The Spacemen were an American rhythm and blues band, a one-off outfit of jazz session players, featuring pianist Sammy Benskin. They had a hit with "The Clouds" in 1959 (written by Julius Dixon, released on Dixson’s Alton Records).
Other session musicians playing on the record were Panama Francis, Haywood Henry, and Babe Clark. The song originally had vocals, which Dixson removed, releasing the instrumental version. This rose to # 1 on the Billboard R&B chart, and # 41 on the pop chart. “The Clouds” was the first number one on any chart released by an African-American owned independent record label, predating Motown’s first # 1 by a year.
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