The Drifters

The Drifters bring their long-running R&B vocal harmony repertoire to Scarborough Spa, South Bay, Scarborough, on 24 May 2026. Formed in New York in 1953 around Clyde McPhatter, the group moved from doo-wop roots toward soul and orchestrated pop, with successive line-ups that carried the songs forward — Ben E. King, then Charlie Thomas, Rudy Lewis and Johnny Moore among the voices that marked the sound. On stage today, the name carries that legacy: close harmonies, rolling basslines and a catalogue that helped define American pop and soul.

The set leans on milestones like There Goes My Baby, Save the Last Dance for Me, Up on the Roof and Under the Boardwalk, alongside other pieces from the Leiber and Stoller period and later UK-era recordings. The show traces a history that now also runs through Britain, where the group has toured widely since the 1970s, bringing this repertoire back to Scarborough with the blend of doo-wop inflections, soul phrasing and arranged pop that has anchored The Drifters for decades.