After signing to Capitol Records when producers/songwriters brothers [url=https://www.discogs.com/artist/1506426]Larry & Fonce Mizell[/url] suggested them to the label, they became the first black group to win a Grammy for the Best New Artist category at the 1979 awards.
In 1980, the quartet was reduced to a duo consisting of Johnson and Hazel Payne.
They did a very successful remake of Kyu Sakamoto's hit "Sukiyaki", with new English words.