Lets hear it for sweet 70's SOUL music * it's solid *

oh man curtis mayfield got me into 70's soul. the superfly album is full of tasty grooves. it flows so nicely too.
R.I.P. curtis

 

You got a pretty good list, I would add:

Marvin Gaye
Billy Paul
Otis Redding
Curtis Mayfield
Stevie Wonder
Ray Charles
Temptations

Yep, I'm an old geezer. I love that **** too. IMO, some of the best bass lines you'll ever hear come from the old Motown stuff; great vocals and vocal harmonies too. You might want to check out Standing in the Shadows of Motown, if you haven't already.

 

Also:
The Commodores
Earth Wind and Fire
The Ohio Players
The Spinners
The O-Jays
LaBelle

You may also want to look for some Funk compilation records with lots of stuff from different artists.

 

Are you sure? I didn't know Jerry Butler did a version. I know of Luther Ingram's version only.

 

Check out the Chi-Lites "Have you seen her"
Anything by Curtis Mayfield is the sh*t.
Also a must, The Spinners, Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes (Teddy Pendergrass' band), Johnny "guitar" Watson, The Barkays and Rufus.
The 70's was indeed rich with melody!

 

Now I know James Ingram and I know Luther Vandros, but I never heard of Luther Ingram.. Who be that?

 

Clarence Carter
Solomon Burke
Donny Hathaway
Joe Tex
Wilson Pickett
Ray Charles
Sam Cooke
Jackie Wilson
Little Milton


(Though some of these guys were a bit more popular in the 60's)

 

I'm not so sure about Jerry Butler either; however it's possible, that song has been recorded by people such as:
Luther Ingram
Bobby "Blue" Bland
Isaac Hayes

Even Tom Jones, Rod Stewart, and Barbara Mandrell did versions of it.

 

...love how this tune was used in A Very Brady Sequel.


More-
The Temptations' '70s output with producer Norman Whitfield(Cloud Nine, Psychedelic Shack etc).
Definitely Aretha Franklin with either Chuck Rainey or Jerry Jemmont(e.g. Young, Gifted, & Black...very cool cover of "The Long & Winding Road").
Roberta Flack & Donny Hathaway("Where Is The Love"? Rainey, again).

EARLY releases by-
Sly
Mandrill
Santana
AWB
Brothers Johnson
Earth, Wind, & Fire
Tower Of Power


Singles-
Gladys Knight-"If I Were Your Woman"
King Floyd-"Groove Me"
Cornelius Brothers & Sister Rose-"Treat Her Like A Lady"
Mel & Tim-"Backfield In Motion"
Friends Of Distinction-"Grazin' In The Grass"

 

Wrote that on another thread, so I copied it doesn't work for the seventies per se, but sure works for the 60's. And there are some funky tunes there to get into.

I liked the Stevie Wonder stuff, Reggae Woman,
10,000 Light years away' or what ever the title was on that Feel it, feel the spirit song.

Thor

 

I don't think anyone has mentioned the Meters yet. Them and the Ohio players would definently have to be my favorites.

If you're interested in a good sampling of the many greats and lesser-known artists of that era check out "Shaolin Soul." Its a cd (not available in US stores) that takes all the great songs from the era that have been subsequently sampled by today's rap producers.

Peace

 

Oh yeah another great 70's band was the Whispers. They were the best at the love ballads.
Ditto on the Meters.

 

Now '70 soul was REAL music! Todays techno pop and so called R'n'B is so artificial and severely lacks the human touch that is so present in music from the 70's. However, whenever I hear today's radio music and think "that's not music" I must admit at the same time that my parents used the exact same words for the music that I grew up with!

I heard '70's icon Chaka Khan put it best when asked what the major difference was between the music scene nowadays compared to 25 years ago. Her answer: "back in the day, you needed a certain talent and proficiency on a musical instrument to make a record. Now everyone and their mother can make a record"!

 

Bass player quiz for ya? Can you guess who played bass for most of the vocal groups on the Solar record label? Hint: He was the oldest family member of a disco singing group!

 

If you don't know, you probably weren't alive back then(early 70's). He was literally a one hit wonder who sang "If Loving You Is Wrong (I Don't Wanna Be Right)" There's been mention of other versions but I've been diggin' R&B, Funk & Soul music since the late 60's and I've never heard any other radio aired versions.

 

Well I was alive and well in the 70's but your never to old to learn something new. So there is a Luther Ingram... I know the song very well (the barkays covered it as well). Any realtion to James?
Hell I just learned this past year who did Bad Mamajama, I had always thought it was Stevie but it was Carl Carlton.
Peace

 

Assumes Casey Kasem voice:

"That would be Leon Sylvers III, formerly of the The Sylvers. Ironically, the bass player on perhaps that group's biggest hit "Boogie Fever" was none other than James Jamerson."

James also played on one of my favorite early 70's smooth-soul songs: "Show and Tell" by Al Wilson

 

Don't forget the organ gods:

Jimmy Smith - Root Down
Jimmy McGriff - Electric Funk

or more modern, but the same idea:

Robert Walter's 20th Century Congress - Money Shot

or on a video game:

Interstate 76 - Soundtrack

These are all great examples of greasy funk!

(love the thread, btw)