An extremely influential vocalist despite having a rather short career, Roy Hamilton had both classical training and gospel experience. Hamilton studied commercial art in high school and was a heavyweight Golden Gloves boxer before starting his music career as a member of the Searchlight Singers. During the mid- and late '50s, Hamilton's dramatic, searing voice and treatments of such songs as You'll Never Walk Alone, If I Loved You, Ebb Tide, and Unchained Melody were enormously popular. You'll Never Walk Alone topped the RB charts for two months in 1954, while Unchained Melody topped the RB charts for three weeks, and was his only Top Ten pop hit. Jackie Wilson and Roy Brown were among the singers whose sound was affected by Hamilton, while the Righteous Brothers did their own versions of You'll Never Walk Alone, Ebb Tide, and Unchained Melody (which later got new life via the film #Ghost). Hamilton had to retire from 1956 to 1958 due to exhaustion. He suffered a stroke in 1969 and died at age 40. ~ Ron Wynn, Rovi