Category Archives: Philadelphia Soul
DISCO DISCHARGE-CLASSIC DISCO, DISCO LADIES AND DISCO FEVER USA.
DISCO DISCHARGE-CLASSIC DISCO, DISCO LADIES AND DISCO FEVER USA. Throughout the history of popular music, various artists and types of music have managed to provoke a variety of reactions. From the release of Billy Haley and The Comets’ Rock Around the Clock in 1955, to the shock and horror that greeted Elvis Presley’s gyrations on …
PHILLY BUSTERS AND SMOOTH GROOVES.
PHILLY BUSTERS AND SMOOTH GROOVES. Usually around the Christmas and New Year period, you don’t expect to find a series of ten, yes ten great soul compilations to be released. Usually at this time of year it’s a myriad of predictable greatest hits or best of albums from the usual suspects. Add to that the …
THE DETROIT SPINNERS-MIGHTY LOVE.
THE DETROIT SPINNERS-MIGHTY LOVE. When The Detroit Spinners signed for Atlantic Records and hooked up with producer Thom Bell there was a huge turnaround in their fortunes. Their first two albums, 1967s The Original Spinners and 2nd Time Around in 1970, hadn’t been commercial a success. Only 2nd Time Around had charted, reaching number 199 …
THE JONES GIRLS-GET AS MUCH LOVE AS YOU CAN.
THE JONES GIRLS-GET AS MUCH LOVE AS YOU CAN. Over the years, The Jones Girls have been compared favorably with such luminaries of soul music as The Emotions, The Three Degrees and The Supremes, and their backing vocals have graced albums by some of the biggest names in music, including Betty Everett, Teddy Pendergrass, Lou …
THE STYLISTICS-HURRY UP THIS WAY AGAIN.
THE STYLISTICS-HURRY UP THIS WAY AGAIN. The story of The Stylistics has some similarities with that of The Delfonics. Both groups were among the finest purveyors of the Philly Sound and both were produced by Thom Bell. However, when Thom stopped working with each group, their music never had the same depth or quality. Even …
JERRY BUTLER-THE BEST LOVE.
JERRY BUTLER-THE BEST LOVE. Jerry Butler’s role in the Philadelphia International Records story was more than just a singer. Over the years, he wrote songs a number of songs either with Gamble and Huff, or on his own and worked as a producer for the label. This he did during the two periods he was …
BILLY PAUL-ONLY THE STRONG SURVIVE.
BILLY PAUL-ONLY THE STRONG SURVIVE. After Billy Paul released his hugely successful and critically acclaimed Let ‘Em In album in 1977, he was under pressure to deliver a worthy successor to such a great album. By then, Billy had become Philadelphia International Records first male superstar. His star had been in the ascendency since he’d …
THE DELFONICS-TELL ME THIS IS A DREAM.
THE DELFONICS-TELL ME THIS IS A DREAM. Of all the groups that walked through the doors of the Sigma Sound Studio in Philadelphia, The Delfonics were one of the pioneers of the Philly Sound. Under the watchful eye of Thom Bell, one of the triumvirate of producers that included Gamble and Huff, Thom helped define …
DENIECE WILLIAMS-MY MELODY.
DENIECE WILLIAMS-MY MELODY. By the time Deniece Williams released her fifth album My Melody in March 1981, she’d already had two of her albums certified Gold in America. When her debut album This Is Niecy was released in August 1976, it reached number thirty-three in the US Billboard 200 and number three in the US …
THE DETROIT SPINNERS-SPINNERS.
THE DETROIT SPINNERS-SPINNERS. Whenever I buy, or I’m about to buy an album, I always check the album sleeve-notes to see who played, arranged or produced an album. Sometimes, this indicates the quality of an album. When you look at the credits for The Spinners’ first album for Atlantic Records, entitled Spinners, the personnel on …
LOU RAWLS-ALL THINGS IN TIME.
LOU RAWLS-ALL THINGS IN TIME. By the time Lou Rawls signed for Philadelphia International Records, he’d already had a long and successful career in the music industry. He’d released his debut album Stormy Monday on Blue Note Records back in 1962, and since then, had released over twenty-five albums for a various record companies including …
JEAN CARN-HAPPY TO BE WITH YOU.
JEAN CARN-HAPPY TO BE WITH YOU. Recently I was listening to a compilation entitled Philly Disco, released on the Bac Beats label when I heard one of my favorite Jean Carn tracks If You Want To Go Back. That made me think that it was time that I wrote another article on Jean Carn’s music. …
DEE DEE SHARP-DEE DEE.
DEE DEE SHARP-DEE DEE. During the last few months, I’ve been writing a series about some of the great music released by Philadelphia International Records. This series has featured some of the labels biggest stars like The O’Jays, Harold Melvin and The Blue Notes, Billy Paul and The Three Degrees. Many of these artists released …
THE O’JAYS-SO FULL OF LOVE.
THE O’JAYS-SO FULL OF LOVE. Since I first started collecting vinyl in the early seventies, I’ve noticed that with the advent of new mediums like the compact disc, that albums nowadays are much longer. Now albums are sprawling affairs, lasting up to eighty minutes. This new development isn’t necessary a good development. Back when The …
TEDDY PENDERGRASS-LIFE IS A SONG WORTH SINGING.
TEDDY PENDERGRASS-LIFE IS A SONG WORTH SINGING. In a previous article I reviewed Teddy Pendergrass’ debut solo album, entitled Teddy Pendergrass. This was his first album since leaving Harold Melvin and The Blue Notes, where he’d been the lead singer. His debut solo album, Teddy Pendergrass was released in June 1977, reaching number seventeen in …
LOLEATTA HOLLOWAY-THE AWARE YEARS: LOLEATTA AND CRY TO ME.
LOLEATTA HOLLOWAY-THE AWARE YEARS: LOLEATTA AND CRY TO ME. Although one of the most recognizable voices in music is Loleatta Holloway, many people are unaware of the two legendary soul albums she recorded for Michael Thevis Aware Records in the seventies. These were Loleatta in 1973 and Cry To Me in 1975. Instead, many people …
BILLY PAUL-WHEN LOVE IS NEW.
BILLY PAUL-WHEN LOVE IS NEW. In a previous article I wrote about one of Billy Paul’s best know albums Let ‘Em In. After his hugely successful 360 Degrees of Billy Paul, released in 1972, which helped make Billy Philadelphia International Records’ first male superstar, 1976s’ Let ‘Em In is one of his best known and …
THE O’JAYS-BACK STABBERS.
THE O’JAYS-BACK STABBERS. Back in August 1972, after Gamble and Huff had previously managed to convince The O’Jays not to quit the music industry, the group released their debut album Back Stabbers. Having already released a series of singles and albums in the sixties for various labels including Minit, Imperial and Bell, nothing could’ve prepared …
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