Kool & the Gang
| Kool & the Gang | |
|---|---|
 Kool & the Gang |
|
| General information | |
| Genre (s) | Soul , funk , disco |
| founding | 1969 |
| Website | www.koolandthegang.com |
| Founding members | |
Vocals, saxophone |
Ronald Bell |
bass |
Robert "Kool" Bell |
Keyboard |
George Brown |
guitar |
Claydes Charles Smith († 2006) |
Alto saxophone |
Dennis Thomas |
| Current occupation | |
Vocals, saxophone |
Ronald Bell |
bass |
Robert "Kool" Bell |
Keyboard |
George Brown |
Alto saxophone |
Dennis Thomas |
| former members | |
| Woody Sparrow (? –1967) | |
| Rick Westfield († 1985) | |
singing |
James "JT" Taylor (1978-1987, 1996) |
Trumpet, singing |
Michael Ray |
Kool & the Gang is an American Soul - Funk and Disco - band , the more than 80 million worldwide albums sold.
history
The seed for their success was planted in 1964 at Lincoln High School in New Jersey , USA. The brothers Robert (born October 8, 1950 in Youngstown , Ohio ) and Ronald Bell (born November 1, 1951 also in Youngstown, Ohio) formed a band called Jazziacs and motivated their classmates George Brown, Claydes Charles Smith († 2006) and Dennis Thomas to join in. The group initially played jazz , but soon switched to soul music.
After five years of session work and some stylistic changes, the band called itself from 1969 "Kool & the Gang". Robert Bell's nickname "Kool" became the namesake. With soulful disco funk, Kool & the Gang regularly climbed the charts in the 1970s and 1980s . In 1979 the group achieved great international success with the title Ladies' Night . Her singles made it into the top ten 25 times . The band received 31 gold and platinum honors on their albums , as well as double platinum in 1985 for the long-playing record Emergency . The Brazilian musician and producer Eumir Deodato contributed significantly to these successes. Brass section , the disco -Fundament and the vocal lines were typical of other hits of the group as Fresh , Celebration or Joanna .
The group's success ebbed in the mid-1980s, and the title Cherish (1985) marked the turning point as their last big hit. In 1988, lead singer James Taylor left the group, and the era of success came to an end. Later productions by the band landed in the middle of the hit lists. At the end of the disco era, their songs became more pleasing and less rhythmic , in line with contemporary tastes .
Since the 1990s the formation has been reaping the fruits of their earlier years in extensive touring work. The Bell brothers are also active as producers in various pop projects. In 1995 James Taylor returned to Kool & the Gang for a recording.
For the 40th anniversary, the album The Hits: Reloaded by Kool & the Gang was released in 2004 .
Lead guitarist Claydes Charles Smith died on June 20, 2006 at the age of 57. According to his spokesman, he died of a serious illness in Maplewood, New Jersey . He is buried in Fairview Cemetery in Westfield, New Jersey .
James "JT" Taylor , Robert "Kool" Bell, Ronald Bell and George Brown went on stage together for the Songwriters Hall of Fame awards ceremony in June 2018 ; after all, they had not been in this formation together in the same room for over 25 years. The dispute that has lasted for years is now considered to have been resolved. Ronald Bell now believes in a reunion of the original band members.
Discography
Studio albums:
- 1969: Kool and the Gang
- 1972: Music Is the Message
- 1973: Good Times
- 1973: Wild and Peaceful
- 1974: Light of Worlds
- 1975: Spirit of the Boogie
- 1976: Open Sesame
- 1976: Behind the Eyes
- 1977: The Force
- 1978: Everybody's Dancin '
- 1979: Ladies' Night
- 1980: Celebrate!
- 1981: Something Special
- 1982: As One
- 1983: In the Heart
- 1984: Emergency
- 1986: Forever
- 1989: Sweat
- 1993: Unite
- 1996: State of Affairs
- 2001: Gangland
- 2007: Still Kool
Awards
- American Music Award in the Best Soul Group category (1981, 1983, 1984, 1987)
- American Music Award for Best Video (1984 for Emergency , 1987 for Victory )
Further awards
- 1984: Award for best-selling LP by a colored band by the Association of American Record Dealers
- 1984: Awarded Top Black Album of the Year in the Billboard magazine poll
- 1984: Voted as Top Black Artist of the Year
- 2014: Golden camera for life's work in music
- 2015: Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
Individual evidence
- ↑ Kool & the Gang Biography (English), 2007. In: VH1 . Retrieved January 15, 2010.
- ↑ Kool & the Gang: honored together. Retrieved June 18, 2018 .
- ↑ Kool & the Gang at the awarding of the Golden Camera 2014 ( Memento of the original from February 4, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Kool & the Gang honored with “Walk of Fame” star . World online
Web links
- Official website
- Kool & the Gang at Discogs (English)