Before you continue reading I would like acknowledge the following sources that have guided me in blogging this story and is recommended for further detailed reading:
"The Undisputed; Leroy Burgess is the crowned king of boogie" by Rico Washington, Wax Poetics, #24, 2007
"Synthesizer Symphonies; Disco futurist Patrick Adams found his voice through keys" by Matthew Warren, Wax Poetics, #31, 2008
Last Night a DJ Saved My Life; The History of the Disc Jockey, Bill Brewster and Frank Broughton, 1999, Grove Press
The story begins in 1968 in New York City when arranger Patrick Adams meets a teenage vocal trio named Black Ivory, featuring the falsetto of Leroy Burgess. After few years of writing songs together, and touring behind a young Kool & the Gang, Adams was able to fund a recording session at Sigma Sound Studios in Philadelphia, home of engineer Joe Tarsia, the house band MFSB, and where songwriting producers Thom Bell, Kenneth Gamnle, and Leon Huff would record their hits for the Intruders, Delfonics, O'Jays, Spinners, Stylistics, Harod Melvin & the Blue Notes, etc. The session Adams produced a pair of sides that would be Black Ivory's debut the A-side being "Don't Turn Around" and the B-Side "I Keep Asking you Questions" released in late December of '71
The success of their first single demonstrates the group's ability to tackled the smooth ballad, and the pre-disco uptempo, dancefloor killer of the Philly Soul sound. This would lead to cut their 1972 classic debut album "Don't Turn Around" back in NYC with most of the songs written by Adams and the group. Along with the groups first sides, the album contained the groups biggest hit ballads, "You And I", and "I'll Find Away".Don't Turn Around (#38 R&B)
"I Keep Asking You Questions" (sampled By Raekwon's "Criminology", a single off of his Only Built 4 Cuban Linx from '95).
"You and I" (#32 R&B, #111 Pop, sampled recently for Q-Tip's "Gettin' Up" for his 2008 The Renaissance album.)
While Burgess and group members proved that they were able to write gorgeous melodies, Adams had the idea of the group to record an album of songs composed by himself and fellow producer David Jordan, leaving Black Ivory out of the songwriting process. The album did achieve the same commercial success as "Don't Turn Around", it did not have that same artistic feel without the group's input. Black Ivory and Adams discontinued their work together, would cut more albums and singles until Burgess left the group in '75.
Adams would move on to pursue other projects, but in 1975 he found himself inspired by the underground New York disco scene at clubs like Paradise Garage, and the Loft. He also grew fond of the Moog synthesizer in the music of Stevie Wonder, Herbie Hancock, and Bernie Worrell of Parliament/Funkadelic which was used to show one's virtuosity, but also to create soundscapes to provide specific atmospheres and ambiance on record.
1975 was a time when major labels began promoting and labeling their artists to "Disco" market. It was common practice For smaller independent labels (West End, Prelude, SalSoul, etc.) who were not able to promote their artists at such a high caliber would often have producers and arrangers cut records featuring session musicians and chorus singers, and the recording would be the only end product to push, hoping it ends up in the hands of NYC's popular radio DJ's at the time. Given this mode of production, Adams would write, arrange and record "Atmosphere Strut" by Cloud One, "Shake Your Tambourine" by the Universal Robot Band, and "In the Bush" by Musique between the period 0f '77-'78.
"Atmosphere Strut" by Cloud One ('76)
"Shake Your Tambourine" by Universal Robot Band ('77, #48 R&B, #93 Pop)
"In the Bush" by Musique ('78, #29 R&B, #58 Pop)
Adams' disco music would later influence Leroy Burgess' songwriting once Adams invited him to work on his projects, by composing the club anthem "Weekend" by Phreek. They also worked together on a brief reunion with Black Ivory for "Mainline" and on other studio projects such as Bumble Bee Unlimited and other established artists such as Eddie Kendricks and Herbie Mann. Adams would later produce the highlight of his career "I'm Caught Up (In a One Night Love Affair)" by Inner Life; Burgess would also lend Rick James to record his song "Big Time", the highest charting single for Burgess.
"Weekend" by Phreek ('78)
"Mainline" by Black Ivory ('79)
"I'm Caught Up (In a One Night Love Affair)" by Inner Life ('79, #22 R&B)
"Big Time" by Rick James ('80, #17 R&B)
By the start of the 80s, Pop critics were calling for the death of disco in the mainstream, but that did not stop club goers from dancing, nor did it ruin Burgess' career. He began utilizing a new style called "boogie" which is more mid-tempo disco/funk that featured synthesizers. In late 1980, he began recording with his main songwriting partners drummer Sonny Davenport, bassist James Calloway, what was to be a new album by their new group name, Convertion. After finishing "Let's Do It", it was cut as a single during the sessions on SAM records. Once they discovered that SAM were lcking funds for a decent budget for the rest of the album, The group took the songs to SalSoul released the self-titled album Logg. Although the group and title name were chosen randomly, this album feature some of his best work to date which also features lead vocal in a very proto-New Jack Swing style, and contained a charting single with "I Know You Will". An unreleased track from those sessions saw the light of day few years later as "Barely Breaking Even" by the Universal Robot Band, Adams' former studio group."Let's Do It" by Convertion ('81, #90 R&B)
"I Know You Will" ('81, #80)
"Barely Breaking Even" by The Universal Robot Band ('84)
Burgess would continue to work in 80s with other artists, such as Fonda Rae on "Over Like a Fat Rat" and hooking up with Aleem (formerly the Fantastic Aleems, a group he used to songwrite and produce a few years back) on the hit "Release Yourself". Burgess and Adams would later collaoborate on WISH feauring Fonda Rae's "Touch Me All Night Long". Adams would go engineer some of New Jack Swing and hip-hop's most prominent albums including Keith Sweat's Make It Last Forever and Eric B. and Rakim's Paid In Full (which ironically features the Fonda Rae-"Fat Rat"-sampled "Eric B. is President") and Follow the Leader.
"Over Like a Fat Rat" by Fonda Rae ('82, #75 R&B)
"Release Yourself" by Aleem ('84, #83 R&B)
"Touch Me All Night Long" by WISH feat. Fonda Rae ('84, #70 R&B),
"Eric B. is President" by Eric B. & Rakim ('86, #48 R&B)
Highly Recommended Albums:
Black Ivory, Don't Turn Around (1972)
Logg, Logg (1981)
Patrick Adams, The Master of the Masterpiece, Vols. 1 & 2
Leroy Burgess, Anthology, Vols. 1 & 2
Websites:
The official Leroy Burgess website
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