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JANICE'S BLUES ALLEY PRESENTS



THE SPINNERS



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THE SPINNERS



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The Spinners were the greatest soul group of the early '70s, creating a body of work that defined the lush, seductive sound of Philly Soul. Ironically, the band's roots lay in Detroit, where they formed as a doo-wop group during the late '50s. Throughout the '60s, the Spinners tried to land a hit by adapting to the shifting fashions of R&B and pop. By the mid-'60s, they had signed with Motown Records, but the level never gave the group much consideration. "It's a Shame" became a hit in 1970, but the label continued to ignore the group, and dropped the band two years later. Unsigned and featuring a new lead singer Phillipe Wynne, the Spinners seemed destined to never break into the big-leagues, but they managed to sign with Atlantic Records, where they began working with producer Thom Bell. With his assistence, the Spinners developed a distinctive sound, one that relied on Wynne's breathtaking falsetto and the group's intricate vocal harmonies. Bell provided the group with an appropriately detailed production, creating a detailed web of horns, strings, backing vocals, and lightly funky rhythms. Between 1972 and 1977, the Spinners and Thom Bell recorded a number of soul classics, including "I'll Be Around," "Could It Be I'm Fallin in Love," "Mighty Love," "Ghetto Child," "Then Came You," "Games People Play" and "The Rubberband Man." Wynne left in 1977 and the Spinners had hits for a few years after his departure, but the group will always be remembered for its classic mid-'70s work.

Originally, called the Domingoes, the Spinners formed when the quintet were high school students in the Detroit suburb of Ferndale in 1957. At the time, the group featured Bobbie Smith, Pervis Jackson, George W. Dixon, Billy Henderson and Henry Fambrough. Four years later, they came to the attention of producer Harvey Fuqua, who began recording the group -- who were now called the Spinners -- for his Tri-Phi Records. The band's first single, "That's What Girls Are Made For," became a Top 10 R&B hit upon its 1961 release and featured Smith on vocals. Following its release, Dixon was replaced by Edgar "Chico" Edwards. Over the next few years, the group released a series of failed singles, and when Tri-Phi was bought out by Motown in the mid-'60s, the Spinners became part of the larger company's roster. By that time, Edwards had been replaced by G.C. Cameron.

Though the Spinners had some R&B hits at Motown during the late '60s, including "I'll Always Love You" and "Truly Yours," they didn't have a genuine crossover success until 1970, Stevie Wonder gave the group "It's a Shame." Motown never concentrated on the Spinners, and they let the group go in 1972. Before the band signed with Atlantic Records, Phillipe Wynne replaced Cameron as the group's lead vocalist. Wynne had previously sung with Catfish and Bootsy Collins.

At Atlantic Records, the Spinners worked with producer Thom Bell, who gave the group a lush, seductive sound, complete with sighing strings, a tight rhythm section, sultry horns, and a slight funk underpinning. Wynne quickly emerged as a first-rate soul singer, and the combination of the group's harmonies, Wynne's soaring leads and Bell's meticulous production made the Spinners the most popular soul group of the '70s. Once the group signed with Atlantic, they became a veritable hit machine, topping the R&B and pop charts with songs like "I'll Be Around," "Could It Be I'm Falling in Love," "One of a Kind (Love Affair)," "Ghetto Child," "Rubberband Man" and "You're Throwing a Good Love Away." Not only were their singles hits, but their albums constantly went gold and charted in the Top 20.

Phillip Wynne left the band to pursue a solo career in 1977; he was replaced by John Edwards. Though none of Wynne's solo records were big hits, his tours with Parliament-Funkadelic were well-received, as were his solo concerts. In October 1984, he died of a heart attack during a concert in Oakland, California. The Spinners, meanwhile, had a number of minor hits in the late '70s, highlighted by their disco covers of "Working My Way Back to You" and the medley "Cupid/I've Loved You for a Long Time." During the early '80s, they had several minor hits before fading away from the charts and entering the oldies circuit, reprising their earlier material for 1999's new studio effort At Their Best. -- Stephen Thomas Erlewine


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LINKSYEARTITLE
1963Party: My Pad After Surfin'
1970The Second Time Around
1973Spinners
1973The Best Of The Spinners
1974Mighty Love
1974New and Improved
1975Live [Atlantic]
1976Happiness Is Being with the Spinners
1977Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow
1977Spinners/8
1978From Here To Eternally
1978The Best Of The Spinners
1978Detroit Spinners
1979Dancin' and Lovin'
1979Superstar Series/Motown 20th Anniversary
1980Love Trippin'
1981Labor of Love
1981Spinning Gold
1982Grand Slam
1984Cross Fire
1985Lovin' Feelings
1989Down to Business
1990Can't Shake This Feeling
1991One of a Kind Love Affair
1994In Concert [live]


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1963 Party: My Pad After Surfin'

01. Pipeline to My Pad
02. Skags Row
03. Barracuda
04. Tube and I
05. Early Surfer Catches the Wave
06. Shootin' the Pier
07. Surfin' Unlimited
08. Bailing Out
09. Spinner's Bounce
10. Makin' the Makaha
11. Surfer's Party
12. Soup Is Cold


1970 The Second Time Around

1973 Spinners

01. Just Can't Get You Out Of My Mind
02. Just You And Me Baby
03. Don't Let The Green Grass Fool You
04. I Could Never (Repay Your Love)
05. I'll Be Around
06. One Of A Kind (Love Affair)
07. We Belong Together
08. Ghetto Child
09. How Could I Let You Get Away
10. Could It Be I'm Falling In Love


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1973 The Best Of The Spinners

01. Together We Can Make
Such Sweet Music
02. It's A Shame
03. I've Got To Find Myself
A Brand New Baby
04. I'll Always Love You
05. We'll Have It Made
06. Bad, Bad Weather
(Til You Come Home)
07. My Whole World Ended
(The Moment ou Left Me)
08. Truly Yours
09. Sweet Thing
10. O-O-H Child


1974 Mighty Love

01. Since I Been Gone
02. Ain't No Price on Happiness
03. I'm Glad You Walked into My Life
04. I'm Coming Home
05. He'll Never Love You Like I Do
06. Love Has Gone Away
07. Love Don't Love Nobody
08. Mighty Love
09. (Oh Lord) I Wish I Could Sleep
10. I Just Gotta Make It Happen
11. Mr. Big Man
12. You Sure Are Nasty


1974 New and Improved

01. Sitting on Top of the World
02. Smile, We Have Each Other
03. Then Came You
04. There's No One Like You
05. Living a Little, Laughing a Little
06. Sadie
07. Lazy Susan
08. I've Got to Make It on My Own


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1975 Live [Atlantic]

01. Honest I Do
02. I Don't Want to Lose You
03. Love or Leave
04. Sweet Love of Mine
05. All That Glitters Ain't Gold
06. You Made a Promise to Me
07. Games People Play
08. Just as Long as We Have Love


1976 Happiness Is Being with the Spinners

01. Now That We're Together
02. You're All I Need in Life
03. If You Can't Be in Love
04. Rubberband Man
05. Toni My Love
06. Four Hands in the Fire
07. The Clown
08. Wake up Susan


1977 Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow

01. Me and My Music
02. I Found Love (When I Found You)
03. I'm Riding Your Shadow (Down to Love)
04. You're the Love of My Life
05. I Must Be Living for a Broken Heart
06. Honey, I'm in Love With You
07. Just to Be With You
08. You're Throwing a Good Love Away


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1977 Spinners/8

01. I'm Gonna Getcha
02. I'm Tired Of Giving
03. Painted Magic
04. You Got The Love That I Need
05. Heaven On Earth (so fine)
06. Back In The Arms Of Love
07. (Love Is) One Step Away
08. Easy Come, Easy Go
09. Baby I Need Your Love (You're The Only One)



1978 From Here To Eternally

01. It's A Natural Affair
02. Don't Let The Man Get You
03. A Plain And Simple Love Song
04. Are You Ready For Love
05. I Love The Music
06. One Man Wonderful Band
07. If You Wanna Do A Dance (All Night)
08. Once You Fall In Love


1978 The Best Of The Spinners

01. I'll Be Around
02. How Could I Let You Get Away
03. One Of A Kind (Love Affair)
04. Mighty Love
05. Ghetto Child
06. Then Came You
07. Sadie
08. Could It Be I'm Falling In Love
09. They Just Can't Stop It (Games People Play)
10. The Rubberband Man


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1978 Detroit Spinners

1979 Dancin' and Lovin'

01. Disco Ride
02. Body Language
03. Let's Boogie, Let's Dance
04. Medley: Working My Way Back to You/Forgive Me Girl
05. With My Eyes
06. One, One, Two, Two, Boogie Woogie Avenue


1979 Superstar Series/Motown 20th Anniversary

01. It's a Shame
02. We'll Have It Made
03. Truly Yours
04. Together We Can Make Such Sweet Music
05. What More Could A Boy Ask For
06. I'll Always Love You
07. For All We Know
08. In My Diary
09. Message From A Black Man
10. That's What Girls Are Made For


1980 Love Trippin'

01. Love Trippin'
02. Heavy on the Sunshine
03. Medley - Cupid
04. I've Loved You for a Long Time
05. I Just Want to Be With You
06. Streetwise
07. Working My Way Back to You
08. I Just Want to Fall in Love
09. Now That You're Mine Again
10. Split Decision
11. I'm Takin' You Back
12. Pipe Dream
13. Body Language



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1981 Labor of Love

01. Long Live Soul Music
02. Standing on the Rock
03. Yesterday Once More
04. Nothing Remains the Same
05. Almost All the Way to Love
06. Winter of Our Love
07. Be My Love
08. Give Your Lady What She Wants
09. A Man Just Don't Know What a Woman Goes Through
10. The Deacon


1981 Spinning Gold

01. Working My Way Back To You
02. They Just Can't Stop It
(Games People Play)
03. I Just Want To Fall In Love
04. Now That You're Mine Again
05. One Of A Kind (Love Affair)
06. How Could I Let You Get Away
07. The Rubberband Man
08. Cupid/I've Loved You For A Long Time
09. Then Came You
10. I'll Be Around
11. Be My Love
12. Could It Be I'm Falling In Love
13. Yesterday Once More/
Nothing Remains The Same
14. Mighty Love


1982 Grand Slam

01. City Full of Memories
02. Magic in the Moonlight
03. If I Knew
04. I'm Calling You Now
05. So Far Away
06. Just Let Love In
07. Funny How Time Slips Away
08. Loverboy
09. No Other Love



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1984 Cross Fire

1985 Lovin' Feelings

1989 Down to Business

01. I'm Happy Baby
02. We Got Business
03. Heal Me
04. So Hard to Let You Go
05. I Wanna Love You Forever
06. My Lady Is My Best Friend
07. We Dance to Love Songs
08. Can I Depend on You
09. Memories of Allison
10. Time Can Do Magic


1990 Can't Shake This Feeling

1991 One of a Kind Love Affair

01. That's What Girls Are Made For
02. I'll Always Love You
03. It's a Shame
04. (Oh Lord) I Wish I Could Sleep
05. How Could I Let You Get Away
06. I'll Be Around
07. Could It Be I'm Falling in Love
08. One of a Kind (Love Affair)
09. Don't Let the Green Grass Fool You
10. Ghetto Child
11. Mighty Love
12. I'm Coming Home
13. He'll Never Love You Like I Do
14. Love Don't Love Nobody
15. Then Came You
16. Living a Little, Laughing a Little
17. Sadie
18. Games People Play
19. I Don't Want to Lose You
20. Honest I Do
21. Love or Leave
22. Sweet Love of Mine
23. How Could I Let You Get Away [live]
24. Wake up Susan
25. The Rubberband Man
26. Me and My Music
27. You're Throwing a Good Love Away
28. Heaven on Earth (So Fine)
29. Working My Way Back to You/Forgive Me Girl
30. Funny How Time Slips Away


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1994 In Concert [live]

01. Fascinating Rhythm
02. I've Got To Make It On My Own
03. Living A Little, Laughing A Little
04. One Of A Kind (Love Affair)
05. Then Came You
06. Sadie
07. How Could I Let You Get Away
08. Could It Be I'm Falling In Love
09. Superstar Medley: It's Not Unusual /
Don't Mess With Bill / Paper Doll /
Stop! In the Name of Love / If I Didn't
Care / Hound Dog / Hello Dolly
10. Love Don't Love Nobody
11. Mighty Love



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graphics by YSM

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