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- HERE TO CREATE MUSIC by LEON HUFF (1980)
- WAKE UP EVERYBODY by HAROLD MELVIN AND THE BLUE NOTES (1975)
- BACK STABBERS by THE O'JAYS (1972)
- 360 DEGREES OF BILLY PAUL by Billy Paul (1972)
- TEDDY PENDERGRASS (1977) and LIFE IS A SONG WORTH SINGING (1978) by Teddy Pendergrass
Remasters include bonus material and liner notes by Joe McEwen (Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes, Billy Paul), David Nathan (Pendergrass), David Ritz (O'Jays), and Tom Vickers (Huff)
'Total Soul'series arrives at digital outlets on August 5th; CD releases follow on October 14th,through PIR/Legacy
The past 12 months have seen the release of a landmark batch of historic albums for Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff's Philadelphia International Records and Legacy Recordings - a year that climaxes with the launch of the Total Soul Series. The first six titles in the series will be available at both digital (starting August 5th) and physical (starting October 14th) retail outlets through PIR/Legacy, a division of SONY BMG MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT:
- HERE TO CREATE MUSIC by LEON HUFF (1980), his one and only solo album, with "Tight Money," "I Ain't Jivin', I'm Jammin'," and "Your Body Won't Move, If You Can't Feel the Groove," plus two bonus tracks and liner notes written by Tom Vickers;
- WAKE UP EVERYBODY by HAROLD MELVIN & THE BLUE NOTES (1975), their fourth and final LP both for PIR and with Teddy Pendergrass, with the #1 title tune, "Tell The World How I Feel About 'Cha Baby," "Don't Leave Me This Way" plus one bonus track and liner notes by Joe McEwen and Bobby Martin;
- BACK STABBERS by THE O'JAYS (1972), a cornerstone of '70s soul, included in Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time - it helped explode the label with its four legendary hits, "Back Stabbers," "Love Train," "992 Arguments," and "Time To Get Down," with liner notes by David Ritz;
- 360 DEGREES OF BILLY PAUL by BILLY PAUL (1972), another soul cornerstone, the source of "Me And Mrs. Jones," and with a bonus track version of the hit live in London, and liner notes by Joe McEwen;
- TEDDY PENDERGRASS by TEDDY PENDERGRASS (1977), after four great years with the Blue Notes, his breakout debut as a solo artist, with "I Don't Love You Anymore" and "The Whole Town's Laughing At Me," plus liner notes by David Nathan;
- LIFE IS A SONG WORTH SINGING by TEDDY PENDERGRASS (1978), his even-more successful second solo album, with "Close the Door" and "Only You," also with liner notes by David Nathan.
It was 45 years ago when the chance meeting of Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff gave birth to a new American music dynasty. Eight years later in 1971, Philadelphia International Records turned South Broad Street into a mecca of soul that went on to define a musical era with a seemingly endless run of hits produced by the label during the 1970s and early '80s.
Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff's induction into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in March 2008, as recipients of the first annual Ahmet Ertegun Lifetime Achievement Award, was just the most recent in a long line of tributes that have been paid to the two legendary producers and songwriters.
PIR's superstar roster - the O'Jays, Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes featuring Teddy Pendergrass (and later TP solo), Lou Rawls, Jerry Butler, the Three Degrees, Patti LaBelle, Billy Paul, MFSB, Archie Bell & the Drells, the Jones Girls, and many others - charted hundreds of records. On the street, Motown was Hitsville, Stax was Soulsville, but nothing compared to The Sound Of Philadelphia, TSOP.
The Total Soul Series is the latest development in an historic new agreement announced last August 2007, in which the complete Philadelphia International Records catalog of music has been licensed by SONY BMG MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT, to be released through its Commercial Music Group and Legacy Recordings. Previous releases under this new agreement include:
- The Essential Teddy Pendergrass (October 2007), a 28-song double-CD covering his PIR years with Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes and as a solo artist 1972-82, plus various tracks at Elektra-Asylum into 1991, with liner notes by The New York Times columnist William C. Rhoden;
- The Essential Lou Rawls (October 2007), a 33-song double-CD encompassing his formative '60s years at Capitol, his PIR years 1976-81, plus various tracks at MGM (1971) and Bell (1974), also with liner notes by Rhoden;
- The Sound Of Philadelphia: Gamble & Huff's Greatest Hits (March 2008), a 16-song collection of top-charted signatures by the cream of the roster, including the O'Jays, Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes and Teddy Pendergrass solo, Lou Rawls, Patti LaBelle, Billy Paul, MFSB, the Three Degrees, and others;
- Conquer the World: The Lost Soul Of Philadelphia International Records (March 2008), a 16-song collection of rare singles sides, most of which have not seen light of day for over 30 years, by David (sic) Sigler & Dee Dee Sharp, Soul Devalients, Johnny Williams, Carolyn Crawford, Ruth McFadden, and others;
- Patti LaBelle Live In Washington, D.C. by Patti LaBelle (June 2008), an entire previously unreleased concert from 1982, her first full year at PIR, including songs from her years with LaBelle and as a solo artist, with liner notes by David Nathan;
- The Essential Patti LaBelle (June 2008), a 30-song double-CD covering every facet of her career, from the Blue-Belles in the '60s to LaBelle in the '70s, solo tracks from her Epic, PIR and MCA years, plus rarities and two previously unreleased songs, with liner notes by Brian Chin; and
- The Essential O'Jays (June 2008), a 36-song double-CD that moves past a half-dozen introductory sides on King, Imperial, Bell, and Neptune to focus on 27 PIR tracks through 1987, before closing with '90s numbers on Elektra and EMI, with liner notes written by founding member Eddie Levert, Sr., as told to his biographer Lyah Beth LeFlore.
LEON HUFF - HERE TO CREATE MUSIC
The "visionary architect and chief bricklayer of The Philly Sound" finally got around to recording his one and only solo album in 1980. It was an immediate must-have for soul aficionados and quickly ascended to collectible status as a Philly touchstone. "Tight Money" was a mid-chart R&B single, followed by "I Ain't Jivin', I'm Jammin'," which became an iconic 12-inch dance favorite for DJs and collectors. As 'TV' Tom Vickers points out in his liner notes, Huff's funky "Your Body Won't Move, If You Can't Feel the Groove" features a Who's Who of PIR drop-in's: Eddie Levert and Walter Williams of the O'Jays, Teddy Pendergrass, the Jones Girls, and McFadden & Whitehead, among others. And yes, that's Stevie Wonder's harmonica you hear on "No Greater Love." This long-awaited reissue contains two non-album bonus tracks, "Money's Tight" (which was the B-side of "Tight Money") and "Sassy."
HERE TO CREATE MUSIC by LEON HUFF (PIR/Legacy 88697 33998 2, originally issued October 1980, as Philadelphia International 36758, R&B #63, Pop #204) Selections: 1. Your Body Won't Move, If You Can't Feel the Groove - 2. I Ain't Jivin', I'm Jammin' (2nd single, R&B #57) - 3. No Greater Love - 4. Tight Money (1st single, R&B #68) - 5. Low Down, Hard Times Blues - 6. Tasty - 7. This One's For Us - 8. Latin Spirit - Bonus tracks: 9. Money's Tight (B-side of Tight Money) - 10. Sassy.
HAROLD MELVIN & THE BLUE NOTES - WAKE UP EVERYBODY
In late 1975, after three glorious hitmaking years, the Blue Notes recorded their fourth and final album together for PIR with "intransigent baritone stylist" Teddy Pendergrass (as he is characterized in Joe McEwen's liner notes), "a powerhouse of a singer" (in the words of Philly arranger Bobby Martin). The album rose to #1 R&B (and Top 10 pop) on the strength of its title tune opening cut, a sermonizing message song written by McFadden & Whitehead that charted four months and gave the Blue Notes their fourth and final #1 R&B smash. The follow-up was "Tell The World How I Feel About 'Cha Baby," whose B-side, "You Know How To Make Me Feel So Good," featured TP's vocal foil Sharon Paige. Also included on the album was the original version of "Don't Leave Me This Way," which shortly after became a disco smash for Thelma Houston. Ultimately, the Blue Notes' success paved the way for Teddy's departure in 1976, and the start of his solo career at PIR in 1977. Tom Moulton's 12-inch mix of "Don't Leave Me This Way" is the welcome bonus track.
WAKE UP EVERYBODY by HAROLD MELVIN & THE BLUE NOTES (PIR/Legacy 88697 34010 2, originally issued November 1975, as Philadelphia International 33808, R&B #1, Pop #9) Selections: 1. Wake Up Everybody (1st single, R&B #1, Hot 100 #12) - 2. Keep On Lovin' You - 3. You Know How To Make Me Feel So Good (featuring Sharon Paige) - 4. Don't Leave Me This Way - 5. Tell The World How I Feel About 'Cha Baby (2nd single, R&B #7, Hot 100 #94) - 6. To Be Free To Be Who We Are - 7. I'm Searching For A Love - Bonus track: 8. Don't Leave Me This Way (A Tom Moulton Mix) (12-inch single version).
THE O'JAYS - BACK STABBERS
In every way, the O'Jays - Eddie Levert, Walter Williams and William Powell - were PIR's flagship act, and over the course of nearly two decades always represented the pinnacle of Gamble & Huff's artistry as songwriters and producers. It all begins here, the PIR debut of the O'Jays who had seasoned their sound for more than a decade before breaking through on PIR in 1972. Soul's horizons and social conscience were expanding at a fever pitch that year, and the O'Jays quickly got right on board the top of the R&B and pop charts with "Love Train" and "Back Stabbers." The LP also included two more chart entries (four hits on one album was, and is, a rare phenomenon), "992 Arguments" and "Time To Get Down." In his liner notes, David Ritz hails the album as "a full-blown portrait of the urban male facing the joys and pain of modern life," amen.
BACK STABBERS by THE O'JAYS (PIR/Legacy 88697 33923 2, originally issued September 1972, as Philadelphia International 31712, R&B #3, Pop #10) Selections: 1. When The World's At Peace - 2. Back Stabbers (1st single, R&B #3, Hot 100 #3) - 3. Who Am I - 4. (They Call Me) Mr. Lucky - 5. Time To Get Down (4th single, R&B #2, Hot 100 #33) - 6. 992 Arguments (2nd single, R&B #13, Hot 100 #57) - 7. Listen To The Clock On The Wall - 8. Shiftless, Shady, Jealous Kind Of People - 9. Sunshine (B-Side Of Back Stabbers) - 10. Love Train (3rd single, R&B #1, Hot 100 #1).
360 DEGREES OF BILLY PAUL
As far back as 1967, Philadelphia jazz vocalist Billy Paul had caught the ear of Kenny Gamble, who produced a live LP of the singer on his Gamble label, followed by a jazzier outing on Neptune, and then Billy's PIR debut in 1971, as one of their first core artists. The "mother lode," as Joe McEwen writes, arrived the following year on an LP that showcased covers of Carole King ("It's Too Late"), Al Green ("Let's Stay Together"), and Elton John ("Your Song"). In between was "Me And Mrs. Jones," the lushly arranged escapade of adventurous lovers that became one of only three songs in PIR history to hit #1 R&B and #1 pop (along with MFSB's "TSOP" theme and the O'Jays' "Love Train"). This reissue is rounded out by the nine-minute live version recorded at London's Hammersmith Odeon in December 1973.
360 DEGREES OF BILLY PAUL (PIR/Legacy 88697 33922 2, originally issued November 1972, as Philadelphia International 31793, R&B #1, Pop #17) Selections: 1. Brown Baby - 2. I'm Just A Prisoner - 3. It's Too Late - 4. Me And Mrs. Jones (1st single, R&B #1. Hot 100 #1) - 5. Am I Black Enough For You (2nd single, R&B #29, Hot 100 #79) - 6. Let's Stay Together - 7. Your Song - 8. I'm Gonna Make It This Time - Bonus track: 9. Me And Mrs. Jones (live at Hammersmith Odeon, London, England, December 1973; from Live In Europe, originally issued June 1974, as Philadel¬phia International 32952).
TEDDY PENDERGRASS
There is no overstating the impact of Teddy Pendergrass' emergence as a solo artist in 1977, after four mammoth hitmaking years as the towering lead voice of Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes ("If You Don't Know Me By Now," "The Love I Lost," "Bad Luck," "Wake Up Everybody," and so on). In his separate liner notes to these reissues, writer David Nathan refers to TP as the "Original Love Man" and "one of our last great soul singers, in the sanctified tradition of Otis Redding, Sam Cooke, Marvin Gaye, Al Green, Philippe Wynne, Eddie Levert, Levi Stubbs, and Luther Vandross." Kenny Gamble calls Teddy "America's new Romeo the black Elvis, [he was] like a matinee idol, or a God from Greek mythology. He was that powerful and commanding." Teddy's five-year string of six consecutive RIAA gold and platinum albums (and eight Top 10 singles) begins here, as the full power of PIR's teams of songwriters, session musicians and singers rallied around the label's signature male artist to insure his success. The results were two fast-track R&B hits from his first LP, Gamble & Huff's "I Don't Love You Anymore" and the Quiet Storm anthem "The Whole Town's Laughing At Me." Teddy's second album gave him his first #1 R&B smash, "Close The Door," followed by the McFadden & Whitehead-penned hit, "Only You."
TEDDY PENDERGRASS (PIR/Legacy 88697 29484 2, originally issued March 1977, as Philadelphia International 34390, R&B #5, Pop #17) Selections: 1. You Can't Hide From Yourself - 2. Somebody Told Me - 3. Be Sure - 4. And If I Had (a/k/a Someone To Love Me) - 5. I Don't Love You Anymore (1st single, R&B #5, Hot 100 #41) - 6. The Whole Town's Laughing At Me (2nd single, R&B #16, Hot 100 #102) - 7. Easy, Easy, Got To Take It Easy - 8. The More I Get, The More I Want.
LIFE IS A SONG WORTH SINGING by TEDDY PENDERGRASS (PIR/Legacy 88697 29485 2, originally issued June 1978, as Philadelphia International 35095, R&B #1, Pop #11) Selections: 1. Life Is A Song Worth Singing - 2. Only You (2nd single, R&B #22, Hot 100 #106) - 3. Cold, Cold World - 4. Get Up, Get Down, Get Funky, Get Loose - 5. Close The Door (1st single, R&B #1, Hot 100 #25) - 6. It Don't Hurt Now - 7. When Somebody Loves You Back - Bonus tracks: 8. Only You (Single version) - 9. Get Down, Get Funky ('Disco' version).
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September 02, 2008 - PIR/Legacy's Got Total Soul!
NEW SERIES LAUNCHED WITH SIX CLASSIC ALBUMS FROM GAMBLE & HUFF's PHILADELPHIA INTERNATIONAL RECORDS- HERE TO CREATE MUSIC by LEON HUFF (1980)
- WAKE UP EVERYBODY by HAROLD MELVIN AND THE BLUE NOTES (1975)
- BACK STABBERS by THE O'JAYS (1972)
- 360 DEGREES OF BILLY PAUL by Billy Paul (1972)
- TEDDY PENDERGRASS (1977) and LIFE IS A SONG WORTH SINGING (1978) by Teddy Pendergrass
Remasters include bonus material and liner notes by Joe McEwen (Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes, Billy Paul), David Nathan (Pendergrass), David Ritz (O'Jays), and Tom Vickers (Huff)
'Total Soul'series arrives at digital outlets on August 5th; CD releases follow on October 14th,through PIR/Legacy
The past 12 months have seen the release of a landmark batch of historic albums for Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff's Philadelphia International Records and Legacy Recordings - a year that climaxes with the launch of the Total Soul Series. The first six titles in the series will be available at both digital (starting August 5th) and physical (starting October 14th) retail outlets through PIR/Legacy, a division of SONY BMG MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT:
- HERE TO CREATE MUSIC by LEON HUFF (1980), his one and only solo album, with "Tight Money," "I Ain't Jivin', I'm Jammin'," and "Your Body Won't Move, If You Can't Feel the Groove," plus two bonus tracks and liner notes written by Tom Vickers;
- WAKE UP EVERYBODY by HAROLD MELVIN & THE BLUE NOTES (1975), their fourth and final LP both for PIR and with Teddy Pendergrass, with the #1 title tune, "Tell The World How I Feel About 'Cha Baby," "Don't Leave Me This Way" plus one bonus track and liner notes by Joe McEwen and Bobby Martin;
- BACK STABBERS by THE O'JAYS (1972), a cornerstone of '70s soul, included in Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time - it helped explode the label with its four legendary hits, "Back Stabbers," "Love Train," "992 Arguments," and "Time To Get Down," with liner notes by David Ritz;
- 360 DEGREES OF BILLY PAUL by BILLY PAUL (1972), another soul cornerstone, the source of "Me And Mrs. Jones," and with a bonus track version of the hit live in London, and liner notes by Joe McEwen;
- TEDDY PENDERGRASS by TEDDY PENDERGRASS (1977), after four great years with the Blue Notes, his breakout debut as a solo artist, with "I Don't Love You Anymore" and "The Whole Town's Laughing At Me," plus liner notes by David Nathan;
- LIFE IS A SONG WORTH SINGING by TEDDY PENDERGRASS (1978), his even-more successful second solo album, with "Close the Door" and "Only You," also with liner notes by David Nathan.
It was 45 years ago when the chance meeting of Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff gave birth to a new American music dynasty. Eight years later in 1971, Philadelphia International Records turned South Broad Street into a mecca of soul that went on to define a musical era with a seemingly endless run of hits produced by the label during the 1970s and early '80s.
Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff's induction into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in March 2008, as recipients of the first annual Ahmet Ertegun Lifetime Achievement Award, was just the most recent in a long line of tributes that have been paid to the two legendary producers and songwriters.
PIR's superstar roster - the O'Jays, Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes featuring Teddy Pendergrass (and later TP solo), Lou Rawls, Jerry Butler, the Three Degrees, Patti LaBelle, Billy Paul, MFSB, Archie Bell & the Drells, the Jones Girls, and many others - charted hundreds of records. On the street, Motown was Hitsville, Stax was Soulsville, but nothing compared to The Sound Of Philadelphia, TSOP.
The Total Soul Series is the latest development in an historic new agreement announced last August 2007, in which the complete Philadelphia International Records catalog of music has been licensed by SONY BMG MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT, to be released through its Commercial Music Group and Legacy Recordings. Previous releases under this new agreement include:
- The Essential Teddy Pendergrass (October 2007), a 28-song double-CD covering his PIR years with Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes and as a solo artist 1972-82, plus various tracks at Elektra-Asylum into 1991, with liner notes by The New York Times columnist William C. Rhoden;
- The Essential Lou Rawls (October 2007), a 33-song double-CD encompassing his formative '60s years at Capitol, his PIR years 1976-81, plus various tracks at MGM (1971) and Bell (1974), also with liner notes by Rhoden;
- The Sound Of Philadelphia: Gamble & Huff's Greatest Hits (March 2008), a 16-song collection of top-charted signatures by the cream of the roster, including the O'Jays, Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes and Teddy Pendergrass solo, Lou Rawls, Patti LaBelle, Billy Paul, MFSB, the Three Degrees, and others;
- Conquer the World: The Lost Soul Of Philadelphia International Records (March 2008), a 16-song collection of rare singles sides, most of which have not seen light of day for over 30 years, by David (sic) Sigler & Dee Dee Sharp, Soul Devalients, Johnny Williams, Carolyn Crawford, Ruth McFadden, and others;
- Patti LaBelle Live In Washington, D.C. by Patti LaBelle (June 2008), an entire previously unreleased concert from 1982, her first full year at PIR, including songs from her years with LaBelle and as a solo artist, with liner notes by David Nathan;
- The Essential Patti LaBelle (June 2008), a 30-song double-CD covering every facet of her career, from the Blue-Belles in the '60s to LaBelle in the '70s, solo tracks from her Epic, PIR and MCA years, plus rarities and two previously unreleased songs, with liner notes by Brian Chin; and
- The Essential O'Jays (June 2008), a 36-song double-CD that moves past a half-dozen introductory sides on King, Imperial, Bell, and Neptune to focus on 27 PIR tracks through 1987, before closing with '90s numbers on Elektra and EMI, with liner notes written by founding member Eddie Levert, Sr., as told to his biographer Lyah Beth LeFlore.
LEON HUFF - HERE TO CREATE MUSIC
The "visionary architect and chief bricklayer of The Philly Sound" finally got around to recording his one and only solo album in 1980. It was an immediate must-have for soul aficionados and quickly ascended to collectible status as a Philly touchstone. "Tight Money" was a mid-chart R&B single, followed by "I Ain't Jivin', I'm Jammin'," which became an iconic 12-inch dance favorite for DJs and collectors. As 'TV' Tom Vickers points out in his liner notes, Huff's funky "Your Body Won't Move, If You Can't Feel the Groove" features a Who's Who of PIR drop-in's: Eddie Levert and Walter Williams of the O'Jays, Teddy Pendergrass, the Jones Girls, and McFadden & Whitehead, among others. And yes, that's Stevie Wonder's harmonica you hear on "No Greater Love." This long-awaited reissue contains two non-album bonus tracks, "Money's Tight" (which was the B-side of "Tight Money") and "Sassy."
HERE TO CREATE MUSIC by LEON HUFF (PIR/Legacy 88697 33998 2, originally issued October 1980, as Philadelphia International 36758, R&B #63, Pop #204) Selections: 1. Your Body Won't Move, If You Can't Feel the Groove - 2. I Ain't Jivin', I'm Jammin' (2nd single, R&B #57) - 3. No Greater Love - 4. Tight Money (1st single, R&B #68) - 5. Low Down, Hard Times Blues - 6. Tasty - 7. This One's For Us - 8. Latin Spirit - Bonus tracks: 9. Money's Tight (B-side of Tight Money) - 10. Sassy.
HAROLD MELVIN & THE BLUE NOTES - WAKE UP EVERYBODY
In late 1975, after three glorious hitmaking years, the Blue Notes recorded their fourth and final album together for PIR with "intransigent baritone stylist" Teddy Pendergrass (as he is characterized in Joe McEwen's liner notes), "a powerhouse of a singer" (in the words of Philly arranger Bobby Martin). The album rose to #1 R&B (and Top 10 pop) on the strength of its title tune opening cut, a sermonizing message song written by McFadden & Whitehead that charted four months and gave the Blue Notes their fourth and final #1 R&B smash. The follow-up was "Tell The World How I Feel About 'Cha Baby," whose B-side, "You Know How To Make Me Feel So Good," featured TP's vocal foil Sharon Paige. Also included on the album was the original version of "Don't Leave Me This Way," which shortly after became a disco smash for Thelma Houston. Ultimately, the Blue Notes' success paved the way for Teddy's departure in 1976, and the start of his solo career at PIR in 1977. Tom Moulton's 12-inch mix of "Don't Leave Me This Way" is the welcome bonus track.
WAKE UP EVERYBODY by HAROLD MELVIN & THE BLUE NOTES (PIR/Legacy 88697 34010 2, originally issued November 1975, as Philadelphia International 33808, R&B #1, Pop #9) Selections: 1. Wake Up Everybody (1st single, R&B #1, Hot 100 #12) - 2. Keep On Lovin' You - 3. You Know How To Make Me Feel So Good (featuring Sharon Paige) - 4. Don't Leave Me This Way - 5. Tell The World How I Feel About 'Cha Baby (2nd single, R&B #7, Hot 100 #94) - 6. To Be Free To Be Who We Are - 7. I'm Searching For A Love - Bonus track: 8. Don't Leave Me This Way (A Tom Moulton Mix) (12-inch single version).
THE O'JAYS - BACK STABBERS
In every way, the O'Jays - Eddie Levert, Walter Williams and William Powell - were PIR's flagship act, and over the course of nearly two decades always represented the pinnacle of Gamble & Huff's artistry as songwriters and producers. It all begins here, the PIR debut of the O'Jays who had seasoned their sound for more than a decade before breaking through on PIR in 1972. Soul's horizons and social conscience were expanding at a fever pitch that year, and the O'Jays quickly got right on board the top of the R&B and pop charts with "Love Train" and "Back Stabbers." The LP also included two more chart entries (four hits on one album was, and is, a rare phenomenon), "992 Arguments" and "Time To Get Down." In his liner notes, David Ritz hails the album as "a full-blown portrait of the urban male facing the joys and pain of modern life," amen.
BACK STABBERS by THE O'JAYS (PIR/Legacy 88697 33923 2, originally issued September 1972, as Philadelphia International 31712, R&B #3, Pop #10) Selections: 1. When The World's At Peace - 2. Back Stabbers (1st single, R&B #3, Hot 100 #3) - 3. Who Am I - 4. (They Call Me) Mr. Lucky - 5. Time To Get Down (4th single, R&B #2, Hot 100 #33) - 6. 992 Arguments (2nd single, R&B #13, Hot 100 #57) - 7. Listen To The Clock On The Wall - 8. Shiftless, Shady, Jealous Kind Of People - 9. Sunshine (B-Side Of Back Stabbers) - 10. Love Train (3rd single, R&B #1, Hot 100 #1).
360 DEGREES OF BILLY PAUL
As far back as 1967, Philadelphia jazz vocalist Billy Paul had caught the ear of Kenny Gamble, who produced a live LP of the singer on his Gamble label, followed by a jazzier outing on Neptune, and then Billy's PIR debut in 1971, as one of their first core artists. The "mother lode," as Joe McEwen writes, arrived the following year on an LP that showcased covers of Carole King ("It's Too Late"), Al Green ("Let's Stay Together"), and Elton John ("Your Song"). In between was "Me And Mrs. Jones," the lushly arranged escapade of adventurous lovers that became one of only three songs in PIR history to hit #1 R&B and #1 pop (along with MFSB's "TSOP" theme and the O'Jays' "Love Train"). This reissue is rounded out by the nine-minute live version recorded at London's Hammersmith Odeon in December 1973.
360 DEGREES OF BILLY PAUL (PIR/Legacy 88697 33922 2, originally issued November 1972, as Philadelphia International 31793, R&B #1, Pop #17) Selections: 1. Brown Baby - 2. I'm Just A Prisoner - 3. It's Too Late - 4. Me And Mrs. Jones (1st single, R&B #1. Hot 100 #1) - 5. Am I Black Enough For You (2nd single, R&B #29, Hot 100 #79) - 6. Let's Stay Together - 7. Your Song - 8. I'm Gonna Make It This Time - Bonus track: 9. Me And Mrs. Jones (live at Hammersmith Odeon, London, England, December 1973; from Live In Europe, originally issued June 1974, as Philadel¬phia International 32952).
TEDDY PENDERGRASS
There is no overstating the impact of Teddy Pendergrass' emergence as a solo artist in 1977, after four mammoth hitmaking years as the towering lead voice of Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes ("If You Don't Know Me By Now," "The Love I Lost," "Bad Luck," "Wake Up Everybody," and so on). In his separate liner notes to these reissues, writer David Nathan refers to TP as the "Original Love Man" and "one of our last great soul singers, in the sanctified tradition of Otis Redding, Sam Cooke, Marvin Gaye, Al Green, Philippe Wynne, Eddie Levert, Levi Stubbs, and Luther Vandross." Kenny Gamble calls Teddy "America's new Romeo the black Elvis, [he was] like a matinee idol, or a God from Greek mythology. He was that powerful and commanding." Teddy's five-year string of six consecutive RIAA gold and platinum albums (and eight Top 10 singles) begins here, as the full power of PIR's teams of songwriters, session musicians and singers rallied around the label's signature male artist to insure his success. The results were two fast-track R&B hits from his first LP, Gamble & Huff's "I Don't Love You Anymore" and the Quiet Storm anthem "The Whole Town's Laughing At Me." Teddy's second album gave him his first #1 R&B smash, "Close The Door," followed by the McFadden & Whitehead-penned hit, "Only You."
TEDDY PENDERGRASS (PIR/Legacy 88697 29484 2, originally issued March 1977, as Philadelphia International 34390, R&B #5, Pop #17) Selections: 1. You Can't Hide From Yourself - 2. Somebody Told Me - 3. Be Sure - 4. And If I Had (a/k/a Someone To Love Me) - 5. I Don't Love You Anymore (1st single, R&B #5, Hot 100 #41) - 6. The Whole Town's Laughing At Me (2nd single, R&B #16, Hot 100 #102) - 7. Easy, Easy, Got To Take It Easy - 8. The More I Get, The More I Want.
LIFE IS A SONG WORTH SINGING by TEDDY PENDERGRASS (PIR/Legacy 88697 29485 2, originally issued June 1978, as Philadelphia International 35095, R&B #1, Pop #11) Selections: 1. Life Is A Song Worth Singing - 2. Only You (2nd single, R&B #22, Hot 100 #106) - 3. Cold, Cold World - 4. Get Up, Get Down, Get Funky, Get Loose - 5. Close The Door (1st single, R&B #1, Hot 100 #25) - 6. It Don't Hurt Now - 7. When Somebody Loves You Back - Bonus tracks: 8. Only You (Single version) - 9. Get Down, Get Funky ('Disco' version).
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