Red Velvet Media ®

Born in 1944, in Ottawa, Canada, Cornish came into the world with music in his blood. His mother, Ada, was a singer for Big Bands, including those led by Woody Herman and Ozzie Nelson. By 1959, he was 15 and had earned a reputation as a talented guitarist. By then, he was fronting his own band, Gene Cornish & The Satelites, with boyhood friend, Pat Proietti. While attending Ben Franklin High School, he started a vocal group called The Nobles, and eventually put out a few records under his own name. In 1964, he moved to New York City and was doing double duty in Joey Dee & The Starliters, and his own group, The Unbeatables. The Unbeatables had a novelty hit with a Cornish song called “I Wanna Be A Beatle.” but lasted only a year. It was in the Starliters that Cornish met singer and keyboard player Felix Cavaliere, and singer Eddie Brigati. All three left to form The Young Rascals with drummer Dino Danelli. After a short few months playing the NY club scene, the explosive R&B flavored rock band was