I noticed the Barry White influence, too. It really jumps out on a future non-hit (Pop that is) but ya know, jumping and all.
Also, despite bearing some of that 'Philly Sound' vibe, given the Bobby Martin connection (any MFSB'ers backing 'em?), the lacquers, like those of the Taylor record that also topped these charts, were mastered by Stuart J. Romaine at New York's Frankford/Wayne Mastering Labs.
The song had a long chart life on both the Billboard Hot 100 Singles and the Hot 100 Soul Singles. But, i'm going to kiss and say goodbye to this song and move on to the next #1: I Want You - Marvin Gaye Week Ending May 29, 1976, 1 Wk This one was a surprise to me because I didn't hear this song until 1977, despite my exposure to Black radio starting around this time. To me, this song is just a mellow jam. It's about the feeling, not the lyrics or singing. Here, Marvin uses his voice as just another instrument. It is mixed quite low to blend in.
A surprising misstep for the man who regularly hit the upper echelons of the charts since Grapevine. Yeah, I know #15 is respectable but for a new Marvin Gaye record, not so much. Maybe it's proximity to the style of What's Going On hurt it as far as Pop audiences go? Whatever the reasons, I think it's a cool sounding tune that still sounds great today just like the rest of the man's music. Oh and I realize I'm on the R&B thread, just wanted to tut tut the Pop audience.
This is a great song that deserved to be a much bigger pop hit. Robert Palmer had a great cover medley with this and Gaye's "Mercy Mercy Me" in 1991.
You getting your threads mixed up? This went to #1. Anyway, to keep the thread going amidst a Marvin Gaye tune, here's a song that came out of nowhere in 1976, and got a lot of play on Black radio: Jump Into Love - Etta James She was still on the Chess label, but that label was, at that point, distributed by All-Platinum, Sylvia and Joe Robinson's label.
Here's one that I know a few of you can bite into: Hot Stuff - The Rolling Stones This got a lot of play on Black radio that summer. I also briefly recall if being played on top 40 radio.
This "mellow jam," as you put it, was produced by Leon Ware. I have heard it occasionally over the years. I also remember reading how much Mr. Gaye was being influenced by Barry White's works at this point.
Did you stop reading my post after that statement? I acknowledged what thread I was on. Loved this one! And the Material girl did a nice cover of I Want You a few years later.
Well, listening to it it's obvious it ain't another song with the same title way into the future . . . However, since you mention the Stones, let me add this tidbit. Every Saturday from 10 A.M. - 2 P.M. on WBGO (88.3 FM) in Newark, NJ, there's a show called Rhythm Review hosted by Felix Hernandez which mostly deals with "classic soul, R&B and funk." However, some rock and pop songs have seeped into the show now and then. One of them being the Stones' "Brown Sugar." I've also heard two of Todd Rundgren's most famous hits - "I Saw the Light" and "Hello It's Me" - on that show (on the latter, Felix designated it "blue-eyed soul from Philadelphia" - huh?!). The program also once played such obvious R&B/soul classics (sarc alert) as "Time Of The Season" by The Zombies and "Can't Take My Eyes Off You" by Frankie Valli, sprinkled amongst the Motown, Memphis, Muscle Shoals, James Brown, Chicago (the city, not the group), P-Funk, Philly, etc., etc. Only a matter of time before they play Led Zeppelin's "Whole Lotta Love" and the host brands it "blue-eyed Northern soul" (especially given whom they nicked to do it). Or the Eagles' "Take It To The Limit."
Another even that happened this time of year was the re-emergence of another Stax legend: Bar-Kays. They signed with Mercury Records when Stax folded. Before then, they languished at Stax in the late 60s and 70s. Half the band had lost members in the same plane crash that took Otis Redding in 1968. The band regrouped and added younger members, including lead singer Larry Alexander. In that time between 1969 and 1974, they released a bunch of albums that basically went nowhere. A couple of them are critically acclaimed, but were duds at retail level. In 1976, they came roaring back on Mercury with a new, updated sound, and an Earth, Wind & Fire sound-a-like hit single. Shake Your Rump To The Funk
I actually have one of the last Bar-Kays' singles on Volt, "Coldblooded" (VON-4111, released November 1974). Was notable in that it was one of the last Columbia-pressed singles to use the old-style hot metal Linotype fonts from Columbia's Pitman, NJ plant, before going fully with phototypesetting from Linotype's 'VIP' library.
We are getting into the era where few forum members know about or care about R&B music. Sad. Crickets.
No real memory of this one from the time, but I grew to love it years later. In many ways, the decadent Stones of the '70s are my favorite Stones. They really found a way to remain on top for a good decade after most '60s acts had been reduced to trading on nostalgia.
Next #1. OK here's a stone cold classic. R&B, disco, soul, whatever you wanna call it, it smokes, and sounds fabulous coming out of the stereo, as the recording is well-done. And, the lyrics are still socially relevant, so it's not just another mindless disco record. Like veteran Etta James, this song was one of the last times we'd see her on the upper reaches of the charts. 1976 was a big year for veteran artists with big comebacks. I didn't hear this on pop radio at all. I heard it on Black radio, and my sister had a copy of it. To this day, it remains a classic that you can even hear on store muzak systems. I never get tired of it. Young Hearts Run Free - Candi Staton Week Ending June 5, 1976, 1 Wk
And, here's a clip of the very pretty Candi Staton. Very typical of how women looked in 1976, too. Believe it or not, she resembles my sister during this time, too.
Oh, I agree on all counts. The backing on this seems to have a hint of Philly soul to it, even though the label mentions quite clearly where it was recorded. My own pressing's from Columbia . . . (The label shown on the clip of the studio version was pressed by Capitol, to which Warners' gravitated and began moving its business away from Columbia by this point in time.) The producer, Dave Crawford, was also responsible for the Mighty Clouds Of Joy single from earlier in the year, "Mighty High." Its backing too had the air of Philly soul in it, as well as its beat being discofied and its message from the church. He seemed to be one of those producers who eschewed mindless disco fluff. Before hearing this one, I was only familiar with one song of Ms. Staton's. Only it was a few years after this, way away from the timeline we're looking at now, so I'll say no more in terms of specifics till we get there. The LP it came from was in the summer camp I stayed in upstate New York in that very summer.
My, and my sister's pressings were from Capitol with the grills on the outer circumference of the label. Story has it that writer and producer Dave Crawford spent time with Staton to find out where her life was. He wanted to write on a personal level. Also, Crawford was on a bit of a hot streak that year. He also produced a hit by a veteran Philly-soul group First Choice. The 45 RPM single contained the full six minutes: Gotta Get Away (From You Baby) - First Choice (A Tom Moulton Mix)
I adored - and still do - Ms. Staton's version of Stand By Your Man so it was a pleasure to hear her raspy tones gracing another great single half a decade down the road. Her music didn't get much play here so I had to discover her back catalogue years after the fact. Surprisingly, her voice got smoother as the years rolled on, particularly in the 80s.
First Choice had been one of the key acts on Philly Groove (from the time of 1973's "Armed And Extremely Dangerous"). When its distributor, Bell, was ixnayed by Clive Davis and his new Arista label put in its place, Stan Watson (I presume he was still in charge at the time) moved Philly Groove to "imprint" status on Warner Bros., which label put out "Gotta Get Away." A newer 'PG' logo (with the old 'P' holding a record still part of the logo, but more resembling, if you didn't look closely, an 8mm movie projector) was on the upper right side, next to the Warners' cat. #.
