JANICE'S BLUES ALLEY PRESENTS
The CHI-LITES
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One of the most popular smooth soul groups of the early '70s didn't hail from Philadelphia or Memphis, the two cities known for sweet, string-laden soul. Instead, the Chi-Lites were from Chicago, a town better known for its gritty urban blues and driving R & B. Led by vocalist Eugene Record, the Chi-Lites had a lush, creamy sound distinguished by their four-part harmonies and layered productions. During the early '70s, they racked up 11 Top Ten R & B singles, ranging from the romantic ballads "Have You Seen Her" and "Oh Girl" to protest songs like "(For God's Sake) Give More Power to the People" and "There Will Never Be Any Peace (Until God Is Seated at the Conference Table)." All the songs featured Record's warm, pleading tenor and falsetto, and the majority of the group's hits were written by Record, often in collaboration with other songwriters like Barbara Acklin.
The Chi-Lites had been around for nearly a decade before they finally had a hit in the late '60s. Eugene Record, Robert Lester, and Clarence Johnson formed the doo wop group the Chanteurs in the late '50s, and they released one single on Renee Records in 1959. Shortly afterward, Creadel "Red" Jones and Marshall Thompson, who had sung with the Desideros, teamed with the trio to form the Hi-Lites. Over the next four years, the Hi-Lites released a number of singles on local labels. In 1964, they changed their name to Marshall & the Chi-Lites, adding the "C" as tribute to their hometown Chicago. By the end of the year, Johnson left the group and the remaining quartet truncated their name to the Chi-Lites. Over the next four years, the group continued to perform and release independent singles, with Record slowly emerging as the group's lead singer, songwriter, and producer.
In 1968, the Chi-Lites signed with the large Chicago indie label Brunswick Records, and early the following year "Give It Away" became their first national hit single, reaching number ten on the R & B charts. Despite the moderate success of "Let Me Be the Man My Daddy Was," the group wasn't able to deliver another big hit until "Are You My Woman? (Tell Me So)" climbed into the R & B Top Ten in early 1971, beginning a string of ten Top Ten hits that ran intermittently over the next four years. The follow-up to "Are You My Woman?," "(For God's Sake) Give More Power to the People," was their first pop hit, setting the stage for a pair of slow, soulful ballads, "Have You Seen Her" and "Oh Girl," which both reached number one on the R & B charts; the latter was a number-one pop hit, as well. in the spring of 1972.
Shortly after the release of the hit "Stoned Out of My Mind," the Chi-Lites began to splinter in 1973, when Jones left the group and was replaced by Stanley Anderson, who was quickly replaced by Willie Kensey. The revamped lineup had three Top Ten R & B hits -- "Homely Girl," "There Will Never Be Any Peace (Until God Is Seated at the Conference Table)," and "Toby" -- before they replaced Kensey with Doc Roberson.
Shortly afterward, Brunswick became involved in serious financial problems, which prevented the label from promoting the group's record. Frustrated, Record left the band to become a solo recording artist for Warner Bros. The remaining trio, augmented by David Scott and Danny Johnson (who was replaced by Vandy Hampton in 1977), signed with Mercury, but none of their singles were hits.
The original lineup of the Chi-Lites re-formed in 1980, and the group began recording for Eugene Record's label, Chi-Sound. Although their first singles were more successful than their Mercury Records, they didn't have a genuine hit until 1982, when "Hot on a Thing (Called Love)" reached number 15. The following year, they moved to Larc Records, where they had their final Top Ten hit with "Bottoms Up." Late that year, Creadel Jones retired and the group continued to tour as a trio throughout the remainder of the decade. Record left the group in 1990 to record as a solo artist. He was replaced by Anthony Watson. By the early '90s, Jones had re-joined the group, and this version of the Chi-Lites became a regular on the oldies and soul circuit during the '90s.
-- by Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
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01. Give It Away 02. Let Me Be The Man My Daddy Was 03. My Whole World Ended 04. I Heard It Through The Grapevine 05. What Do I wish For 06. That’s My Baby For You |
07. I’m Gonna Make You Love Me 08. You’re No Longer Part Of My Heart 09. 24 Hours Of Sadness 10. To Change My Love 11. The Twelfth Of Never |
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01. Are You My Woman 02. Troubles A-Coming 03. 24 Hours Of Sadness 04. The Twelfth Of Never 05. Let Me Be The Man My Daddy Was 06. I Like Your Lovin’ (do you like mine) |
07. I’m Gonna Make You Love Me 08. Give It Away 09. My Whole World Ended 10. You’re No Longer Part Of My Heart 11. Price Of Love 12. Baby It’s Time |
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01. Yes, I’m Ready (if I don’t get to go) 02. We Are Neighbors 03. I Want To Pay You Back 04. Have You Seen Her? 05. For God’s Sake (give more power to the people) |
06. Love Uprising 07. Troubles A-Coming 08. You Got Me Walkin’ 09. What Do I Wish For |
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01. Oh Girl 02. Living In The Footsteps Of Another Man 03. Love Is 04. Being In Love |
05. A Lonely Man 06. A Man And A Woman 07. Ain’t Too Much Of Nothing 08. Inner City Blues |
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01. A Letter To Myself 02. Too Late To Turn Back Now 03. Just Two Teenage Kids (still in love) 04. Sally 05. Someone Else’s Arms |
06. We Need Order 07. Love Comes In All Sizes 08. My Heart Just Keeps On Breaking 09. You Smiled The Same Old Way |
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01. Homely Girl 02. Go Away Dream 03. Too Good To Be Forgotten 04. I Found Sunshine 05. I Never Had It So Good |
06. Marriage License 07. I Forgot To Say I Love You Till I’m Gone 08. One Man Band (plays all alone) 09. Bet You’ll Never Be Sorry 10. Stoned Out Of My Mind |
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01. Half A Love 02. Here I Am 03. When Temptation Comes 04. It’s Time For Love 05. Take A Trip To The Islands 06. I’m Not A Gambler 07. Love Me |
08. Love Is Gone 09. My Baby Loves Me 10. Price Of Love 11. Baby It’s Time 12. You Don’t Have To Go 13. The Devil Is Doing His Work 14. Don’t Burn No Bridges |
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01. Toby 02. You Got To Be The One 03. The Sound Of Lonely 04. The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face 05. There will Never Be Any Peace |
06. That’s How Long 07. Happiness Is Your Middle Name 08. I Lied 09. I Like To Live The Love That I Sing About 10. Getting’ On Outta Town |
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01. Heavenly Body 02. Strung Out 03. Round And Round 04. Love Shock |
05. Have You Seen Her? 06. All I Wanna Do Is Make Love To You 07. Give Me A Dream 08. Super Mad |
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01. Bottom’s Up 02. You Take The Cake 03. I Just Wanna Hold You 04. Making Love |
05. Changing For You 06. Touch Me 07. Bad Mother scooter 08. I Love |
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01. Have You Seen Her? 02. For God’s Sake (give more power to the people) 03. Stoned Out Of My Mind 04. Oh Girl 05. A Lonely Man |
06. The Coldest Days Of My Life 07. I’m Ready If I Don’t Get To Go 08. Homely Girl 09. A Letter To Myself 10. We Are Neighbors |
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01. Do What You Want 02. I Keep Coming Back To You 03. Gimme Whatcha Got 04. Stop What You’re Doin’ |
05. Hey Girl (I love the way you dance) 06. Let Today Come Back Tomorrow 07. Runnin’ Around 08. Little Girl |
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01. Happy Music 02. Solid Love Affair 03. Just You And I Tonite 04. Just Say You Love Me |
05. Inner City Blues 06. There’s A Change 07. Eternity 08. Only You |
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01. Introduction 02. Oh Girl 03. The Coldest Days Of My Life 04. Hot On A Thing (called love) 05. You And I |
06. I Want To Pay You Back 07. Toby 08. A Letter To Myself 09. Have You Seen Her? 10. Nothing Lasts Forever |
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01. Hold On To Your Dreams 02. All My Love 03. Help Wanted (heroes are in short supply) 04. Love Uprising 05. The Sly, Slick, And The Wicked 06. Love Of My Life |
07. Nothing Lasts Forever 08. I Will Never Be Lonely Again 09. Just You And I Tonight 10. There’s A Change 11. Just Say You Love Me |
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01. Introduction 02. Are You My Woman 03. For God’s Sake (give more power to the people) 04. A Lonely Man 05. I Want To Pay You Back 06. The Coldest Days Of My Life 07. Stoned Out Of My Mind 08. You Don’t Know My Name |
09. A Letter To Myself 10. Oh Girl 11. Have You Seen Her? 12. Hold On To Your Dreams 13. Toby 14. You And I 15. Hot On A Thing (called love) 16. Low Key |
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01. Christmas Time At Mama’s House 02. White Christmas 03. Christmas Time At Mama’s House (instrumental) |
04. The Christmas Song 05. Christmas Time At Mama’s House (narration) |
