We hear from producer Tom Moulton that the legendary Joe Tarsia has passed at age 88. You know Joe Tarsia, even if you've never seen his name. Tarsia's studio career began in the early sixties as an engineer for Cameo Parkway Records (Chubby Checker, Bobby Rydell, Dee Dee Sharp, The Orlons, etc.). In 1967 he hocked most of his earthly possessions to open Sigma Sound, 212 North 12th Street, in Philadelphia. R&B producers Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff took their business to Joe, and - together with a crack team of studio musicians - they created the Sound of Philadelphia. Philly Soul was sophisticated R&B, adding slick orchestral and jazz influences and arrangements; as Fred Wesley called it, "putting the bow tie on funk." Without Joe Tarsia, we might never have known "Me and Mrs. Jones," "If You Don’t Know Me By Now, "Back Stabbers, "For The Love Of Money," "You'll Never Find Another Love Like Mine," or "When Will I See You Again," among hundreds of classics. Tarsia retired from the studio in 1990 and handed it over to his son, but not without first leaving an indelible impression on music history, and the hearts and ears of millions.
I am saddened at this loss. Loved Joe Tarsia's work greatly, and a major fanatic of the Philly Sound for much of my life. R.I.P. Joe Tarsia, thanks for all that awesome music.
Obituary in the Philadelphia Inquirer today. Talks about how when American Bandstand left Philly in 1964, the music scene suffered. He felt out of place as musicians stopped wearing suits and ties, showing up in sandals. Joseph Tarcia contributed to revitalizing the scene by opening Sigma Studios in 1968. The rest is Philadelphia Sound history. He later opened Sigma Sound Studios in New York, recording artists like Whitney Houston, Steely Dan, Madonna, Billy Joel, and Paul Simon.
My wife asked me, as we were sitting eating dinner yesterday, if Todd Rundgren had ever recorded at Sigma Sound, and mention something she'd read on Facebook about Mr. Tarsia: RIP Joseph Tarsia, founder of Sigma Sound. If the name eludes you, this recording studio made music history in the early 1970s, creating the sound of Philadelphia soul. A tiny sample of that music includes the following, some are original versions of songs that became bigger hits later by other artists: T.S.O.P., by M.F.S.B. featuring The Three Degrees (1974) https://t.co/61YPBflzG0 Me and Mrs. Jones, by Billy Paul (1972) You Are Everything, by The Stylistics (1971) Back Stabbers, by The O’Jays (1972) When Will I See You Again, by The Three Degrees (1973) https://t.co/rkNqfomrH3 Don’t Leave Me This Way, by Harold Melvin and The Blue Notes (1975) Love Train, by The O'Jays (1972) https://t.co/c3ukNLhj8i Now That We Found Love, by The O'Jays (1973) Three things defined the sound of Philly Soul: 1. Philadelphia International Records, a label owned by songwriters Gamble and Huff. 2. A great team of songwriters, including Thom Bell, Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff (Gamble and Huff), John Whitehead and Gene McFadden (McFadden and Whitehead). 3. And finally... engineered Joseph Tarsia and Sigma Sound Studios. Tarsia, who called the music produced in his studio “black music in a tuxedo”, talked about the facility: “Certain studios had a personality that the environment gave them. I like to think that Sigma was one of those rooms that had a personality. Usually you can tell one of the things that came out of Sigma after the first four bars. There was a certain quality it had.” Talking about Gamble and Huff: “When they walked into the studio, at best they had chord charts. Gamble didn’t write music, neither did Huff. Then they would hum the melody and develop an arrangement. They ran the song down as they heard it, over and over again, and the musicians actually wrote the rhythm charts. All the musicians were really contributors to the final arrangement. Ronnie Baker would play something on bass, and Huff would say, ‘That’s it, Baker. Play that, play that.’ The same thing was true with the guitars and the drum feel. Huff came in, sat at the piano, sort of played the tune down in its rough form, and the musicians would play along. Sometimes it took all day.” But with all the great musicians, composers, songwriters and arrangers that brought us this music, it took a white English lad to bring fame to the studio. In 1974 David Bowie came to Philadelphia to record what he later termed 'Plastic Soul'. Bowie: "Whereas some artists were moving into the disco thing which I wasn't partial to, I sunk myself back into the music that I considered the bedrock of all popular music. R&B and soul. I guess from the outside it seemed to be pretty dramatic move. I think I probably lost as many fans as I gained new ones." The resulting album, Young Americans, produced the singles Young Americans and Fame. Photo: Joe Tarsia in 1981 #JosephTarsia #PhillySoul #philadelphiasoul #SigmaSound The O'Jays Kenny Gamble Philadelphia International Records Philadelphia International Records Fanpage I replying did that not only had Todd recorded there, but he'd done an entire live radio concert from the studios very early in his career, backed by the Hello People: Todd Rundgren Setlist at Sigma Sound Studios, Philadelphia RIP sir. The studio you built, and the Philly music scene you served delivered so much amazing music. You'll be long remembered by those of us who care about the people who actually bring us the music.
Just listened to a great interview with Joe Tarsia - on a podcast called My Take on Music hosted by Doug Fearn. Found it on Spotify. Recommended. And a related note, I learned after he passed that Joe and his wife lived in the same building that my elderly mother lives in (his wife still does). One of my big regrets is not having the opportunity to sit down and chat with him. I met his wife recently. She’s great. A “spitfire”.
