Simtec & Wylie
Simtec & Wylie were an American soul duo from Chicago active in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The group was composed of Walter "Simtec" Simmons and Wylie Dixon, and had a hard soul sound similar to that of Sam & Dave.
Simtec was raised in Orrville, Alabama but moved back to Chicago at age 14, where he played guitar in local outfit the Vermaharms. Simtec's brother, Ronald, played bass, and after a chance meeting with DJ Herb Kent, Kent asked them to record a single over a drum machine. They did this with the help of a couple, Maurice & Maura Jackson owners of Tri-Em Record Productions and was recorded for the label Maurci, named after their daughter. The resulting 45, "Tea Box" b/w "Tea Pot", was a local hit and convinced Simmons to put together his own band, the T-Boxes.
This outfit eventually became the backing band for Simtec as a vocalist along with new vocalist and King Records veteran Wylie. As Simtec Simmons & Wylie Dixon, they issued "Socking Soul Power" in 1969, then became Simtec & Wylie for the 1970 Shama Records singles "Do It Like Mama" and "Gimme Some of What You Got". The group signed with the Mercury-distributed label Mr. Chand and issued a full-length, Gettin' Over the Hump, in 1971, which proved to be their only album; however, the track "Gotta Get Over the Hump" became a hit single on the R&B charts, reaching #29 on the Billboard Soul Singles chart. They appeared on Soul Train on Christmas Day 1971.
The group released singles together through the mid-1970s but saw no further success, and Simtec released a few solo singles in 1975 and a self-titled album in 1977. Simtec also did some work as a producer and songwriter; after his career in music he worked in Chicago in real estate.