In 1981, the R&B-funk group Kool & The Gang was at the top of the musical world. The members were in the third year of a decade run where it seemed everything they played shot to the top of the charts.
That year the group released Something Special, another hit album that featured a danceable Top 10 hit – here “Get Down On It” – as well as a basketful of catchy, party-ready jams. But buried near the end of the album was a melancholy song of love lost, and lead singer James JT Taylor, sold “No Show” with a heartfelt performance.
We waited for the perfect day / You and I would slip away /
Become one inside our dreams.
Oh, but I stood in the falling rain / You never showed, never came
I stood in the falling rain / You never showed, never came
No show
Anyone who has experienced rejection in love can relate to the feeling of the rain coming down on something you thought was real.
“No Show” was not a hit, but it was a strong deep cut from the Imperial Period of one of the great bands of the 1980s. And it is our latest SoulTracks Lost Gem.
By Chris Rizik
