More 70s Soul Groups

THE DELFONICS
La La Means I Love You
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LaUX_D1UZtY

Didn't I (Blow Your Mind This Time)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ZtHehptprc

Hey Love
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXt47-XRB5I

The Delfonics are a Philadelphia soul singing group, most popular in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Their most notable hits include "La-La (Means I Love You)", "Didn't I (Blow Your Mind This Time)," "Break Your Promise," "I'm Sorry," and "Ready Or Not Here I Come (Can't Hide From Love)".

Their songs are written by lead vocalist and founder William Hart and have been used extensively in numerous film soundtracks, the most notable being Quentin Tarantino's movie, "Jackie Brown" in which their music ("La-La (Means I Love You)" and "Didn't I Blow Your Mind") are used as a pivotal part of the plot to underscore the relationship between Robert De Niro, Pam Grier & Robert Forster. The film helped create a border-line cult following for the songs and this group.

Their songs have been sampled extensively by various Hip-Hop & Rap artists including: The Fugees (Ready Or Not), Lauryn Hill (for which she won a '97 Grammy), Nas, Boyz II Men, Missy Elliott and DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince.

William Hart songs have been recorded by numerous performers including: Aretha Franklin, The Jackson 5, Patti LaBelle, New Kids on the Block, Todd Rundgren, Prince and Manhattan Transfer, among others.

THE CHI-LITES
Oh Girl
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LCT0VHdlc5g

Have You Seen Her
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TTKRTO1BSeQ

The Chi-Lites (pronounced "SHY-lights") are a Chicago-based smooth soul vocal group, best known for their early 1970s hits, "Oh Girl" and "Have You Seen Her".

The Chi-Lites were from Chicago, a town better known for its gritty urban blues and driving R&B.

Led by vocalist Eugene Record, the Chi-Lites had a lush, creamy sound distinguished by their four-part harmonies and layered productions. During the early 1970s, they racked up 11 Top Ten R&B singles. All the songs featured Record's warm, pleading tenor and falsetto, and the majority of the group's hits were written by Record, often in collaboration with other songwriters like Barbara Acklin.

The Chi-Lites were inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 2005.

BLUE MAGIC
Sideshow
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ERtwe8iU-Jo

Spell
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EZx4yrkAl-s

Stop to Start
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8KP0cFHwdU8

Blue Magic is an American R&B soul vocal quintet best known for their 1974 hit song, "Sideshow."

Blue Magic was formed in Philadelphia in 1972 when former member of The Delfonics, Randy Cain brought singer-songwriter Ted Mills in to do some writing with the Philly-based WMOT production company.

The Group became popular in 1974 with their first million-selling US Top 10 hit single Sideshow, co-written by guitarist Bobby Eli. They became known mostly for their smooth ballads.

With the rise of disco and the group making the mistake of changing their style for the Halloween-oriented album 'Mystic Dragons', which was centered around the single 'Freak-N-Stein,' the group became less popular.

THE MAIN INGREDIENT
Everybody Plays The Fool
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_dvHogknHyI

Just Don't Want to Be Lonely
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iYpmB2dPlq4

The Main Ingredient is an American soul and R&B group best known for their 1972 hit song, "Everybody Plays the Fool".

The group was formed in Harlem, NY in 1964 as a trio called the Poets. After a couple of singles, they changed their name once again in 1966, this time permanently to the Main Ingredient.

Nothing much happened until the Main Ingredient hooked up with producer Bert DeCoteaux, who had an excellent sense of the lush, orchestrated direction soul music would take in the early '70s. Under his direction, the Main Ingredient reached the R&B Top 30 for the first time in 1970 with "You've Been My Inspiration." Things grew steadily from there; a cover of the Impressions' "I'm So Proud" broke the Top 20, and "Spinning Around (I Must Be Falling in Love)" went Top Ten. They scored again with the Donald McPherson-penned black power anthem "Black Seeds Keep on Growing," but tragedy struck in 1971: McPherson, who had suddenly taken ill with leukemia, died unexpectedly. Stunned, Silvester and Simmons regrouped with new lead singer Cuba Gooding, Sr., who'd served as a backing vocalist on some of their previous recordings and had filled in on tour during McPherson's brief illness.

The Gooding era began auspiciously enough with the million-selling smash "Everybody Plays the Fool," which hit number two R&B and number three pop to become the group's biggest hit ever.
They peaked at number eight on the R&B chart in 1974 with "Just Don't Want to Be Lonely," which sold over a million copies and also reached number ten on the pop chart.

Gooding's son is, of course, Cuba Gooding, Jr., the actor best known for his Oscar-winning performance in Jerry Maguire.

THE MANHATTANS
Kiss and Say Goodbye
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B1e6RK4aMWI

Shining Star
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C_VpjSv_4QM&feature=related

The Manhattans are a popular R&B vocal group with a string of hit records over three decades, but best known for their million-selling songs "Kiss and Say Goodbye" and "Shining Star" in 1976 and 1980, respectively.

The Manhattans, originally from Jersey City, New Jersey, formed in 1962.

They hit it big in 1976 with "Kiss and Say Goodbye". The song, with an impassioned vocal by Gerald Alston and a memorable opening rap by Winfred Lovett, quickly became a #1 chart-topper on both the Billboard Pop and R&B charts. It also became only the second single ever to go platinum.

The group hit it big again in March of 1980, with the release of "Shining Star", which reached #5 on the Billboard pop charts and #4 on the R&B chart; it received a Grammy award the following year.

HAROLD MELVIN & THE BLUE NOTES
If You Don't Know Me by Now
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h_Kf1ATjl9A

The Love I Lost
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K2axbXDjYqA

I Miss You
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hh8fZLjt5Uc

Hope That We Can Be Together Soon
w/Sharon Paige
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s4E-k09o2eg

Don't Leave Me This Way
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q5tqAIY-TzA

Wake Up Everybody
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eVVKP3Gh8CI

Bad Luck
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VR8KfMTmPRQ

Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes were an American singing group, one of the most popular Philadelphia soul groups of the 1970s. The group's repertoire included soul, R&B, doo-wop, and disco. Founded in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the early 1950s as The Charlemagnes, the group is most noted for several hits on Gamble & Huff's Philadelphia International label between 1972 and 1976. Despite group founder and original lead singer Harold Melvin's top billing, the Blue Notes' most famous member was Teddy Pendergrass, their lead singer during the success years at Philadelphia International.

The group formerly known as The Charlemagnes took on the name "The Blue Notes" in 1954.

In 1970, the group recruited drummer Teddy Pendergrass as the drummer for their backing band. Pendergrass had been a former member of The Cadillacs, and was promoted to lead singer.

Among the Blue Notes' most important and successful recordings are love songs such as "If You Don't Know Me By Now" (1972, their breakout single), "I Miss You" (1972), "The Love I Lost" (1973), and "Don't Leave Me This Way" (1975), and socially conscious songs such as "Wake Up Everybody" and "Bad Luck" (both 1975).
"Bad Luck" holds the record for longest-running number-one hit on the Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart: eleven weeks.
A 1976 cover of "Don't Leave Me This Way" by Motown artist Thelma Houston was a number-one hit on the US pop chart; both it and the Blue Notes' originals are considered defining recordings of the disco era.

While at the top of their success in 1976, Pendergrass quit the Blue Notes, after unsuccessfully lobbying to have Melvin rename the act "Teddy Pendergrass & the Blue Notes".
Pendergrass went on to a successful solo career, cut short by a paralyzing 1982 car accident, although he made a brief comeback at the historic Live Aid concert in 1985.

Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes are arguably the most-covered Philly soul group in history: many of their hits have been re-recorded by other artists, including Simply Red, David Ruffin, Jimmy Somerville and Sybil, while dance music DJ Danny Rampling cites "Wake Up Everybody" as his favorite song of all time.

For his album This Note's for You, singer Neil Young named his back-up band The Blue Notes without permission from name rights holder Harold Melvin. Melvin took legal action against Young over use of the Blue Notes name, forcing the singer to change the name of the back-up band to "Ten Men Workin'" during the balance of the tour that promoted the This Note's for You album.

(Wikipedia)