Lost Gem: EWF’s Maurice White made solo magic with “I Need You”
After a decade and a half of making some of the most essential music of the 1970s and early 80s, Earth, Wind & Fire went on a hiatus in 1984. The magic that made the band the among the most compelling act in popular music appeared to be fading. Their 1983 album Electric Universe was […]
SoulTracks Sunday Gem: The Winans and Anita Baker showed their Detroit royalty together
Before Mary Mary, before Kirk Franklin, before Commissioned and Fred Hammond, there were Marvin, Carvin, Michael and Ronald Winans. By any account, the most important group of the last 30 years in pushing the crossover of Gospel into both Soul and Pop radio, the Winans are now considered to be Gospel royalty. Click Here […]
Lost Gem: Heatwave was at its best on “Star of a Story”
Heatwave‘s Too Hot to Handle was an album that could be played from start to finish without skipping a track, although soul fans had “Boogie Nights” and “Always and Forever” on repeat. Both tunes charted with “Boogie Nights” peaking at two on the pop charts and five on the R&B charts. “Always and Forever” peaked […]
SoulTracks Lost Gem: Finis Henderson got us to “Skip to My Lou”
I first heard Finis Henderson when he appeared as a guest vocalist on Bill Wolfer’s criminally underappreciated 1983 album, Wolf, but it wasn’t long after that Finis had his own Motown contract and a self-titled debut album, produced by Earth, Wind & Fire guitarist Al McKay, no less, and with contributions from Stevie Wonder. Unfortunately, […]
Lost Gem: Wayne Brady helped All-4-One’s Jamie Jones inspire us on “Don’t Stop”
Longtime SoulTrackers know that we feel that the quartet All-4-One created some of the best harmonies of the 90s and beyond (and they’re still recording great albums to this day). But fewer know that All-4-One lead singer Jamie Jones has also established himself as a top notch songwriter and producer, working with his production team The Heavyweights and delivering […]
SoulTracks Lost Gem: The Friends of Distinction outdid a Bread hit
One of the most likeable and vocally cohesive singing groups of the late 60s and early 70s, the Friends of Distinction are too often forgotten in retrospectives of that era, but their music has continued to live on. Formed by Harry Elston, Floyd Butler, Jessica Cleaves and Barbara Love in 1968, the group had a […]
SoulTracks Lost Gem: The Commodores are on “The Assembly Line” of Soul/R&B and…Hip-Hop?
“Let ’em COOK, yo- Let ’em COOK.” 1968: 6 young men at Tuskegee University form a band. 1969: they release their first 7-inch single on Atlantic Records. 1971-2, release two more singles on the experimental MoWest records, a Sunset and Vine-headquartered division of the larger Motown Records. Motown puts the young men in tour support of […]
SoulTracks Lost Gem- Luther Vandross’s FIRST chance to cover “Superstar”
We all know “Nobody could cover a song like Luther Vandross!” His singularly stylish updates of Dionne Warwick’s “A House Is Not A Home” and Leon Russell or The Carpenters’ “Superstar” are legendary. What if I told you that on “Superstar,” Luther had not just one, but TWO chances to perfect it? In 1978 the A&M label released Spinozza by Guitarist/Producer […]
Lost Gem: Marvin Gaye pays musical tribute to Tammi Terrell
In the annals of music history, few duos have touched so many hearts in such little time as Motown’s team of Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell. In just three years (1967-69) the two created a string of now iconic songs that not only shot to the top of charts, but have lived on both in […]
SoulTracks Lost Gem: The time that Aretha and Stevie recalled a classic
There are probably a few reasons why I’m addicted to music: one, my parents’ enviable and extensive vinyl collection and two, their introducing me to the magnificence of Motown and the aural awesomeness of Stevie Wonder. I knew from an early age that the man was able to pour heart into his melodies and turn […]
