William ‘Dice’ Galloway, doo-wop singer and Quincy resident, dies at 84

[Guest Nicole]

QUINCY – He was best known for his time with the doo-wop band The Harptones in the 1950s, but locals will remember William “Dice” Galloway for his habit of singing to himself as he bagged groceries at the Shaw’s supermarket on Quincy Avenue.

Galloway, a Houghs Neck resident and Vocal Group Hall of Fame member, died July 18 at the age of 84 after battling multiple illnesses.

Galloway, a baritone, was a founding member of The Harptones, a Manhattan-based group best known for their hit “Sunday Kind of Love.” He served in the Army during the Korean War.

“It was a thrill when one of us would be walking down the street and we’d hear our song playing on a car radio,” Galloway told The Patriot Ledger in a 1995 interview.

In his 60s, he was a familiar sight at the supermarket, where he wore a “Bill” nametag and his signature beret.

“I’m not performing, I just enjoy singing,” Galloway said when he was 61.

Harvey Robbins of Sharon, then-president of the Doo-Wopp Hall of Fame of America, told The Patriot Ledger in 1998 that Galloway and his fellow Harptones were like many recording artists of the day in that they didn’t share in the wealth they helped create.

“It’s sad but true that the artists of that era were denied the royalties and much of the fame and recognition they deserved,” Robbins said.

s many doo-wop acts did, The Harptones got their start singing on neighborhood street corners in New York. By the height of their career, they were mingling with music royalty.

“B.B. King dropped by. I knew B.B. in the 1940s when he lived on 8th Avenue (in New York City) and I lived on the block at 115th Street,” Galloway said.

In 1998, Galloway was honored as a musical pioneer by the Rhythm & Blues Foundation. In 2002, he performed with The Harptones again at Boston’s Symphony Hall when the group was inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame.

Galloway lived in New York City for 34 years before moving to New Bedford. He later moved to Quincy.

He is survived by his wife, Joyce Fitzgerald Galloway of Quincy, six children, three sisters, 12 grandchildren and many nieces and nephews.

A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 12, at Kingdom Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses, 29 Parkman St., Dorchester.

http://www.patriotledger.com/news/20170728/william-dice-galloway-doo-wop-singer-and-quincy-resident-dies-at-84