The Red Ryders were an early rock/R&B band in Lorain County and one of the first racially integrated bands, with black keyboard player Red Top Young along with the other white members. The founder and leader of the band was Lee Abel on sax, with Sam Doman on guitar and Vonley "Sonny" Adams on drums. Later, Tony Bernable (known as Tony Bell) replaced Young as the keyboard player, before they made the recordings for Mercury.
The band recorded three 45s for the Lanjo label in Canton, before recording a 45 down in Nashville for the Southern Sound label. The song "Savannah Slow Down" got to Quincy Jones - while he was a recording artist for Mercury records - and signed the band to record an LP. 		 
The Mercury LP was the last recordings for the band, but they continued to play into the early 1970s, in the Lorain County and Lake Erie region nightclubs. Red Top Young went on to a long career while Lee Abel continued to play as a headliner in club bands.

Lee Abel was a prominent bandleader and booking agent based in Elyria, Ohio. He led and performed with several bands that were fixtures in the local and national music scenes from the 1950s through the 1970s. The Red Ryders were Abel's most famous group, an early rock and R&B band. Abel played saxophone and led the group, which featured musicians like Black keyboardist Red Top Young. After his time with the Red Ryders, he fronted his many groups, performing extensively at clubs and venues in Elyria, Oberlin, and Sandusky.  



Abel was also associated with Red Top and the Young Family which performed a variety of genres including blues, country, and jazz.
Under the direction of famous producer Quincy Jones, the Red Ryders recorded the album Lookin' Good, Soundin' Good for Mercury Records in 1964.
Operating from Elyria, Abel booked major national talent for Lorain County clubs, including The Supremes, Jerry Lee Lewis, Grand Funk Railroad, Joe Cocker, and Dionne Warwick.

  
Quincy Jones played a pivotal role in the professional recording career of the Red Ryders during his tenure as an executive and producer at Mercury Records in the 1960s.
  While serving as an Artists and Repertoire (A&R) executive and eventual Vice President at Mercury Records, Jones discovered the band through their local success. The song "Savannah Slow Down" specifically caught Jones's attention while he was a recording artist for the label. Impressed by the track, he signed the band to record a full-length LP. Under Jones's direction, the Red Ryders recorded the album Lookin' Good, Soundin' Good in 1964. This Mercury LP represented the final and most high-profile recordings of the group's career, transitioning them from a regional Lorain County act to a group with a national label release. Jones's collaboration with the Red Ryders was part of a groundbreaking period in his career where he broke racial barriers as one of the first Black executives at a major American record label. During this same era, he also produced iconic hits like Lesley Gore's "It's My Party".