Quinton Joseph (Part 1)

   "The R&B and Soul Music Drummer with a Signature Touch"

    The Chicago Years:

The legendary Quinton Joseph was born on 28^th August 1946 in the city of Chicago that is also affectionately known as the “Windy City”. He is one of the few studio musicians during the golden era of R&B and Soul music to have played on hit records from two cities that produced distinct signature sounds between the 1960s and the 1980s. 

The first million selling record that Joseph played on .
Performed Barbara Acklin.
She was also staff song writer at Brunswick Records

According to Ed Hogan of ALL Music, “Joseph absorbed a myriad of musical influences while growing up in his multi-cultural neighbourhood. As a child, he would beat out rhythms on cereal boxes and garbage cans. At about the age of ten his mother brought him a drum set to further develop his craft and techniques as a drummer while feasting on the “Windy City’s” rich musical diversity.” 

In his local neighbourhood he got involved with future in-demand session musicians who also made a name for themselves in the music industry in Chicago. These men became very close friends of Joseph; guitarist Danny Reed and bassist Bernard Reed. As a close unit they began playing for singer/songwriter Billy Butler, who was the brother of the legendary Jerry Butler (known as the “Ice Man”).

This was second million selling single that Joseph actually 
played drums, released by Brunswick Records in 1969.
The song was performed by the late Tyrone Davis
                                   

This led to the opportunity to work on the road with the The Artistics, from the Chicago branch of the once-mighty New York city Brunswick Records, best known for their Chicago soul classic hit of 1966 “I’m Gonna Miss You”  that sold almost a million copies in North America. With this success under their belt, they began to develop a reputation for being extremely tight which helped them become a much in-demand rhythm section, and their session work schedule increased tremendously as they started to support various local recording acts such as Jackie Wilson, The Chi-Lites, Major Lance, Gene Chandler and Tyrone Davis.

 

This was the second gold certified single of the
Davis' career. The entire album featured Joseph on
drums and the late Michael Jackson's sound engineer 

Bruce Swedien

The first million selling record that Joseph played on was Barbara Acklin’s gold single “Love Makes a Woman” released in 1968 on Brunswick Records. The following year , he played on Tyrone Davis’  first gold single of his career entitled “Can I Change My Mind” which charted and peaked at number-one on the Billboard Hot Soul Singles Chart on the 1^st February 1969

( 2 weeks ), preceded by “I Heard It the Grapevine” performed by the late Marvin Gaye. He repeated the same success with Davis on his second chart-topping single “Turn Back The Hands of Time”, Billboard Hot Soul Singles Chart number-one on the 2^nd May 1970

( 2 weeks ) which peaked at  number-three on the Billboard Hot 100 Singles Chart and became a million selling single in the process. He also played on the Billboard Hot Soul Singles Chart number-one single “Turning Point”, 7^th February 1976 (1week).

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                                   Mr K Tomlin Music Historian                   
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Gamble & Huff Signature Sound (Part 2)

                                       

                           Its Impact On Popular Culture Across The World

Gamble & Huff

The creative marriage of Philadelphia International Records and the Philadelphia Multicultural Affairs Congress a division of  Philadelphia Convention & Visitors Bureau is using the Philadelphia Sound hit instrumental “TSOP” “The Sound Of Philadelphia,” performed by MFSB the label’s studio band (which received a Grammy Award for “Best Instrumental”) as advertising campaign initiative and as a centre piece to attract visitors to its many places of cultural significant and for its many night life entertainment facilities across the city of Philadelphia and surrounding areas.

A music entertainment district location to brand the city of  Philadelphia as a destination for R&B disciples around the world on a pilgrimage tour of surrounding areas and the place where the legendary sound was created such as Sigma Sound Studios and Gamble-Huff Music studios, one of the R&B capitals of the world envision by Kenny Gamble.

In an interview conducted by the Philadelphia Business

Executive Vice President Chuck Gamble.

Journal, Chuck Gamble the nephew of Kenny Gamble co-creator Philadelphia Sound and co-owner of Philadelphia International Records, stated that “Our role is provide the music in our catalogue so the city can attract more people to Philadelphia,” said Chuck. “We want people to use all five senses and feel the beautiful aroma of the city. VOur music allows us to appeal to the emotions of people and to help bring people together.” “After all,” he added, “the Gap is using the O’ Jays to promote its products (in a recent advertising campaign). “Why shouldn’t Philadelphia?” .

On several occasions, Multicultural Affairs Congress has been organizing private and guided tours of the Gamble-Huff recording studio to key convention planners and travel trade potential customers to attract business travellers and leisure travellers to the city. According to 1999 statistic, Philadelphia was the third most visited American behind Los Angeles and New York. The spokesman for the Multicultural Affairs Congress, Joel Avery said, “The Multicultural tourism market, on a global basis, is a $90 billion industry.”


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                                         Mr K Tomlin Music Historian                   
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Gamble & Huff Signature Sound (Part 1 )

Its Impact On Popular Culture Across The World

Gamble & Huff
The original musical architects of  "The Sound of Philadelphia"

Gamble and Huff became known as the architect of the “Philadelphia Sound” with their business partner Thom Bell joint  owners of the Mighty Three Publishing company, a powerful brand that is heard every 13 minutes  some  where around the global on radio, movie soundtracks , television and in advertising campaigns according to Executive Vice President Chuck Gamble.

Thom Bell

These two individuals have celebrated over 40 years of creative partnership with the founding of their label; Philadelphia International Records base at 309 South Broad Street in the down town of Philadelphia next to the international known Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts were many performance have been conducted over many decades and also key centre for the cultural and entertainment community of Philadelphia.

Gamble and Huff, were recent receipts of the prestigious Ivor Novello Award presented on 25^th May 2006 by the British Academy of Composers & Songwriters in association with The Performance Right Society. Gamble and Huff also inducted into the Songwriters Hall Fame in New York in 1995.

As you look back to the 1989 when they received a Grammy award for “Best Rhythm & Blues Song” for “If You Don’t Know Me by Now” (performed by the group Simply Red) at 32^nd Annual Awards Ceremony. The song peaked at the number one position on the Billboard Hot 100 Singles Chart, 15^th July 1989

(1 week) and also peaked at number one on the Billboard Adult Contemporary Singles Chart, 24^th July 1989 (6 weeks).

Gamble and Huff are first R&B record producers to actually achieved R&B number ones over three decades starting from 1967 when they had first number one on the Billboard Soul and  R&B Singles chart listings for “Cowboys To Girls” Gamble 214 , 11^th May 1967 (1week) performed by The Intruders on the Gamble label jointly owned by Gamble and Huff. Their  last one number as producer and songwriters  was 20 years later for “Loving You”, Philadelphia International 50084  on the Billboard Soul and R&B Singles chart listings for 1 week on 7^th November 1987, performed the O’Jays

Philadelphia International Records is the second black record label behind Motown Records  to have achieved number one hit records on the  Billboard  Soul and R&B Singles listings  over three decades starting from 1972 to 1991 with the late  Phyllis Hyman’s only number one of entire career on 21^st September 1991, (1 week)14005 PIR /Zoo Entertainment, produced by Nick Martinelli with Gamble and Huff as executive producers.

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                                            Mr K Tomlin Music Historian                   
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Thom Bell. Important Creative Pillar of The Philly Soul Music (Part 4)

Key creative master mind behind the
“Philly Soul Sound”
and its success around the world. 

Dusty went on to have further success with Gamble and Huff, the original architects of the Philadelphia Sound, with arrangements by Thom Bell before he went independent from Philadelphia International Records to produce the Stylistics , the Detroit Spinners and Deniece Williams.

Dusty’s follow-up album, entitled “Brand New Me” in the US and “From Dusty with Love” in the UK, was produced in Philadelphia at the world famous Sigma Sound Studios, the recording base for the Philadelphia Sound. On this project Linda Creed made her debut as a songwriter with Thom Bell on the track “I Wanna Be a Free Girl”.

The first gold certified album in
America for The Stylistics .
 The album produced two gold
singles in same year in 1972.
The entire album was arranged,conducted
and produced by
Thom Bell.

Both went on to have tremendous success as creative collaborators with several million-selling records such as “Betcha By Golly, Wow “, “You Are Everything” from the self titled album “The Stylistics ” and “Break Up To Make Up” from the second gold album, entitled “Round 2″ for The Stylistics. Bell has received two Grammy Awards and numerous BMI accolades including 11 Pop Awards with a total 16 “Million-Air” certificates for 10 songs with one million or more board cast performances on radio and other outlets.
On two occasions Bell has been honoured by Billboard with their Number One Producer award. With continue recognition for his outstanding achievements to the American music industry. His peers at The Songwriters Hall of Fame inducted him on the 24th June 2006 in New York City.

Most of hit records produced by Gamble & Huff from the mid 1960s to the early 1970s had the signature arrangements of Thom Bell. He’s contribution to the whole develop of the sound was key to the tremendous success it has achieved over the last three decades. His contribution to the world of popular music has had an incredible influence on many of his peers and successors. His impact has been felt all around the world.

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Thom Bell. Important Creative Pillar of The Philly Soul Music (Part 3)

Thom Bell in recent time had successful collaboration with Joss Stone on her multi-platinum album “Mind,

Joss Stone's multi-platinum and UK Pop
number one album

Body & Soul”, which debuted at number one on the UK Pop album charts in 2004. He conducted the string arrangement on the track “Spoiled”, which sees Stone co-writing with the legendary Lamont Dozier and his son Beau Dozier.

The legendary Miami R&;B rhythm section, consisting of Timmy Thomas (organ), Willie “Little Beaver” Hale (guitar) and Benny Latimore(keyboards, piano), played on this session at the famous Hit Factory/Criteria Studios, where Aretha Franklin recorded her “Young Gifted and Black” gold album in the early 1970s, co-produced by Jerry Wexler, Tom Dowd and Arif Mardin, the same producers as on the late Dusty Springfield’s album “Dusty In Memphis”.

The late Dusty Springfield’s 1968 hit “Son of a Preacher Man” was a soulful example of the impact rhythm and blues had on a vast white audience. Springfield’s first album on Atlantic Records recorded in Memphis made use of some of the same musicians and background vocalists as Aretha Franklin and Wilson Pickett used on some their classic recordings. Son of a Preacher Man” achieved Pop top 10 in the UK  and US chart listings.
                                   
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Thom Bell. Important Creative Pillar of The Philly Soul Music Sound (Part 2)

This is another way of using media exposure to market a re-released single from the height of the Philadelphia Sound era, which UK-based label Southern Fried Records used effectively to give the single a good start on the road to success.

“Thom Bell Session”, performed by
Elton John which features the
UK Pop number one hit single
“Are You Ready For Love”.
Arranged, conducted and
produced By Thom Bell

Out of that same project during the late 1970s, John obtained a gold single certification for one million copies sold according to RIAA (Record Industry Association of America) for “Mama Can’t Buy You Love “(co-written by Leroy Bell and Casey James, a black and white song-writing team contacted to Mighty Three Music Publishing Company).

The single peaked at number one on the US Pop Adult Contemporary Charts week-ending  25th August 1979 for one week and also received a Gammy nomination for Best R&;B Vocal Performance, Male in 1979. Such projects may reawaken people’s interest in good quality of the "Philly Soul Souud".


“Thom Bell Session” recording project was performed by Elton John which features the UK Pop number one hit single “Are You Ready For Love”. Arranged, conducted and produced By Thom Bell



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Thom Bell. Important Creative Pillar of The Philly Soul Music (Part 1)

Thom Bell one of the key architect of
“The Sound of Philadelphia” 

Thom Bell became known as one of the main architect of the “Philadelphia Sound”, a powerful brand that is heard every 13 minutes somewhere around the global on radio, movie soundtracks, and television and in advertising campaigns according to Executive Vice President Chuck Gamble.Advertising agencies in Madison Avenue have acknowledged the tremendous power of Thom Bell’s music published by the “Mighty Three Publishing Company”, jointly owned by Gamble, Huff and Bell himself.

Two compositions by Bell have been selected as the theme for the multi-million dollar advertising campaign for auto maker General Motors, for their Chevy Impala. The slogan “I’ll Be Around” was popularized by the Detroit Spinners.

The front entrance of the Mighty Three Music
Publishing house. 

In the 21st century, Elton John’s corporate alliance with Sky Sport television has produced a UK football  
Premiership commercial, using a single dating from 1977, when it was produced by Thom Bell for the album entitled “Thom Bell Sessions.”The track which was used as advertisement campaign was entitled “Are You Ready for Love?” The single peaked at number one on the UK Pop single chart, occupying that position for two weeks in August 2004.The track sold over 50,000 copies  first week at number one on the UK Official Singles Chart. The single also achieved the number one position on the US Billboard Dance Chart listings for one week.
                                        
                                         Researched and compiled by               
                                         Mr K Tomlin Music Historian                   
                                        ©RCM Music/Signaturesoundsonline2013-2014