Formed in the Watts section of Los Angeles, California, USA in 1964, soul group the Whispers were originally comprised of Nicholas Caldwell (5 April 1944, Loma Linda, California, USA), twin brothers Wallace and Walter Scott (b. 23 September 1943, Fort Worth, Texas, USA), Marcus Hutson (b. 8 January 1943, St. Louis, Missouri, USA) and Gordy Harmon. The group recorded its firs
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Formed in 1969, US vocalists Tiemeyer McCain, Thomas Oliver Shelby, Otis Stokes and Mark Woods were augmented by an instrumental unit comprising Steve Shockley (guitar), Norman Beavers (keyboards), Marvin Craig (bass), Fred Alexander (drums) and Fred Lewis (percussion). Originally based in Dayton, Ohio, USA, this funk group secured its first hit in 1978 with ‘It’s All
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Bobby Harris masterminded the formation of the Dazz Band in the late 70s when he combined two Cleveland funk outfits, Bell Telefunk and the Kinsman Grill house band. The result was an eight-piece line-up, with Harris, Pierre DeMudd and Skip Martin III handling horns and vocals, and Eric Fearman (guitar), Kevin Frederick (keyboards), Kenny Pettus (percussion), Michael Wiley (bas
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James Ambrose Johnson, 1 February 1948, Buffalo, New York, USA, d. 6 August 2004, Los Angeles, California, USA. The nephew of Temptations vocalist Melvin Franklin, James pioneered a crossover style between R&B and rock in the mid-60s. Having fled to Canada after going AWOL from the US Naval Reserve, in 1965 he formed the Mynah Birds with two future members of the Buffalo
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Formed in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, in 1977, the S.O.S. Band enjoyed a long run of hits on the US R&B charts during the 80s. The group originally consisted of Mary Davis (vocals, keyboards), Jason ‘T.C.’ Bryant (keyboards), Billy R. Ellis (saxophone) and James Earl Jones III (drums). They performed regularly, as Sounds Of Santa Monica, at Lamar’s Regal Room in A
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The core of this long-standing soul group, Eddie LeVert (16 June 1942, Birmingham, Alabama, USA) and Walter Williams (b. 25 August 1942, USA), sang together as a gospel duo prior to forming the Triumphs in 1958. This doo-wop-influenced quintet was completed by William Powell (b. 20 January 1942, USA, d. 26 May 1977), Bill Isles and Bobby Massey and quickly grew popular aroun
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Formed in Dayton, Ohio, USA, this multi-talented unit originated from four members of the Ohio Untouchables, saxophonists Ralph ‘Pee Wee’ Middlebrooks and Clarence ‘Satch’ Satchell, bass player Marshall Jones and guitarist Leroy ‘Sugarfoot’ Bonner. The Ohio Untouchables forged a reputation as a powerful instrumental group by providing the backing t
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b 1 July 1960, the Bronx, New York City, New York, USA. A former office cleaner at Gamble And Huff’s Sigma Sound studios, King was overheard singing Sam Cooke’s ‘A Change Is Gonna Come’ by Theodore Life, a member of the company’s writing and production staff. He coached the aspiring singer on recording technique and was instrumental in preparing King
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This act was created by Dick Griffey, booking agent for US television’s Soul Train show, and Simon Soussan, a veteran of UK’s northern soul scene. The latter produced ‘Uptown Festival’, a medley of popular Motown Records favourites, which was issued on Griffey’s Solar label. Although credited to ‘Shalamar’, the track featured session musicians
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This US soul/funk act, originally called the New York City Players, was formed in 1974 by Larry ‘Mr. B’ Blackmon (New York City, New York, USA; drums, vocals) and vocalists Tomi Jenkins and Nathan Leftenant. Building up a strong following by undergoing rigorous touring schedules, with their backing group at times numbering almost a dozen members, they signed with t
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