SEPTEMBER 30 - OCTOBER 6, 2009 UCW 13
WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM
Sing, Baby, Sing With The Stylistics
a STAFF REPORT
If the smooth sounds of Philly street groups call you back to your
youth, you're not going to want to miss this. The Stylistics will perform
on stage at the Givens Performing Arts Center, located on the campus
of the University of North Carolina at Pembroke, on Friday, Oct. 2 at
8 p.m.
The Stylistics were one of the most successful bands of the 1970s,
with their smooth soul ballads
immortalizing the Philly Sound.The
Stylistics formed in Philadelphia,
Penn., from two groups, The
Percussions and The Monarchs. They
scored 12 successive top 10 hits,
including "Betcha by Golly Wow,"
"I'm Stone in Love With You," "You
Make Me Feel Brand New," "You
Are Everything," "Let's Put It All
Together," "Sing Baby Sing" and "I
Can't Give You Anything (But My
Love)."
The group formed in 1968, and
featured lead singer Russell Thompkins
Jr., Herbie Murrell, Airrion Love,
James Smith and James Dunn. The
group was produced by Thom Bell,
who worked with a number of the
Philly groups.
In 1970, the group recorded
"You're a Big Girl Now," a song their
road manager Marty Bryant co-wrote
with Robert Douglas, a member of their
backing band Slim and the Boys, and the single became a regional hit for
Sebring Records. Producer Bill Perry spent $400 to record the number
in the Virtue Studios in Philadelphia, with the single climbing to No. 7 in
1971.
The Stylistics' smooth sound also found an easier path onto adult
contemporary airwaves than other soul artists, and the group made
Billboard magazine's Easy Listening singles chart 12 times from 1971
to 1976, with three entries ("Betcha by Golly, Wow," "You Make Me
Feel Brand New" and "You'll
Never Get to Heaven (If You
Break My Heart)") reaching
the Top 10. Every single
that Bell produced for the
Stylistics was a Top Ten R&B
hit, and several — "You Are
Everything," "Betcha by
Golly Wow!," "I'm Stone in
Love with You," "Break Up
to Make Up," and
"You Make Me Feel Brand
New" — were also Top
Ten pop chart hits. This
commercial success was not
confined only to the U.S.,
with the band also having
big hits with this material
throughout Europe.
Tickets for the event
range in price from $12
to $28. Tickets for UNC-
Pembroke students are
$5 and faculty or staff are
$15. For more information, visit the Web site at www.uncp.edu/gpac/
nostalgia or call the box office at 910.521.6287.
