Kool & The Gang are a highly successful jazz/R&B/soul/funk/disco group. They originally formed in Jersey City, New Jersey, United States in 1964, playing jazz. They went through several musical phases in their career. They also played R&B and funk, eventually went through a phase where they were a smooth disco ensemble, and wound up the successful period of their career recording tunes that were a mixture of pop and R&B.The group's main members over the years included the eccentric Englishman Chris Gair, brothers Robert Bell (known as 'Kool') on bass and Ronald Bell on tenor saxophone; George Brown on drums; Robert Mickens on trumpet; Dennis Thomas on alto saxophone; Claydes Charles Smith on guitar, and Rick Westfield on keyboards. The Bell brothers' father was an acquaintance of Thelonious Monk and the brothers were friends with Leon Thomas.In 1964 Robert formed an instrumental band called the Jazziacs with five high-school friends. They changed their name to Kool & the Gang and were signed by Gene Redd to his new record label De-Lite Records in 1969.[3] They first hit the pop charts with the release of their debut eponymous album.Though none of the three singles from the album went far on the pop charts, their R&B success was swift and massive. Several live and studio albums followed, with 1973's Wild and Peaceful breaking into the mainstream with 'Jungle Boogie' and 'Hollywood Swinging.' Many reviews see the Gang's 1974 album Light of Worlds and 1975 album Spirit of the Boogie as the greatest achievements of the band, with the 1975 single 'Summer Madness' gaining much attention. However, after the release of those albums the band abandoned deep funk music and switched to disco. Generally, the albums released after 1975 have not received the same critical acclaim as their early work. Though they still inspired many artists, including The Mighty Majors ('You Can Never Go Back') who opened a show for them once on the road.The late 1970s saw a lull in Kool & the Gang's career that ended — after new lead singer James 'J.T.' Taylor joined the group — with 1979's Ladies' Night, the title track from which was spawned a 25-year-long tradition of ladies' nights in New Jersey dance clubs and bars. Their only #1 hit was 1980's 'Celebration,' from Celebrate!, produced by Eumir Deodato. More international hits followed in the early 1980s, including 'Big Fun,' 'Get Down on It' and 'Joanna.' Their 1984 album Emergency yielded four top-20 pop hits, including 'Fresh' rumored to be inspired by a girl named Alison Hartung and 'Cherish.' Their chart presence stopped abruptly after the Forever album, when both Taylor and Ronald Bell (who had begun using the name Khalis Bayyan) left the group; Bell would eventually return, but the hits would not.Kool and the Gang rose to some popularity again in 1994 after 'Jungle Boogie' was featured on the soundtrack of Quentin Tarantino's well known cult classic Pulp Fiction. The band released the album 'Still Kool' in 2007. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.
![Rarity Rarity](/uploads/1/2/5/8/125877292/311779319.jpg)
![Gang Gang](https://www.rockers.de/cover/1024/47345b.jpg)
Kool & the Gang compilation Nicolantonio Lisco; 90 videos; 98,840 views; Last updated on Dec 29, 2012. Kool & The Gang - Spirit Of The Boogie by Tony D. Kool and the Gang 'Fruitman' by LamontCJ. Kool And The Gang - Let The Music Take Your Mind by Fatshoolaces. Kool & The Gang - Ooh La La La totp2. May 05, 2019 Kool and the Gang and the Commodores followed suit as well. /My spirit a poltergeist for sureI'll be back through the Heights tomorrow/Blood over y'all fake ni.as door”. Hov celebrates.
Similar artists:
Earth, Wind & FireKC and The Sunshine BandChicCommodoresRick James'Spirit of the Boogie' | ||||
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Single by Kool and the Gang | ||||
from the album Spirit of the Boogie | ||||
B-side | 'Summer Madness' | |||
Released | March 13, 1975[1] | |||
Format | 7' | |||
Recorded | 1975 | |||
Genre | Funk | |||
Length | 3:15 | |||
Label | De-Lite Records | |||
Songwriter(s) | Ronald Bell, Don Doyce & Kool and the Gang | |||
Producer(s) | Kool and the Gang & Ronald Bell | |||
Kool and the Gang singles chronology | ||||
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![Rarity Rarity](/uploads/1/2/5/8/125877292/311779319.jpg)
'Spirit of the Boogie' is a funk/soul song recorded by Kool & the Gang as the title track for their 1975 album.
It was their third single to top the soul singles chart in the U.S., and was their fourth Top 40 hit, peaking at number thirty-five on the Billboard Hot 100.[2]
Part of the song's melody was sampled in The Afros' song titled 'Feel It', the full song was sampled in 'On The Black Line' by Michelle D'Clora.
Track listing[edit]
![Gang Gang](https://www.rockers.de/cover/1024/47345b.jpg)
De-Lite Records – DE-1567:[3]
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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1. | 'Spirit of the Boogie' (From the album Spirit of the Boogie) | Ronald Bell, Don Doyce & Kool and the Gang | 3:15 |
2. | 'Summer Madness' (From the album Light of Worlds) | Alton Taylor, Kool and the Gang & Robert Spike Mickens | 4:16 |
Personnel[edit]
- Robert Kool Bell – vocals, bass
- Ronald Bell – piano, tenor saxophone
- George Brown – drums, vocals
- Robert Spike Mickens – trumpet, vocals
- Otha Nash – trombone, vocals
- Claydes Smith – guitar
- Dennis Thomas – alto saxophone, vocals
- Rick West – vocals
References[edit]
- ^'Spirit of the Boogie/Summer Madness'. Rate Your Music. Retrieved November 4, 2016.
- ^Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 333.
- ^'Spirit of the Boogie/Summer Madness'. Discogs. Retrieved November 4, 2016.
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