Background
He was born in Washington, Pennsylvania.
He was born in Washington, Pennsylvania.
He graduated from Washington High School in 1953, and at one time played in a band with Bobby Vinton.
Powers had no further hits and is known as a "one hit wonder". He later became a booking agent, recording studio owner, record producer, and church leader. However, none were successful.
His singing was heard by songwriter and record producer Paul Vance, who signed him to Radio Corporation of America Records and changed his name to Joey Powers so as to avoid confusion with the singer Jimmy Rodgers.
He released several singles produced by Vance, but again without success, and he returned to Ohio State University to complete his degree and work as a wrestling coach. However, after ending his contract with Vance in 1963, one of his demo recordings, "Midnight Mary", was heard by Paul Simon (then known as Jerry Landis), who recommended it to record label owner Larry Uttal.
The song was written by Artie Wayne and Ben Raleigh, originally for the Everly Brothers who turned it down. Released as a single by Amy Records, Powers" recording rose up the national charts, reaching no.10 at the start of 1964.
Lorna Dune"s nearly note-for-note answer record "Midnight Joey" followed soon after.
Powers quickly recorded an album, Midnight Mary - recorded in the week of John F. Kennedy"s assassination with musicians including Paul Simon and Roger McGuinn - and also recorded an album, Special Delivery, with Bobby Darin and Roy Orbison. However, these were generally ignored, as were subsequent singles, as the United States became overtaken by the Beatles and the "British Invasion". In 1967, he released a single credited to Joey Powers and The New Dimensions.
He then formed a new band, Joey Powers" Flower who performed around Pennsylvania and New Jersey and released several singles on the Radio Corporation of America label in 1969-1970, without success.
He later ran a booking agency in Hazlet, New Jersey, and a recording studio used by musicians including Jethro Tull, Tony Orlando, Steve Allen, The Kinks and Aerosmith. He sold the recording studio in the early 1990s, and returned to university to study theology, later becoming an ordained minister.
In 2002, he moved to Saint St. Petersburg, Russia, where he set up a Christian orphanage and built a recording studio. He later returned to the United States.
He won a wrestling scholarship to Ohio State University, before returning to Pennsylvania where he recorded three singles for the Nu-Clear and American Broadcasting Company labels under the name Joey Rogers in 1958. He won a Gospel Music Association Dove Award for Album of the Year in 1991 for the album Triumphant Return by Christian rock group Whitecross.
