freshmen won Best Vocal Group of the Year in Down Beat magazine's readers polls in 1953, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1958, 2000 and 2001. During the “British Invasion” of the 60's and afterward, the group lost their mainstream popularity, but did not disband. In 1992 the last of the original members, Bob Flanagan, retired owning the rights to the Four Freshmen name and is now the manager. He says the present personnel are the best of all.

The 20th International Four Freshmen Society Convention, “Back Home In Indiana”, was held in August 2008 in Indianapolis and was attended by 600 of the approximately 3,000 members in honor of the group's 60th year of continuous performance. Also in attendance were numerous previous members of the group, including two of the original members. The 21st Convention was held in August 2009 in Atlanta, GA.

Over the years there have been 24 exceptional musicians (including the present four) who have maintained the trademark sound and enhanced it with their youth, vitality and talent. It is a great new treatment and tribute to The Great American Songbook!