The Victory Five - "Dry Bones", 1953-02-12

10", 78 rpm, shellac recording of "Dry Bones" by The Victory Five from the Brandt's Recording Studio collection, MS0182.

Brandt’s Recording Studio was owned and operated by Charles M. Brandt in Sacramento from 1941 to 1984. It operated out of several locations along J Street over the years, first at 1319 J Street, then at 2607 J Street, and finally at 1030 48th Street. At the studio, Brandt recorded musicians, along with radio programs and commercials. The studio at first specialized in country and western and gospel music but later added pop music. Brandt also went out into the field to capture live recordings of events and performances, and to conduct interviews for radio broadcast. He closed the studio in 1984.

In 1953, local Black jubilee gospel group the Victory Five recorded several tracks at Brandt Recording Studio. The Victory Five performed all around Northern California, with occasional tours of the West Coast, and could be heard regularly on Sacramento area radio stations.

The group was started by five Calloway brothers from Louisiana. Jesse and Levell Calloway and three of their brothers came out to the Sacramento area in the mid-1940s. Jesse, a star basketball player back home, came to try out for the Pacific Coast League team the Oakland Oaks, but ultimately decided to sing with his brothers. The group's membership changed over the years, but core members here in Sacramento included brothers Levell and Jesse Calloway, brothers Theotis and James Swift, and Tillery Ella.