Reissue CDs Weekly: The Misunderstood - Children Of The Sun The Complete Recordings (1965-1966) | reviews, news & interviews Reissue CDs Weekly: The Misunderstood - Children Of The Sun The Complete Recordings (1965-1966)
Reissue CDs Weekly: The Misunderstood - Children Of The Sun The Complete Recordings (1965-1966)
Definitive statement on the John Peel-lauded psychedelic pioneers
by Kieron TylerSunday, 28 February 2021
On 31 December 1966, the
Daily Mail s Virginia Ironside got to grips with a new trend in pop music. Under the heading “The bleeps take over”, Jimmy Hendrix (
sic) The Move and The Pink Floyd were gathered together as purveyors of something The Who had started with “feedback, violence, ripping strings from their guitars.” “New groups,” it was said “are taking it farther and farther out.
Kenneth Gamble, Leon Huff and Thom Bell tell the tale of Philly soul.
Leon Huff, Thom Bell and Kenneth Gamble (from left) in Philadelphia in 1973. Credit: Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images.
From scorching message songs to sexy ballads, laidback steppers to boogie joints, the catalog of Philadelphia International Records (PIR) is both unmistakably bold and warmly enticing. Spearheaded by the influential songwriting and production partnership of Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff, along with invaluable input from their colleague Thom Bell, a producer, arranger and musician, the label put out 15 Gold singles and 22 Gold albums, including eight Platinum LPs, during its 1970s and early ’80s heyday, and nurtured the careers of artists including Lou Rawls, Patti LaBelle, Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes and the O’Jays. Most important, and impressive, was how the label created a timeless signature sound quite literally that changed the trajectory of global popular music, from R&B to dis
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Dusty Springfield’s soul credentials were firmly established when, in April 1965, she co-devised and presented a special edition of the TV pop show Ready Steady Go! dedicated to the thrilling music coming out of Detroit. Subtitled The Sounds Of Motown, it gave key UK exposure to the likes of The Supremes, Temptations, Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye and Smokey Robinson. The visitors’ British cheerleader also got to be a Vandella for the night, joining Martha Reeves and mates for lively renditions of Wishin’ And Hopin’ and Can’t Hear You No More. Yet Springfield’s own recorded output of the time remained rooted in more traditional pop melodrama. Occasional torch-like testifying numbers such as I Just Don’t Know What To Do With Myself hinted at something deeper or richer, but for the most part she plied her trade via orchestra-heavy bombast (All I See Is You, I Close My Eyes And Count To Ten, and her sole chart-topper You Don
1. Artists who had already won Grammys could compete for best new artist.
Lauryn Hill won two 1996 Grammys with Fugees, but was allowed to compete for best new artist when she released her solo debut album two years later. She won the award. Now, any artist with a previous Grammy nomination as a performer precludes eligibility in the best new artist category (including a nomination as an established member of a nominated group ).
2. Supergroups could compete for best new artist.
Crosby, Stills & Nash, consisting of former members of The Byrds, Buffalo Springfield and The Hollies, won the 1969 award. Asia, consisting of former members of King Crimson, Yes, The Buggles and Emerson, Lake & Palmer, was nominated for the 1982 award.As a result, David Crosby (The Byrds, CSN) and Carl Palmer (Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Asia) were nominated for best new artist as a member of both groups. They are the only musicians in Grammy history to be nominated for best new artist twice.
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Fifty years ago, a new label started by two esteemed hitmakers turned the corner on the crossover soul-pop of Motown and gritty Southern R&B of Stax/Volt, which had defined the sound of Black America in the 60s. The new label offered a new style for a new decade, from a new geographical hub of elite writers, producers, singers, arrangers and session players. The Sound of Philadelphia was promised, and for the next 10 years and beyond, the Sound of Philadelphia was delivered.
Philadelphia International Records, founded by Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff, was formed in 1971 from the ashes of Neptune Records, with a number of up-and-coming R&B artists based out of the City of Brotherly Love. Gamble and Huff had found success in the late 60s helming hits for local acts like the Soul Survivors ( Expressway to Your Heart ) and The Intruders ( Cowboys to Girls ), as well as for national stars like Jerry Butler ( Only the Strong Survive ) and Wilson Pickett ( Engine No. 9 ), pr