R&B

Saturday, February 13, 2010 8:00PM

Soul music returns to the Symphony Hall for an amazing evening of music with The Valentine’s Soul Jam, featuring the Stylistics, Emotions, Blue Magic, Intruders & New Birth! For ONE NIGHT ONLY, this revival of R&B, Disco, & Soul will take Newark by storm! Be sure to get your tickets early.

The Stylistics
During the early ‘70s, the Stylistics were the leading Philly soul group. The band had 12 straight Top Ten hits, including “You Are Everything” “Betcha by Golly, Wow” “I’m Stone in Love With You” “Break Up to Make Up” and “You Make Me Feel Brand New” Of all their peers, the Stylistics were one of the smoothest and sweetest soul groups of their era. All of their hits were ballads, graced by the soaring falsetto of Russell Thompkins, Jr. and the lush yet graceful productions of Thom Bell.

The Emotions
A Chicago-based trio of sisters with a strong gospel base, the Emotions were one of the leading female R&B acts of the ’70s. Lead singer Sheila Hutchinson and her sisters Wanda and Jeanette were only teenagers when they crashed the soul charts in 1969 with the engaging “So I Can Love You” but they sang gospel as children and enjoyed secular fame locally before signing with Memphis-based Volt and working with producers Isaac Hayes and David Porter. In 1975, the group hooked up with Maurice White of Earth, Wind & Fire, an association that led to the number one pop/R&B hit “Best of My Love” in 1977. Two years after Best of My Love, Maurice White and the Emotions collaborated on “Boogie Wonderland” which was both a number two R&B and number six pop hit.

Blue Magic
Blue Magic, an R&B vocal quintet, was formed in Philadelphia and signed to Atlantic Records in 1973. They hit the Top 40 of the R&B singles chart with their first three 45s before breaking through and crossing over with “Sideshow” released in April 1974, which went gold, topped the R&B charts, and became a Top Ten pop hit. “Three Ring Circus” their next single, made the R&B Top Ten and the pop Top 40. Over the next three years Blue Magic became known mostly for their smooth ballads, and the group stayed high on the Soul charts with “Stop to Start” and “Chasing Rainbows” before landing a big hit with the dance tune “Magic of the Blue.” They returned with R&B chart singles in 1981 and 1983 and made their comeback album, From Out of the Blue, in 1989.

Intruders
As the first group to score hits with the songwriting/production team of Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff, the Intruders played a major role in the rise of Philadelphia soul. The Intruders were originally formed as a doo wop group in 1960, and sang around Philadelphia for several years. Lead singer Sam “Little Sonny” Brown, Eugene “Bird” Daughtry, Phil Terry, and Robert “Big Sonny” Edwards signed with Gamble and Huff’s fledgling Gamble label in 1966. They scored a Top 20 R&B hit that year with “(We’ll Be) United” and followed it up a year later with “Together.” However, 1968 was the Intruders’ breakthrough year: “Cowboys to Girls,” a template for what would become Philly soul’s trademark sound, topped the R&B charts and climbed to number six on the pop side, giving the group their biggest hit. The follow-up, “(Love Is Like A) Baseball Game,” scored the group yet another Top 40 pop hit. Gamble and Huff’s success with the Intruders helped convince Columbia to grant them the money to launch Philadelphia International, which became the most successful soul label of the early ‘70s. The Intruders resurfaced on the 1970 Gamble LP When We Get Married, with a new lead singer Bobby Starr. The title cut, a Dreamlovers cover, was a hit on the R&B charts, as was the follow-up, "(Win, Place or Show) She’s a Winner." Starr’s tenure with the group was short-lived; Sam “Little Sonny” Brown returned for the 1973 LP Save the Children, which spawned the Intruders’ last two big hits, “I’ll Always Love My Mama” and “I Wanna Know Your Name.”

New Birth
Formed by Tony Churchill and music-industry veteran Harvey Fuqua, New Birth was originally named the Nite-Liters. The roots of the band lie with Leslie and Melvin Wilson, who were gospel singers living in Muskegon, MI. After moving on to Detroit in the late ‘60s, Melvin Wilson eventually met the Nite-Liters, who at the time were backing Motown artists, and expressed the possibility that he and his brother Leslie could perform with them. Fuqua had three groups under his tutelage: Love Peace & Happiness (of which Leslie and Melvin became members), the Nite-Liters, and New Birth. All but two members of New Birth had left the group around this time, leaving just Londee Loren and Bobby Downs. The three groups toured, backed each other up, and ultimately merged into one, with New Birth the name of the new group. Leslie, with his feisty vocals, and Melvin, with his more serene appeal, emerged as the primary lead singers. New Birth’s first release was the R&B Top Ten single “I Can Understand It.” Led by Leslie Wilson’s intense vocals and reminiscent of Bobby Womack, the single zoomed up the charts, peaking at number four after only 12 weeks. In January of 1974 they released “It’s Been a Long Time,” one of their celebrated hits and another Top Ten entry. That single was followed by the classic, soulful ballad “Wildflower.” In mid-1975 the group signed with Buddah Records and immediately recorded number one R&B hit, “Dream Merchant.” They recorded just one album for Buddah, however, before signing with Warner Bros. and later Ariola, continuing to record throughout the remainder of the ‘70s. In 1994, Leslie and Melvin re-formed the group and began performing at venues around the nation.