- Archie Bell & the Drells
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Archie Bell & the Drells Origin Houston, Texas, United States Genres R&B, soul Years active 1966–1980 Labels Atlantic
Philadelphia InternationalMembers Archie Bell
Lee Bell
Joe Cross
Willie Parnell
James Wise
Lucious Larkins
Billy Butler
[1]Archie Bell & the Drells was a R&B vocal group from Houston, Texas, and one of the main acts on Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff's Philadelphia International Records. The band's hits include "Tighten Up", "I Can't Stop Dancing" (both 1968), "There's Gonna Be A Showdown", "Girl You're Too Young" (1969), "Here I Go Again" (also a UK hit in 1972[2]), "Soul City Walk" (1976), "Let's Groove", "Everybody Have A Good Time" (1977), and "Don't Let Love Get You Down" (1986).[3]
Contents
Career
Early days
Archie Bell, who formed the group, is the older brother of world karate champion (and lead vocalist of Motown's Dazz Band), Jerry Bell, NFL player Ricky Bell (1955–1984), and Eugene Bell Sr. Bell moved to Houston as a young boy, and formed the group in 1966 with his friends James Wise, Willie Parnell and Billy Butler. They signed with the Houston-based record label, Ovide, in 1967 and recorded a number of songs, including "She's My Woman" and "Tighten Up", which was recorded in October 1967 at the first of several sessions in which the Drells were backed by the instrumental group the T.S.U. Toronadoes [4] [5] [6] .
Surprisingly, Bell's promoter, Skipper Lee Frazier, unsuccessfully began pushing the flip side of "Tighten Up", but at the recommendation of a friend gave the other side a try. "Tighten Up", written by Archie Bell and Billy Butler[7] , contained Archie Bell infectiously prodding listeners to dance to the funky musical jam developed by the T.S.U. Toronadoes [8] , and it became a hit in Houston before it was picked up by Atlantic Records for distribution in April 1968. By the summer it topped both the Billboard R&B and pop charts. It also received a R.I.A.A. gold disc by selling 1 million copies.[7] The line in "Tighten Up", "we dance just as good as we walk" was a little ironic, given that Bell had been shot in the leg while serving in the U.S. Army in Vietnam and was consigned to a military hospital bed at the time.[citation needed] The Army, however, began allowing him to tour later in the year, and discharged him on April 15, 1969.
The success of the single prompted the band to rush out an album, despite their incapacitated leader. In 1969 the group recorded their first full album with Gamble and Huff, I Can't Stop Dancing, which reached number 28 on the R&B album chart. By this time another of Archie's brothers, Lee Bell (born January 14, 1946, Houston), had replaced Butler, and became the band's choreographer.
Reid Farrell, who was from Houston, Texas, was the guitarist who traveled and played with the group.
Later career
After mediocre chart showings in the late 1970s, the group split in 1980. Archie Bell later released one solo album (I Never Had It So Good - 1981) on Beckett Records and continued to perform with The Drells for the next twenty years. During the 1990s the lineup also included Steve "Stevie G." Guettler (guitar, vocals), Jeff "JT" Strickler (bass guitar, vocals), Steve Farrell (guitar, vocals), Mike Wilson (keyboards, vocals) and Wes Armstrong (drums, vocals) of the Atlanta based group The Rockerz.
Discography
Albums
Year Album details Peak chart positions US 200 US
R&B1968 Tighten Up - Billboard Debut Date: May 25, 1968
- Label: Atlantic Records
142 15 1969 I Can't Stop Dancing' - Billboard Debut Date: February 8, 1969
- Label: Atlantic Records
-- 28 There's Gonna Be a Showdown - Billboard Debut Date: August 16, 1969
- Label: Atlantic Records
163 -- 1975 Dance Your Troubles Away - Billboard Debut Date: December 27, 1975
- Label: TSOP/Philadelphia International
95 11 1977 Where Will You Go When The Party's Over - Billboard Debut Date: January 22, 1977
- Label: Philadelphia International
-- 47 Hard Not To Like It - Billboard Debut Date: Did not chart
- Label: Philadelphia International
-- -- 1979 Strategy - Billboard Debut Date: October 6, 1979
- Label: Philadelphia International
-- 37 1981 I Never Had It So Good - Billboard Debut Date: Did not chart
- Label: Becket Records
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- Only solo album released by Archie Bell
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-- -- Billboard Singles
Year Single Peak chart positions Album US
HOTUS
R&BUK[2] 1968 "Tighten Up" - Recorded October 1967 in Houston
- Debuted 3/30/68
1 1 -- Tighten Up "I Can't Stop Dancing" - Recorded May 1968 in Philadelphia
- With Leon Huff and The Bobby Martin Orchestra
- Debuted 7/20/68
9 5 -- I Can't Stop Dancing "Do The Choo Choo" - Recorded May 1968 in Philadelphia
- With Leon Huff and The Bobby Martin Orchestra
- Debuted 9/28/68
44 17 -- "Love Will Rain On You" - B-side of "Do The Choo Choo"
- Recorded June 3 & 4, 1968, in New York City
-- 25 -- "There's Gonna Be a Showdown" - Recorded November 1, 1968, in Philadelphia
- With Thom Bell, Leon Huff, & Bobby Martin's Orchestra
- Debuted 12/14/68
- Re-released as a UK single in January 1973
21 6 36 There's Gonna Be a Showdown 1969 "I Love My Baby" - Recorded November 1, 1968, in Philadelphia
- With Thom Bell, Leon Huff, & Bobby Martin's Orchestra
- Debuted 3/29/69
94 40 -- "Just A Little Closer" - B-side of "I Love My Baby"
- Recorded October 24, 1968, in Houston
128 -- -- "Girl You're Too Young" - Recorded May 16, 1969, in Philadelphia
- With Leon Huff & Thom Bell's Orchestra
- Debuted 6/21/69
59 13 -- "My Balloon's Going Up" - Recorded circa August 4, 1969, in Philadelphia
- Debuted 9/13/69
87 36 -- "A World Without Music" - Recorded November 15, 1969, in Philadelphia
- With The Roland Chambers' Orchestra
- Debuted 12/27/69
90 46 -- Single only "Here I Go Again" - B-side of "A World Without Music"
- Recorded May 16, 1969, in Philadelphia
- With Leon Huff and Thom Bell's Orchestra
- When re-released as a UK single in October 1972, this song became a surprise hit.
112 -- 11 There's Gonna Be a Showdown 1970 "Don't Let The Music Slip Away" - Recorded November 15, 1969, in Philadelphia
- With The Roland Chambers' Orchestra
- Debuted 4/18/70
100 -- -- Single only "Wrap It Up" - Recorded circa June 1970 in Muscle Shoals, Alabama
- With The Wade Marcus Orchestra
- Debuted November 28, 1970
- Final charting Atlantic single
93 33 -- 1973 "Dancing To Your Music" - First single on Glades Records
- Debuted March 3, 1973
61 11 -- "Ain't Nothing For A Man In Love" - Debuted June 23, 1973
-- 36 -- "You Never Know What's On A Woman's Mind" - B-side of "Ain't Nothing"
-- FLIP -- 1975 "I Could Dance All Night" - First single on TSOP/Philadelphia International Records
- Debuted June 14, 1975
-- 25 -- Dance Your Troubles Away "The Soul City Walk" - Debuted December 27, 1975
-- 42 13 1976 "Let's Groove" (Part 1)** - Debuted February 28, 1976
-- 7 -- "Don't Let Love Get You Down" - Released summer 1976
- Re-released as a UK single in June 1986
-- -- 49 Where Will You Go When The Party's Over 1977 "Everybody Have A Good Time" - Debuted April 9, 1977
-- 68 43 "Glad You Could Make It" - Debuted September 17, 1977
-- 63 -- Hard Not To Like It 1978 "I've Been Missing You" - Debuted January 21, 1978
-- 56 -- 1979 "Strategy" - Last charting single on Philadelphia Records
- Debuted August 11, 1979
-- 21 -- Strategy 1981 "Any Time Is Right" - Only charting Archie Bell solo single
- Debuted May 9, 1981, on Becket Records
-- 49 -- I Never Had It So Good - NOTE: "Let's Groove" also charted at #3 on the U.S. Dance chart.
- NOTE: "Dance Your Troubles Away", while never released as a single, reached #11 on the U.S. Dance chart in late 1975.
See also
- List of soul musicians
- List of disco artists (A-E)
- List of artists who reached number one on the Hot 100 (U.S.)
- List of artists who reached number one on the Billboard R&B chart
- List of Soul Train episodes
- List of performers on Top of the Pops
References
- ^ Group members
- ^ a b Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 52. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
- ^ Rice, Tim; Rice, Jonathan; Gambaccini, Paul (1990). Guinness Book of British Hit Singles & Albums. Enfield, Middlesex: Guinness World Records and Guinness Publishing. ISBN 0-85112-398-8
- ^ "Atlantic Records Discography: 1967". Jazz Discography Project.. http://www.jazzdisco.org/atlantic-records/discography-1967/#671000. Retrieved 30 October 2011.
- ^ "Atlantic Records Discography: 1968". Jazz Discography Project.. http://www.jazzdisco.org/atlantic-records/discography-1968/. Retrieved 30 October 2011.
- ^ Boone, Mike. "HISTORICAL ANALYSIS - Archie Bell & The Drells". Soul-Patrol Newsletter. http://www.soul-patrol.com/philly/archie.html. Retrieved 30 April 2006.
- ^ a b Murrells, Joseph (1978). The Book of Golden Discs (2nd ed.). London: Barrie and Jenkins Ltd. p. 236. ISBN 0-214-20512-6.
- ^ Gray, Chris; Koshkin, Brett (12 December 2007), "The TSU Toronadoes: The twisted history of "Tighten Up"", Houston Press, http://www.houstonpress.com/2007-12-13/news/the-tsu-toronadoes/, retrieved 30 October 2011
5. Whitburn, Joel (2011). Record Research Online Database. "Archie Bell" Billboard Chart Discography. Retrieved March 25, 2011.
External links
- Archie Bell article on The Standard Report website
- Archie Bell; My Space
- Music Legends Part 2: Archie Bell & The Drells
- Biography at the Soul-Patrol website
- Archie Bell & the Drells at PhillySoulClassics.com
- Archie Bell & the Drells biography at Allmusic website
- Recording Sessions for Archie Bell & The Drells: Atlantic Records
- Archie Bell & The Drells' Complete Chart Discography at MusicVF.com
Categories:- Musical groups from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- American rhythm and blues musical groups
- Philadelphia International Records artists
- American soul musical groups
- Musical groups established in 1966
- Musical groups disestablished in 1980
- Atlantic Records artists
- Chess Records artists
- Musical groups from Houston, Texas
- Northern soul musicians
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