Marvin "Sweet Louie" Smith, of the rhythm-and-blues duo the Checkmates, died Saturday at the age of 68, singing partner Sonny Charles said, while they were in the Caribbean working on a cruise ship.

Southfield (CW50) - War has always required strategy and tactics, it's not unlike a game of chess. When service members come home from these wars, the adjustment back into civilian life can be tough ...

MARVIN “Sweet Louie” Smith, one half of the R&B duo the Checkmates, has died. He was 68. Smith died of a heart attack Saturday aboard the Caribbean Princess cruise ship in the Caribbean, where he was ...

The Pussy Cat A Go Go was one of the hottest nightclubs in Las Vegas in the '60s. It was located on the Strip, south of where the defunct Desert Inn now sits. That's where Marvin Smith acquired the ...

Last Saturday Oxford lost a local legend with the death of Herbert Wiley, a master cobbler who also fronted the popular soul band Wiley and the Checkmates. A funeral for Wiley, who was 76, will take ...

Soul pioneers, Wiley And The Checkmates, hit Chicago on Saturday, March 28th at Hideout. These guys are the real deal -- true pioneers of Delta soul bringing you serious booty shakin' music from the ...

Jim Allison specializes in the blues, but his Houston band of doctors and scientists entertained a packed Firehouse Saloon crowd Saturday night with an eclectic mix of songs. In a 2½-hour show, the ...