Hello Again Kats & Kittens, Friend & Fiend,
The Doctors will see you now…. Plague masks, developed 1630s, the beaks held herbs & spices (too ward off?…not sure), glass lens in eye sockets for clear vision, doctors wore these for protection against the bubonic plague…. Primitive sciences, bloodletting the norm……oh and laying frogs on the swelling buboes…can’t forget that.
ONWARD!
“ Whadder yoose doin?” Time for Cheeezzsteaks! Wit Wiz but no Jimmies. To the City of Brotherly Love for THE PHILLY SOUND…… Dust off your White Three-piece & get ready to Hustle!
The Philly Sound became a thing, late ‘60s thru the ‘70’s….helped usher DISCO into the music party…soul music with strings, funky beats, lush arrangements, & extended instrumentals…a bigger, smoother sound. The list of artists from Philly is daunting…
We’ll start today’s trip with a couple from pre-eminent PHILLY Soulsters…. THE O’JAYS… Producing team GAMBLE & HUFF are behind a lot of the artists during this era…no different here…they produced the first few O’JAYS Records, starting with chart topping “Back Stabbers”. THE O’JAYS originally from Canton, South of Mitten state, formed outta HS as a five member group, THE MASCOTS, whittled to three, they took the name O’JAYS from a Clevelend Radio DJ/Manager of the time EDDIE O’JAY. The hits are many “For the Love of Money”, "Give the People What They Want," "Let Me Make Love To You," "I Love Music", "Livin' for the Weekend," "Message in Our Music," & "Darlin' Darlin' Baby (Sweet Tender Love)”.
Here’s ”Back Stabbers’ & “Love Train” from the debut LP, Back Stabbers, 1972
Where is DON CORNELIUS! Remember SOUL TRAIN? ‘70s dance show GENIUS! A ton of Philly Soul came up thru this show…showed the nation how to boogie...Some think Soul Train was produced outta Philly, nope…ChiTown…American Bandstand, the white brother was in Philly with Dick….
Fun Fact. Mr. CORNELIUS post Army service was, for a short time, a Chicago cop.
MFSB is next…who? you know Mother, Father, Sister, Brother orchestra…These Kats were the house/session band for Philly’s Sigma Sound Studios, upwards of thirty pro-musos…the East Coast version of West Coast’s Wrecking Crew (don’t know? hit buttons, look up), recorded with CURTIS MAYFIELD, SLY & STONE FAMILY, THE O’JAYS, DELFONICS, TEDDY PENDERGRASS, plus, plus, plus….they were tight, so tight they produced their own records with GAMBLE & HUFF, mid’70s to early ‘80s. 1974 they released “T.S.O.P.” (The Sound of Philadelphia), made bigger as the SOUL TRAIN theme music. Here’s “T.S.O.P.” & 1975’s “K-Jee” as heard on the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack.
Time for swayin’….HAROLD MELVIN & THE BLUE NOTES know how to sway….notice the drumming, EARL YOUNG makes cool beats that’ll soon turn into Disco….he was part of THE TRAMMPS, “Disco Inferno” anyone? Singing along with MR. MELVIN is a young TEDDY PENDERGRASS…
from the ‘73 Black & Blue album here’s the chart topper, “The Love I Lost”.
Back in traffic we’re on the “Expressway to Your Heart” with THE SOUL SURVIVORS. Started in NYC as THE DEDICATIONS, early ‘60s….became SOUL SURVIVORS the following year & moved to Philly for recording with GAMBLE & HUFF. This is early Philly sound, 1967.
First chart hit by Uber-producers KENNY GAMBLE & LEON HUFF. Being the first hit shows the GAMBLE/HUFF song stylings but the horns & strings & flourishes are yet to be developed. From ‘67’s When the Whistle Blows, Anything Goes.
Maturation of the “sound”….that’s what we have with THE DELFONICS, still early in Philly Soul Sound, 1968…this THOM BELL (MFSB member) produced tune was written by lead falsetto WILLIAM HART an R&B chart hit.
Here’s “La La Means I Love You”, from the album of the same.
Enter Blue-Eyed Soul….HALL & OATES, came to the party around 1970…success, yes…bunches of it…”Private Eyes”, “I Can’t Go For That”, “Rich Girl”, “Man-eater”, it goes on…..a few hits we’d say. Here’s “Las Vegas Turnaround” from the 1973 Abandoned Luncheonette album…
SCANDLE! BILLY PAUL is singing of it…”Me and Mrs. Jones”…indeed.. “we gotta be extra careful!” Another perfect example of the Philly Soul Sound….another perfect example of GAMBLE&HUFF writing/producing….this tune hit #1, Grammy winner, 1972 LP 360 Degrees of Billy Paul.
Twelve consecutive Top Ten Hits! is what this next group had in their tank….THE STYLISTICS…great vocals….THOM BELL produced… they are still harmonizing today.
From the 1974 LP Let’s Put It All Together, “You Make Me Feel Brand New”.
EDDIE HOLMAN is an ordained Baptist Minister, but that’s not why we know him….try “Hey There Lonely Girl”, his chart hit from 1970….ah now we know…that falsetto voice, such precision….this taken off the wonderful East Side Story compilation….by the by, the Minister is still on stage singing about lonely girls…
TIGHTEN UP! time for shimmy shakin’ with ARCHIE BELL & THE DRELLS (what is a Drell?)….outta Houston, Oil State, early in the Philly model, 1968, another G&H production…another #1 charter, Accord Rolling Stone Mag, top 500 song ever….Maybe GAMBLE & HUFF should do this for a living….
from the Back to the ‘60s comp. let’s “Tighten Up”.
BLUE MAGIC is an offspring of THE DELFONICS, a few members started a new thing…MFSB band held backup for them, a few singles then SPLASH! They hit the charts with “Sideshow” from a Soul Train 1974 comp… the falsetto thing was a thing…”he hurts so baaad”
BARBARA MASON is on stage, with 1967 charter, “Oh How It Hurts” from the East Side Story comp, vol.10….one might know Ms. MASON’s bigger hit “Yes, I’m Ready”…she worked with CURTIS MAYFIELD & most of the PHILLY SOUND folks helping get the sound right….she’s still touring…
Can’t be Philly Soul Sound without THE SPINNERS! So we have two! Their story is very windey, started outta DEEEtroit as the DETROIT SPINNERS, played well in MoTown….recorded “It’s A Shame” co-written by STEVIE WONDER, SYREETA WRIGHT & LEE GARRETT, produced by Mr. W. on MoTown’s VIP Label……then signed on the dotted with THOM BELL, lost the “Detroit” in the SPINNER, recorded in Philly….hits made…many many many….here’s 1970’s “It’s A Shame”, then the wonderful “I’ll Be Around” off their first Atlantic Record release 1973’s Spinners album…..love this.
SO many more artists to see & hear here….PATTI LABELLE, FIRST CHOICE, TEDDY PENDERGRASS, DEE DEE SHARP, TODD RUNDGREN(Yes him), BOBBY STARR, LOU RAWLS, on it goes. (we’ll have Mr. Rawls at a later date for sure). End we must…what better place than PHILLY wit a cheesesteak wit wiz & the beautiful sound of THE O’JAYS.
Here’s “I Love Music”…..don’t…we…all…
End of today’s road yoose guys….
Thanks for listening, until tomorrow.
Peace & Distance.
