Chartbusters

Artist Biography by Mark Deming The Chartbusters were a rock & roll combo from the Washington, D.C., area whose energetic sound was clearly influenced by the Beatles, especially on their tune "She's the One," which became a nationwide hit in 1964, the year the Fab Four broke through in America. The Chartbusters featured Vernon Sandusky on lead vocals and guitar, who had previously been a member of the rockabilly band Bobby Pop & the Poe Cats, who enjoyed significant regional success in their native Kansas and for a time toured with Wanda Jackson as her backing group. Sandusky's former bandmate Bobby Poe managed the group and helped produce their recordings, while Vince Gideon contributed guitar and backing vocals, Johnny Dubas was on bass and backing vocals, and Mitch Corday played the drums. "She's the One" was released by Mutual Records in 1964 and eventually rose to number 33 on the Billboard singles charts, and went Top Ten in several regional markets; the Chartbusters cut several more fine singles, but never enjoyed the same success, though they stayed busy playing live dates both on their home turf and around the United States, and were the house band at the Washington, D.C., nightclub Crazy Horse for several years. Not long after "She's the One" ended its run on the charts, Mitch Corday stopped playing with the group, and was replaced on drums by Chib Holmes, though Corday continued to work with the Chartbusters as their booking agent. Vince Gideon left the group in 1966, with Frank Dillon taking over on guitar, and in 1967 the band switched drummers again, with Stewart Ross sitting in for Chib Holmes. The Chartbusters made their last recordings in 1968, and they broke up later that year. Sandusky later scored a gig playing guitar with Roy Clark's road band, and worked with Clark for 22 years. The Chartbusters' brief fling with fame was acknowledged in the mid-'90s when Tom Hanks cited the Chartbusters in a People magazine interview as one of the groups that inspired his directorial debut, That Thing You Do, the story of the rise and fall of a group of one-hit wonders in the mid-'60s.