"California Soul" is a

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...

tune written by

Ashford & Simpson Ashford & Simpson were an American husband-and-wife songwriting-production team and recording duo of Nickolas Ashford (May 4, 1941 – August 22, 2011) and Valerie Simpson (born August 26, 1946). Ashford was born in Fairfield, South Carolina, ...

, issued originally as the

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record compan ...

of the Messengers' single "Window Shopping" in 1967 under the Motown group of labels.

Other recordings

*Nick Ashford then released his own version in June 1968 on Verve 10599. *The song was then issued as a single by

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

pop quintet

the 5th Dimension The 5th Dimension is an American popular music vocal group, whose repertoire includes pop, R&B, soul, jazz, light opera, and Broadway. Formed as the Versatiles in late 1965, the group changed its name to "the 5th Dimension" by 1966. Betwee ...

in late 1968. *The song was also covered by

Motown Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ''moto ...

vocal duo

Marvin Gaye Marvin Pentz Gay Jr., who also spelled his surname as Gaye (April 2, 1939 – April 1, 1984), was an American singer and songwriter. He helped to shape the sound of Motown in the 1960s, first as an in-house session player and later as a solo ar ...

and

Tammi Terrell Tammi Terrell (born Thomasina Winifred Montgomery; April 29, 1945 – March 16, 1970) was an American singer-songwriter, widely known as a star singer for Motown Records during the 1960s, notably for a series of duets with singer Marvin Gaye. ...

. It was Gaye's and Terrell's last single together when released in early 1970. *A version appears on the 1970 studio album War & Peace by

Edwin Starr Charles Edwin Hatcher (January 21, 1942 – April 2, 2003), known by his stage name Edwin Starr, was an American singer and songwriter. Starr was famous for his Norman Whitfield-produced Motown singles of the 1970s, most notably the number-one ...

(

Gordy Records Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ''moto ...

). ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', was an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'' said that this version "glimmers with the special touch of a motor city arrangement and the vocal fuel ignited by this splendid team."

Chart performance

Both the 5th Dimension's version and the Gaye-Terrell version were modest charted hits. The 5th Dimension's performed better, reaching number twenty-five on the pop singles chart. Marvin and Tammi's cover was the B-side of " The Onion Song". The duo's version of "California Soul" reached number fifty pop but never charted on the US R&B chart. The duet was released after Terrell's death from a brain tumor in March 1970.

Credits

The 5th Dimension version

*All vocals by

The 5th Dimension The 5th Dimension is an American popular music vocal group, whose repertoire includes pop, R&B, soul, jazz, light opera, and Broadway. Formed as the Versatiles in late 1965, the group changed its name to "the 5th Dimension" by 1966. Betwee ...

: Billy Davis, Jr.,

Marilyn McCoo Marilyn McCoo (born September 30, 1943) is an American singer, actress, and television presenter, who is best known for being the lead female vocalist in the group the 5th Dimension, as well as hosting the 1980s music countdown series ''Solid Gol ...

Florence LaRue Florence LaRue (born February 4, 1942) is an American singer and actress, best known as an original member of the 5th Dimension. Early life LaRue was born in Plainfield, New Jersey, but moved to Glenside, Pennsylvania, when she was young. She ...

Lamonte McLemore Lamonte McLemore (born September 17, 1939) is an American vocalist, composer, and photographer. He was a founding member of The 5th Dimension, a popular vocal group of the late 1960s and early 1970s. McLemore married Lisa Harvey and had a daught ...

, and

Ron Townson Ronald Townson (January 29, 1933 – August 2, 2001) was an American vocalist. He was an original member of The 5th Dimension, a popular vocal group of the late 1960s and early 1970s; he is the only original member of the group who is no longer l ...

*Written by

*Produced by

Bones Howe Dayton Burr "Bones" Howe (born March 18, 1933) is an American record producer and recording engineer who scored a string of hits in the 1960s and 1970s, often of the sunshine pop genre, starting in 1965 with The Turtles cover of Bob Dylan's "It ...

Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell version

*All vocals by

and

(contrary to misreports,

Valerie Simpson Ashford & Simpson were an American husband-and-wife songwriting-production team and recording duo of Nickolas Ashford (May 4, 1941 – August 22, 2011) and Valerie Simpson (born August 26, 1946). Ashford was born in Fairfield, South Carolina, ...

denied ever subbing for TerrellThe Complete Motown Singles, Volume 9: 1969, Motown/Hip-O Select, 2008, p.109) *Written and produced by

*Instrumentation by

The Funk Brothers The Funk Brothers were a group of Detroit-based session musicians who performed the backing to most Motown recordings from 1959 until the company moved to Los Angeles in 1972. Its members are considered among the most successful groups of stud ...

Certifications and sales

Marlena Shaw version

References

{{authority control 1967 songs 1969 singles 1970 singles The 5th Dimension songs Marvin Gaye songs Tammi Terrell songs Songs about California Songs about soul Songs written by Valerie Simpson Songs written by Nickolas Ashford Male–female vocal duets