Philadelphia Soul!

ja_music · 07-21-2009, 10:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Neapolitan

I don't post a lot in this section, I'm not into Contemporary R&B, one style of Soul I really like but hardly gets mentioned is Philadelphia Soul. Most of the vocal groups, songwriters, musicians came from and recorded in Philadelphia in the late 60's arly 70's, actually Philly Soul really influence a lot of groups, and musical styles that came after it, like Disco, boy bands of the 80s. It did get some recognition in 2008 when Kenny Gamble & Leon Huff were inducted in the Rock n Roll HoF. I am glad they got they got noticed, I really don't know how popular those old vocal groups from Philadelphia are, like The Del-fonics, Horlad Melvin and the Blue Notes, Blue Magic.

Strictly speaking the Chi-lites are from Chicago. And artist like Todd Rundgren and Hall & Oates are sometimes considered Philadelphia Soul, but I don't, it's just because they come from the area, imo vocal groups are the real deal when it comes to Philly Soul.

just a side note, I thought the thread "Northern Soul" was going to talk about Soul in the northern cities of the US, I was slightly disappointed when I found out it wasn't, so this one is dedicated to you R-T.

Great post. Those are some of my all time favourite songs. I grew up on this stuff. Glad that Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. They have written and produced some great songs.

Like yourself, I am unable to relate to contemporary R&B. There are a few great R&B singers that I do like but they don't get alot of exposure.

VEGANGELICA · 06-01-2010, 06:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by right-track

Funnily enough the Philly Sound has a big place in the Northern Soul scene Neapolitan.
The music coming out of Philadelphia from the mid to late 60's in particular was astounding.
Here's 3 of my favourite Philly acts;

Cindy Scott in particular. She began singing and writing her own songs as young as 14.

I was intrigued by the information that Cindy Scott was writing and singing songs at age 14, so I decided to try to learn more about what makes some of her music "Philadelphia Soul." The Youtube video you posted last year ago isn't active now, so I don't know which song it was.

I did find out that Cindy Scott (real name Sundray Tucker) was raised in Philadelphia, where Philly soul music had "funk influences and lush instrumental arrangements, often featuring sweeping strings and piercing horns," and often a glockenspiel in the background (Wikipedia).

So, I decided to try to find a Cindy Scott song that I think has the Philly soul sound. I'd also like to be sure I can distinguish it from the Northern soul sound.

Sundray Tucker - If it was me. Now, I can definitely hear the "disco" in this song, and it has strings...and some bells. Is *this* Philly soul?

Cindy Scott and the Cousins - What are you doin' to me? Now, I don't think this is Philly soul. I don't know what it is. Her voice in this song reminds me of Cyndi Lauper, though.

Of the three, this is my favorite, probably because I like Cyndi Lauper.

Cindy Scott - I love you baby. Now, I think this is Northern soul. Is that correct? It kind of has a bouncy, dancy beat, and I can imagine those Japanese dancers spinning around to this song.

right-track · 06-01-2010, 07:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by VEGANGELICA

Cindy Scott - I love you baby. Now, I think this is Northern soul. Is that correct? It kind of has a bouncy, dancy beat, and I can imagine those Japanese dancers spinning around to this song.

A solid Northern Soul standard along with the flip side 'In Your Spare Time', which is worth a listen if you like the A-side.

Philly soul has it's own distinctive sound which changed through the 60's into the 70's.
My attraction with Philly centres on the 60's sound and the upbeat tunes associated with the Northern Soul scene.
If it's fast paced and danceable, as a rule of thumb...it's 'Northern'. (More so if it's rare).

What you have to understand is that the term "Northern Soul" was coined to describe the kind of 60's R&B favoured in the soul clubs of northern England and has no bearing on the musics original locality.

Nice to see you're developing a taste for this brand of soul music Vegan.

VEGANGELICA · 06-01-2010, 07:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by right-track

A solid Northern Soul standard along with the flip side 'In Your Spare Time', which is worth a listen if you like the A-side.

Philly soul has it's own distinctive sound which changed through the 60's into the 70's.
My attraction with Philly centres on the 60's sound and the upbeat tunes associated with the Northern Soul scene.
If it's fast paced and danceable, as a rule of thumb...it's 'Northern'. (More so if it's rare).

What you have to understand is that the term "Northern Soul" was coined to describe the kind of 60's R&B favoured in the soul clubs of northern England and has no bearing on the musics original locality.

Nice to see you're developing a taste for this brand of soul music Vegan.

Thanks for the info, right-track. I was able to listen to "In Your Spare Time" and can definitely hear the bouncy, danceable beat and mood the song has, making it "Northern."

What was the song by Cindy Scott that you felt is more representative of Philly soul?

right-track · 06-02-2010, 11:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by VEGANGELICA

What was the song by Cindy Scott that you felt is more representative of Philly soul?

Not sure I said it represented Philly Soul as such. What you feel represents it rather depends on your experience of Philly Soul.

To paraphrase your quote of wiki, "funk influences and lush instrumental arrangements, often featuring sweeping strings and piercing horns," and often a glockenspiel in the background (Wikipedia).... in my opinion, describes Philly Soul in the 70's and not the R&B of the 60's that interests me.

Long story short, they all do.

And to answer your question Vegan. I can't remember which vid I originally posted, but the chances are it was probably 'I Love You Baby'.

VEGAN...I can do you a compilation from my own collection of Philadelphia Soul artists between 64 and 68 if you're interested?

VEGANGELICA · 06-02-2010, 01:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by right-track

VEGAN...I can do you a compilation from my own collection of Philadelphia Soul artists between 64 and 68 if you're interested?

Yes, that would be very nice, right-track. Thank you for offering!

right-track · 06-02-2010, 02:17 PM

I'll send the link via PM VEGAN. Edit: Just to point out that the artists in the comp are pretty obscure and contain non of the artists named in VB's previous post.

If there's any particular Northern Soul songs you'd like to have, just let me know.
There's a good chance I've got it on one format or another.

VEGANGELICA · 06-03-2010, 03:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by right-track

I'll send the link via PM VEGAN. Edit: Just to point out that the artists in the comp are pretty obscure and contain non of the artists named in VB's previous post.

If there's any particular Northern Soul songs you'd like to have, just let me know.
There's a good chance I've got it on one format or another.

Thank you right-track! Heh heh - I know so little about soul that I'm pretty sure the artists you include in the compilation will seem no more obscure (to me) than many of those in this thread who are considered famous!

VEGANGELICA · 06-03-2010, 01:07 PM

LATER:

Here is my favorite of the songs you sent: Cindy Gibson's "I'll Always Love You." I especially like the guitar intro and the sadness of the song, which sounds fairly upbeat until you listen to the lyrics. I posted a YouTube video below.

I asked this by PM, but might as well ask here: is this sub-genre dominated by women singers? Most of the songs in the compilation were sung by women. I'm curious if this was true overall for this area of soul. So many music genres seem to be dominated by male rather than female singers that I'm interested in learning where women, especially in the past, found a niche or helped shape a genre quite a bit.

Cindy Gibson - "I'll Always Love You."

MAStudent · 07-08-2011, 10:20 AM

Boys 2 Men also from philadelphia, though modern sound, same old street corner harmonizing

06-02-2010, 02:17 PM	#17 (permalink)
right-track Atchin' Akai Join Date: May 2005 Location: Unamerica Posts: 8,723	I'll send the link via PM VEGAN. Edit: Just to point out that the artists in the comp are pretty obscure and contain non of the artists named in VB's previous post. If there's any particular Northern Soul songs you'd like to have, just let me know. There's a good chance I've got it on one format or another. Last edited by right-track; 06-02-2010 at 02:23 PM.

07-08-2011, 10:20 AM	#20 (permalink)
MAStudent Music Addict Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Eureka, CA Posts: 87	Boys 2 Men also from philadelphia, though modern sound, same old street corner harmonizing __________________ "i think that's the real issue right there. first they tell us that there's no such thing as a brontosaurus, and then they tell us that pluto isn't a planet. i think after those two let-downs most americans have just decided "frag scientists." "- oops, I forgot who I quoted. adolescent something?