Any Way You Like It
''Any Way You Like It'' is the fourth album by Thelma Houston, released late October 1976 on Tamla Records. The album features energetic disco songs with fierce vocal performances by Houston on side 1, while side 2 focuses on ballads. It includes the major hit single, "Don't Leave Me This Way", Houston's remake of the Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes song, zooming to No. 1 in the US charts. In the US, "If It's the Last Thing I Do", a track originally recorded in 1972, was chosen for the second single release on MoWest, while Europe had an edited version of the Stevie Wonder cover, "Don't Know Why I Love You", produced and arranged by Michael Lovesmith. A re-recorded version of "Don't Leave Me This Way" was #19 on the dance charts in December 1994. The album was arranged by Arthur G. Wright, Michael Lovesmith, Harold Johnson, Paul Riser, Clayton Ivey, Ted Stovall, Michael Omartian, Perry Botkin, Jr. and Terry Woodford. The cover photograph was by Harry Langdon. Track listing ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Thelma Houston
Thelma Houston ( Jackson; born May 7, 1946) Retrieved . is an American singer. Beginning her recording career in the late 1960s, Houston scored a number-one hit record in 1977 with her recording of "Don't Leave Me This Way", which won the Grammy for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance. Biography Early life and career Houston was born in Leland, Mississippi. Her mother was a cotton picker. She and her three sisters grew up primarily in Long Beach, California. After marrying and having two children, she joined the Art Reynolds Singers gospel group and was subsequently signed as a recording artist with Dunhill Records. Despite her surname, she is not related to Whitney Houston. In 1969, Houston released her debut album, entitled ''Sunshower'', produced, arranged and composed by Jimmy Webb except for one track. In 1971 she signed with Motown Records but her early recordings with them were largely unsuccessful. Her most notable single during that period was "You've Been Doing Wrong for ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Paul Riser
Paul Riser (born September 11, 1943) is an American trombonist and Motown musical arranger who was responsible for co-writing and arranging dozens of top ten hit records. His legacy as one of the "Funk Brothers" is similar to that of most of the other "Brothers", as his career has been overlooked and overshadowed by the stars of Motown that became household names. Some of the Funk Brothers he worked with include: Earl Van Dyke, Johnny Griffith, Robert White, Eddie Willis, Joe Messina, Dennis Coffey, Wah Wah Watson, James Jamerson, Bob Babbitt, Eddie Watkins, Richard "Pistol" Allen, Uriel Jones, Andrew Smith, Jack Ashford, Valerie Simpson, Eddie "Bongo" Brown, Benny Benjamin, Cornelius Grant, Joe Hunter, Richard "Popcorn" Wylie, Marcus Belgrave, Teddy Buckner and Stevie Wonder. Early career A graduate of Cass Technical High School in Detroit, Michigan where he studied classical and jazz trombone, Paul was introduced to Berry Gordy at Motown by a friend who had already been wor ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Perry Botkin Jr
Perry, also known as pear cider, is an alcoholic beverage made from fermented pears, traditionally the perry pear. It has been common for centuries in England, particularly in Gloucestershire, Herefordshire, and Worcestershire. It is also made in parts of South Wales and France, especially Normandy and Anjou, and in Commonwealth countries such as Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. Production Fruit Perry pears are thought to be descended from wild hybrids, known as ''wildings'', between the cultivated pear ''Pyrus communis'' subsp. ''communis'' and the now-rare wild pear ''Pyrus communis'' subsp. ''pyraster''. The cultivated pear ''P. communis'' was brought to northern Europe by the Romans. In the fourth century CE Saint Jerome referred to perry as ''piracium''. Wild pear hybrids were, over time, selected locally for desirable qualities and by the 1800s, many regional varieties had been identified. The majority of perry pear varieties in the UK originate from the counties o ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Gerry Goffin
Gerald Goffin (February 11, 1939 – June 19, 2014) was an American lyricist. Collaborating initially with his first wife, Carole King, he co-wrote many international pop hits of the early and mid-1960s, including the List of Billboard number-one singles, US No.1 hits "Will You Love Me Tomorrow", "Take Good Care of My Baby", "The Loco-Motion", and "Go Away Little Girl". It was later said of Goffin that his gift was "to find words that expressed what many young people were feeling but were unable to articulate." After he and King divorced, Goffin wrote with other composers, including Barry Goldberg and Michael Masser, with whom he wrote "Theme from Mahogany (Do You Know Where You're Going To)" and "Saving All My Love for You", also No. 1 hits. During his career, Goffin wrote over 114 Billboard Hot 100, ''Billboard'' Hot 100 hits, including eight Record chart, chart-toppers, and 72 UK Singles Chart, UK hits. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990, with Carole K ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Do You Know Where You're Going To
"Theme from ''Mahogany'' (Do You Know Where You're Going To)" is a song written by Michael Masser and Gerry Goffin. It was initially recorded by American singer Thelma Houston in 1973, and then by Diana Ross as the theme to the 1975 Motown/Paramount film ''Mahogany''. Production notes Produced by Masser, the song is a ballad that portrays its protagonist (Ross) as a black woman who becomes a successful Rome fashion designer. Recorded with a full orchestral accompaniment, "Theme from ''Mahogany''" became one of the most recognizable elements of the film, receiving praise from many critics. Later released as a single, "Theme from ''Mahogany''" became a number-one hit on both the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100, and the Easy Listening charts. The song was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Song. Ross performed the song live at the Academy Awards ceremony via satellite from Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Personnel *Diana Ross – vocals *Leland Sklar – electric bass *Hal Blaine ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Saul Chaplin
Saul Chaplin (February 19, 1912 – November 15, 1997) was an American composer and musical director. He was born Saul Kaplan in Brooklyn, New York. He had worked on stage, screen and television since the days of Tin Pan Alley. In film, he won three Oscars for collaborating on the scores and orchestrations of ''An American in Paris'' (1951), ''Seven Brides for Seven Brothers'' (1954) and ''West Side Story'' (1961). Biography Born to a Jewish family, Chaplin graduated with a B.A. in accounting from New York University's School of Commerce. After school, Chaplin joined the ASCAP and started out penning tunes for the theatre, vaudeville and for New York's famous songwriting district, Tin Pan Alley. While in New York, Chaplin teamed with Sammy Cahn to compose original songs for Vitaphone movie shorts, filmed in Brooklyn by Warner Brothers. During this period the team was sometimes billed only by surname ("Cahn and Chaplin"), in the manner of Rodgers and Hart or Gilbert and Sullivan. ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Sammy Cahn
Samuel Cohen (June 18, 1913 – January 15, 1993), known professionally as Sammy Cahn, was an American lyricist, songwriter, and musician. He is best known for his romantic lyrics to films and Broadway songs, as well as stand-alone songs premiered by recording companies in the Greater Los Angeles Area. He and his collaborators had a series of hit recordings with Frank Sinatra during the singer's tenure at Capitol Records, but also enjoyed hits with Dean Martin, Doris Day and many others. He played the piano and violin, and won an Oscar four times for his songs, including the popular hit " Three Coins in the Fountain". Among his most enduring songs is "Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!", cowritten with Jule Styne in 1945. Life and career Cahn was born Samuel Cohen in the Lower East Side of New York City, the only son (he had four sisters) of Abraham and Elka Reiss Cohen, who were Jewish immigrants from Galicia, then ruled by Austria-Hungary. His sisters, Sadye, Pearl, Flor ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Kathy Wakefield
Kathleen Wakefield (also Kathy Wakefield) is an American songwriter, singer and fiction author known for co-writing The Supremes' hit single " Nathan Jones" that was released by Motown and used as a soundtrack for the film ''Rain Man'' and for co-writing the Grammy-winning song " One Hundred Ways." Personal life and education Wakefield grew up in the Seattle area and attended the University of Washington. She splits her time between Los Angeles and Seattle after living part-time in London. Career She began her musical career singing in the 1960s with Dotty Harmony, performing as Dotty and Kathy. They released the pop single "The Prince of My Dreams," which was written by David Gates. Her first song, "Stand Tall," was co-written with Dotty Harmony and recorded by The O'Jays. Prior to her career in music, she was a showgirl at the Tropicana Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada. In 1970, Wakefield co-wrote the song "Feelin' Kinda Sunday" with Nino Tempo and Annette Tucker, which was ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Jermaine Jackson
Jermaine La Jaune Jackson (born December 11, 1954) is an American singer-songwriter and bassist. He is best known for being a member of the Jackson family. From 1964 to 1975, Jermaine was second vocalist after his brother Michael of The Jackson 5, and played bass guitar. Since 1983 he rejoined the group, now known as The Jacksons. Jermaine sang the lead on some of The Jackson Five's biggest hits,and featured in " I'll Be There" and "I Want You Back" amongst others. When the four others left and had to reform as The Jacksons, Jermaine, who had just married Motown founder Berry Gordy's daughter Hazel, stayed at Motown and was replaced by his youngest brother, Randy. Jermaine had a solo career concurrent with his brother Michael's and some top-30 hits until the 1980s, produced and recorded duets with Whitney Houston at her debut in 1985, and was a producer for the band Switch (band), Switch. After seven years he rejoined The Jacksons and remained throughout their various breakups a ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Lula Mae Hardaway
Lula Mae Hardaway (January 11, 1930 – May 31, 2006) was an American songwriter and the mother of soul musician Stevie Wonder. She spent her early adult life in Saginaw, Michigan, but from 1975 until her death in 2006, lived in Los Angeles, California. Life Hardaway co-wrote many of her son's songs during his teenage years, including the hit singles "I Was Made to Love Her", "Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours", "You Met Your Match" and "I Don't Know Why I Love You", co-writing four songs on the 1968 album ''For Once in My Life''. For co-writing "Signed, Sealed, Delivered", she was co-nominated for the 1970 Grammy Award for Best R&B Song. In 1974, Hardaway was with her then 23-year-old son at the Hollywood Palladium when he received his first Grammy, one of several he received that night. Legacy Hardaway was the subject of a 2002 authorized biography entitled ''Blind Faith: The Miraculous Journey of Lula Hardaway, Stevie Wonder's Mother'' () by Dennis Love and Stacy Brown. ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Leon Huff
Kenneth Gamble (born August 11, 1943, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) and Leon A. Huff (born April 8, 1942, Camden, New Jersey) are an American songwriting and production team credited for developing the Philadelphia soul music genre (also known as Philly sound) of the 1970s. In addition to forming their own label, Philadelphia International Records, Gamble and Huff have written and produced 175 gold and platinum records, earning them an induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in the non-performer category in March 2008. History Early years Gamble's childhood in Philadelphia shaped his adult life: he recorded himself on various arcade recording machines, assisted the morning show DJs on WDAS, operated a record store, and sang with The Romeos. In 1964, before there was "Gamble & Huff" there was "Gamble & Ross". Gamble was discovered and managed by Jerry Ross when Gamble was only 17 years old and they collaborated for many years. Gamble teamed up with Leon Huff (keyboards) for ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Kenny Gamble
Kenneth Gamble (born August 11, 1943, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) and Leon A. Huff (born April 8, 1942, Camden, New Jersey) are an American songwriting and production team credited for developing the Philadelphia soul music genre (also known as Philly sound) of the 1970s. In addition to forming their own label, Philadelphia International Records, Gamble and Huff have written and produced 175 gold and platinum records, earning them an induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in the non-performer category in March 2008. History Early years Gamble's childhood in Philadelphia shaped his adult life: he recorded himself on various arcade recording machines, assisted the morning show DJs on WDAS, operated a record store, and sang with The Romeos. In 1964, before there was "Gamble & Huff" there was "Gamble & Ross". Gamble was discovered and managed by Jerry Ross when Gamble was only 17 years old and they collaborated for many years. Gamble teamed up with Leon Huff (keyboards) for ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |