 Green – who walked with a cane as a result of childhood polio – put together a singing group with three friends from Fremont High School, Andrew Blue (tenor), Randolph Bryant (baritone), and Ira Foley (bass), and named them the Medallions because of his own penchant for wearing medallions around his neck.Their first release, "Buick 59", based on Todd Rhodes' double-entendre R&B recording "Rocket 69", was one of the first releases on Dootone in September 1954.It was backed with a ballad called "The Letter", which received extensive airplay in the region.