Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes broke out nationally with their huge late 1972 hit, If You Don't Know Me By Now, but that breakout had been a long time coming. Harold Melvin had formed the group as the Charlemagne's in the doo-wop days of the 50's, renaming them the Blue Notes in 1954. At that time Melvin was the lead singer as well as the group leader. They had the usual frustrating run of many small labels and singles that didn't chart. For twenty years all he had to show was a single for the minor Val-ue label, My Hero, that made #78 in 1960.
But sometimes persistence pays off. In the early 70's he signed on Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff's new label, Philadelphia International. This time it would not be the same old story. Gamble and Huff were producer-composers on the rise creating a new "Philadelphia Sound" to rival Motown which would in time overtake the Detroit label to become the top R&B label in the country. Everything seemed to come together in late '72 when they struck gold with the O'Jays' Backstabbers, Billy Paul's Me and Mrs. Jones and Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes' If You Don't Know Me By Now.This was a great time for R&B when the Billboard Hot 100 also included hits like Superfly by Curtis Mayfield, Papa Was a Rolling Stone by the Temptations, Keeper of the Castle by the Four TopsTrouble Man by Marvin Gaye and Superstition by Stevie Wonder.
Harold Melvin had good luck himself. His lead singer, John Atkins had quit earlier in '72 and Harold replaced him with the young drummer in his backup band, Teddy Pendergrass. He created a new dynamic for the group, his strong, commanding voice with slightly rough edges made a great contrast to the smooth sound of the Blue Notes. This was shown off perfectly in their big hit, a top 5 pop million seller and the first of many hits.The next big crossover hit just about exactly a year later was The Love I Lost in a completely different mood, a dance song that many people credit as the first disco hit. The basic sound of disco, the rhythm and especially the strings came right out of the Philadelphia Sound. But the sound already existed almost totally as early as the Summer of 1972 on the Trammps Zing Went the Strings of My Heart. They were a Philly group but recorded on Buddah. Bit it only went to #64 and couldn't really be called a hit.
You get all their important Philly International hits and to the credit of the collection they include the six-minute, album cut versions of their dance songs, not the radio singles. you also get two songs with Sharon Page in the group. She added a nice high voice to the mix, warmer than a traditional falsetto. The album opens with the mellow hit single, Wake Up Everybody, a community-oriented song from their platinum selling album of the same name. The hits began to taper off. The liner notes say the label was giving the better material to the O'Jays, their biggest sellers. Could be. But there were also conflicts between Harold and Teddy. Whose group was it? Teddy was the singer with the rest really backup, but Harold had founded the group. Teddy went out as a solo act and made four platinum and two gold albums, a late 70's superstar.
But here they are together in an "Essential Collection" that really is essential for anyone who loves traditional R&B in its 70's heyday. It's got 15 songs, all beautifuly remastered. You won't go wrong with this one.
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The Essential Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes
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WARNING:
California’s Proposition 65
Track Listings
1 | Wake Up Everybody |
2 | Don't Leave Me This Way |
3 | The Love I Lost |
4 | You Know How to Make Me Feel so Good - Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes feat. Sharon Paige |
5 | If You Don't Know Me by Now |
6 | Bad Luck |
7 | Where Are All My Friends |
8 | I'm Weak for You |
9 | Hope That We Can Be Together Soon - Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes feat. Sharon Paige |
10 | I Miss You |
11 | Ebony Woman |
12 | Yesterday I Had The Blues |
13 | Satisfaction Guaranteed (Or Take Your Love Back) |
14 | Tell the World How I Feel About 'Cha Baby |
15 | Keep On Lovin' You |
Editorial Reviews
THE ESSENTIAL Harold Melvin AND THE BLUENOTES is a brand new 15-track collection chronicling the wonderfully rich and soulful sounds of this lengendary R&B group. This album also includes 4 top ten smash hits including "The Love I Lost," "Wake Up Everybody," and more.
Product details
- Is Discontinued By Manufacturer : No
- Language : English
- Product Dimensions : 4.99 x 5.62 x 1.75 inches; 3.36 ounces
- Manufacturer : Legacy Recordings
- Item model number : 2192599
- Original Release Date : 2004
- Run time : 1 hour and 18 minutes
- Date First Available : January 29, 2007
- Label : Legacy Recordings
- ASIN : B0002S94UW
- Number of discs : 1
- Best Sellers Rank: #17,307 in CDs & Vinyl (See Top 100 in CDs & Vinyl)
- #11 in Philly Soul
- #7,049 in Pop (CDs & Vinyl)
- Customer Reviews:
Customer reviews
4.8 out of 5 stars
4.8 out of 5
631 global ratings
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Customer Reviews, including Product Star Ratings help customers to learn more about the product and decide whether it is the right product for them.
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- Reviewed in the United States on March 5, 2017
- Reviewed in the United States on March 16, 2024Lots of my favorites.
- Reviewed in the United States on February 3, 2024so many nights spent dancin to this wonderful music
- Reviewed in the United States on July 15, 2016I have always loved the great songs that were performed by the Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes singing group. They still seem to fall into one of those categories of singers who were never really given the great respect that they SHOULD HAVE received for the great work that they did. This was especially true when Teddy Pendergrass was their lead singer, but the rest of the group (including Mr. Melvin himself) were not a bunch of musical performance chumps. NOT BY A LONG SHOT. I'm very deeply appreciative of the people who have taken the time and effort to preserve this group of superb musical efforts that Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes produced over the years.
- Reviewed in the United States on August 6, 2023Item delivered intact and on time. It is exactly as described by the seller and what I was looking for. Thank you
- Reviewed in the United States on October 14, 2020I needed to return to a time in my youth when so much of the music was heartfelt and often romantic and voices were strong and sweet. Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes never failed to deliver moving sounds and today, many many years later, they gave me exactly what I needed during these troubling times.
- Reviewed in the United States on August 28, 2022Some of the songs skipped
- Reviewed in the United States on February 19, 2014I was in Philadelphia over the summer on business. At night, I left the radio on for some smooth grooves, and THE SONG "You know how to make me, feel sooo good" came on, oh, I lost my mind! Started singing this song as if it were still the 70's, never missing a lyric, and I have not heard this song in over 30 years. So, thank you Amazon for offering this cd.
This cd is priceless, in my estimation.
Top reviews from other countries
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Gilles Qc.Reviewed in Canada on October 28, 2021
5.0 out of 5 stars Je suis entièrement satisfait : The Essential Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes Feat. Teddy Pendergrass
Cet album est excellent, il est composé de 15 chansons.
Tous les succès du groupe américain de musique soul, R&B, doo-wop et disco actif de 1954 à 1996, sont présents sur cet album. Il couvre la période de 1972 à 1975.
En 1970, Teddy Pendergrass, ancien membre du groupe The Cadillacs (différent du célèbre groupe newyorkais des années 1950), rejoint Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes en tant que batteur. Au départ de John Atkins la même année, il devient chanteur principal du groupe.
Cet album est sorti en 2004 sur étiquette Sony Music Entertainment U.S.A.
Je vous recommande cet album, car il est excellent.
Bonne écoute !
- caroline.trorrmanReviewed in the United Kingdom on January 10, 2025
5.0 out of 5 stars Watched the movie story of Harold Melvin
After seeing the film I had to buy a CD this is a great CD good recording and great selection of tunes
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Cliente AmazonReviewed in Spain on June 1, 2023
5.0 out of 5 stars Todo un clasico
Llegó en perfecto estado y antes de lo previsto.
Muchisimas gracias.
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emilioReviewed in Italy on November 6, 2014
5.0 out of 5 stars ottimo acquisto
Arrivo velocissimo contiene una delle canzoni piu belle del xx secolo intepretata magistralmente , peccato non ce ne siano altre interpretate dal gruppo musicale
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DOVERO MarcReviewed in France on May 21, 2010
5.0 out of 5 stars Le meilleur du Philadelphia Sound
Flashback : Philadelphie,fin des années 60 : deux producteurs/compositeurs/arrangeurs,Kenny Gamble et Leon Huff,créent un son et une marque de fabrique soul qui va tout au long des seventies s'imposer dans le monde entier.A l'image de Phil Spector et son fameux Wall of Sound,de Tamla ou de Stax,ils vont mettre en oeuvre un son bien à eux caractérisé notamment par la richesse des arrangements de cuivres et de cordes,la sophistication des compositions et le glamour de la production.Billy Paul,The O'Jays,The Intruders,Harold Melvin and The Blue Notes parmi d'autres seront les fleurons du label Philly Sound distribué par Cbs.A l'identique de Tamla ou Stax,les interprètes sont accompagnés par des musiciens "maison",MFSB(pour Mother Father Sister Brother),qui se paieront le luxe d'obtenir quelques tubes dont le célèbre "Love is the message".Mais revenons à Harold Melvin and Yhe Blue Notes...Ce groupe vocal emmené par les deux chanteurs d'exception que sont Teddy Pendergrass et Harold Melvin,va s'imposer comme une référence et cartonner dans les charts avec des classiques soul comme "I miss you","The love I lost" ou "Wake up everybody".Musicalement on pense aux Four Tops,aux Temptations ou autres Spinners.L'artillerie MSFB est en service ce qui donne une production luxuriante.Cette compilation remasterisée contient tous les titres cultes du groupe et pour tout amateur de soul typée années 70,elle s'impose comme une évidence.