From The O'Jays' "Love Train" to Billy Paul's "Me and Mrs. Jones" and Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes' "If You Don't Know Me By Now," Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff put a message in the music, and the message was Love. THE SOUND OF PHILADELPHIA celebrates the enduring power and passion of their voice and vision, and the indispensable music they created at Philadelphia International Records which, a generation later, is still as necessary today. Motown was Hitsville, Stax was Soulsville and this is The Philly Sound. Conquer The World: Philadelphia International Records was a hotbed for some of the most celebrated stars of the Seventies. Solo stars like Teddy Pendergrass, Lou Rawls and Billy Paul epitomized style and sophistication, while powerhouse groups such as The O'Jays, Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes, The Three Degrees and the PIR house band MFSB put a message in the music.
And then there were the artists on PIR who barely made it to the national stage - local celebrities like Bunny Sigler, Bobby Bennett, Johnny Williams, Ruth McFadden, Pat & The Blenders, the Soul DeValiants and Love Committee. Beloved in Philadelphia's bars and neighborhoods,