R&B Legends the O'Jays Still Riding "Love Train"

[Zoneboy]

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LOS ANGELES (Billboard) - "Give the People What They Want" is just one of the O'Jays' many signature hits.

But its message also doubles as the secret behind the trio's 50-year career. In that time, the O'Jays have sung their way to legendary status thanks to such hits as "Back Stabbers," "Love Train," "For the Love of Money," and "Used Ta Be My Girl."

Anchored by Eddie Levert's raw, fervent vocals and Walter Williams' suave, oasis-cool tones, the O'Jays have kept folks sweating on the dancefloor and in the bedroom. And while the death in 1977 of original member William Powell left an irreplaceable void, the group has continued to uplift the soul with talented assistance from singers Sammy Strain, Nathaniel Best and current member Eric Nolan Grant.

Still a live draw, the group spends about half the year on the road, according to co-manager Roz Ryan. "Walt and Eddie's stamina at 60-plus years is better than most young people's."

Levert, 65, and Williams, 64, credit their success to three main factors: their God-given voices, their fortuitous pairing with songwriter/producers Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff, and the tutelage of Motown choreographer Charles "Cholly" Atkins.

Giving each other space has also helped, says Williams (who lives in Cleveland, while Levert lives in Las Vegas).

"We have a long friendship but it's not like we like each other every day. Sometimes it's like World War III because we don't agree on everything and neither one of us is afraid to express that. It's not totally about me and Eddie knows it's not totally about him. That's probably the glue that's kept us together all these years: giving each other the right to be who you are."

SCHOOL DAYS

In the beginning, five McKinley High friends decided to form a vocal group in 1958 in Canton, Ohio: Levert, Williams, Powell, Bobby Massey and Bill Isles.

"In those days, the school hallways and the men's room walls were marble," recalls Williams, who first met Levert when he was 6 and Levert was 7. "Those walls gave off a kind of echo and our harmonies sounded real good. We used to flirt with the girls and sing instead of study. That's where it all started."

Then known as the Triumphs, the quintet sang on local radio and also in the church choir where Williams' father was the choir director.

The son of a local Greek grocer heard the guys harmonizing one day as they were passing by the store and later arranged for the group to go to Cincinnati where King Records' Sid Nathan gave the high school juniors contracts and renamed them the Mascots.

They were invited to do a sock hop in Cleveland where they met DJ Eddie O'Jay. He later took the group to Detroit where it signed with Dayco Records. The Dayco single "How Does It Feel," did well locally. It was during this period that the group, referred to now as "O'Jay's boys," was rechristened the O'Jays.

After moving to Los Angeles, the O'Jays earned their first national R&B hit (No. 28) with "Lipstick Traces (On a Cigarette)" in 1965. The following year, they reached No. 12 on the R&B chart with "Stand In for Love," and scored their first top 10 hit in 1967 with "I'll Be Sweeter Tomorrow (Than I Was Today)." By this time, Isles had left the group.

Returning to Cleveland, the O'Jays got busy honing their craft on the chitlin' circuit. Among the patrons who caught several of the O'Jays' performances was a young songwriter/producer named Kenny Gamble.

"Eddie's voice and the harmony he had with Walter, it just attracted me," Gamble recalls. "When Huff and I started producing records, the O'Jays was one of the acts I thought we could write for. They had the delivery to execute great songs."

MILLION-SELLER

Collaborating with Gamble & Huff and a stable of writers that included McFadden & Whitehead, Thom Bell and Bunny Sigler, the O'Jays copped their first million-selling single, "Back Stabbers" (No. 1 R&B, No. 3 pop), in 1972 and a gold album by the same name. (The group had become a trio a year earlier when Massey opted to become a record producer).

"That groundbreaking song opened the door for the O'Jays," says Levert. "I was amazed at the process -- starting out hearing it only on the piano with Gamble & Huff, then going to a full orchestra. Gamble & Huff hit on what the O'Jays like to do, a soulful hootenanny mixing our gospel background with the Philly sound; a pop edge with gospel on the bottom."

Williams adds, "We benefited also by having two lead singers in the group. Eddie could take a verse or two and then me; we play off each other. William was the tenor, I was the baritone/bass who could sing anything else, and Eddie was the lead who could also sing anything else. Hearing that plus our gospel flair, Gamble & Huff wrote toward that, coming up with very creative and powerful songs."

A seemingly endless string of hits -- party funk, ballads, socially conscious missives -- followed during the next 15 years, including "Love Train," "Put Your Hands Together," "For the Love of Money," "Message in Our Music," "Forever Mine" and "Lovin' You." But then tragedy struck. Powell died of cancer in 1977. Three singers have since stepped in: Sammy Strain from Little Anthony & the Imperials, Nathaniel Best and current member Eric Nolan Grant, who joined the group in 1995.

Leaving Gamble & Huff's Philadelphia International label after the top five R&B hit "Let Me Touch You," the O'Jays signed with EMI.

Several more R&B hits ensued, including "Have You Had Your Love Today," "Don't Let Me Down," "Keep On Lovin' Me" and a gospel-flavored cover of Bob Dylan's "Emotionally Yours." The trio also recorded a holiday album, 1991's "Home for Christmas."

Beyond the career-building songs of Gamble & Huff and their vocal prowess, another O'Jays mainstay has been their energetic concert performances. For this, they credit late Tony Award-winning dancer and Motown choreographer Cholly Atkins, who put the guys through rigorous rehearsals starting in 1973.

"His words still echo in our minds," Levert says. "'You may get a hit record today, but a hit act lasts forever.' And the O'Jays are a true testament of that."

Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2005, the O'Jays have also moonlighted on separate projects. Levert teamed with his late son Gerald on one album and has recorded a solo album. Williams is currently mixing a solo album of pop and R&B classics while Grant, a former background singer with ex-Temptations member Dennis Edwards, is working on a film about his musical journey. It's slated to start shooting this summer.

Separate ventures aside, the O'Jays always come back together. In 2003, the group appeared in the 2003 movie "The Fighting Temptations" with Beyonce Knowles. Upcoming group projects include another holiday album, a live concert DVD taped at the Apollo and the June 7 taping of a PBS Philadelphia International special. Coming to stores June 10 is the newly expanded compilation "The Essential O'Jays."

Reuters/Billboard

[Ireneparalegal]

The O'Jays are DA BOMB!!!! I can't stand groups that travel around and pretend to be the original groups, but really aren't. They MAY have one original member, but that is an expection. The O'Jays are one of my fave groups of all time.

[AB]

^ Fantastic group!