"Don't Turn Around" is the debut single by the American soul/R&B vocal group Black Ivory. The song was written, produced, and arranged by record producer Patrick Adams

Song information

Black Ivory's debut single, "Don't Turn Around", was released in April 1971 and serves as the title track of their debut album. The song entered the ''Billboard'' Soul singles chart in November 1971, reaching its peak at No. 38 in January 1972. The single, along with the B-side, "I Keep Asking You Questions", written by Black Ivory and Adams, was recorded at Sigma Sound Studio in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Critical reception

The song received positive reviews, with Andrew Hamilton of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

describing it as Black Ivory's first single, this hurtin' Patrick Adams ballad released by Today Records in the spring of 1971. Leroy Burgess' sweet, innocent

falsetto ''Falsetto'' (, ; Italian diminutive of , "false") is the vocal register occupying the frequency range just above the modal voice register and overlapping with it by approximately one octave. It is produced by the vibration of the ligamentous ed ...

worms right into your heart as he tries to convince himself that an affair is over".

Covers and samples

In 1989, the Washington, D.C.-based go-go band

E.U. The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been de ...

covered, "Don't Turn Around" on their album, ''

Livin' Large ''Livin' Large!'' is a 1991 comedy film starring Terrence "T.C." Carson, Lisa Arrindell Anderson, and Loretta Devine. Plot Dexter Jackson (Carson) is a young, black deliveryman in Atlanta, Georgia, who aspires to become a news reporter. He g ...

''. Rapper

Raekwon Corey Woods (born January 12, 1970), better known by his stage name Raekwon The Chef, or simply Raekwon (), is an American rapper. He rose to prominence as a founding member of the hip-hop group Wu-Tang Clan, which achieved mainstream success ...

sampled "I Keep Asking You Questions" for his song "

Criminology Criminology (from Latin , "accusation", and Ancient Greek , ''-logia'', from λόγος ''logos'' meaning: "word, reason") is the study of crime and deviant behaviour. Criminology is an interdisciplinary field in both the behavioural and so ...

", on his 1995 album, ''

Only Built 4 Cuban Linx ''Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...'' (commonly referred to as ''The Purple Tape'') is the debut studio album by American rapper and Wu-Tang Clan member Raekwon, released on August 1, 1995, by Loud Records and RCA Records. The album was loosely composed ...

''. In 2010,

Ghostface Killah Dennis Coles (born May 9, 1970), better known by his stage name Ghostface Killah, is an American rapper and a member of the hip hop group Wu-Tang Clan. After the group achieved breakthrough success in the aftermath of ''Enter the Wu-Tang (36 C ...

and

Method Man Clifford Smith, Jr. (born March 2, 1971), better known by his stage name Method Man, is an American rapper, songwriter, record producer, and actor. He is known as a member of the East Coast hip hop collective Wu-Tang Clan. He is also half of t ...

sampled, "I Keep Asking You Questions" on their single, "Criminology 2.5." from the album, ''

Wu-Massacre ''Wu-Massacre'' is a collaboration studio album by American rappers and Wu-Tang Clan members Method Man, Ghostface Killah and Raekwon, released March 30, 2010 on Def Jam Recordings. Production for the album was handled by several hip hop produ ...

''. On her album ''Black Ivory'', Poet Wanda Robinson used the instrumental track "Don't Turn Around" as the background for her poem "The Final Hour" and "I Keep Asking You Questions" for her poem "Instant Replay." Robinson was Black Ivory's labelmate at Today/Perception.

Personnel

Black Ivory *

Leroy Burgess Leroy O'Neil Jackson Jr. (born August 20, 1953), known by his stage name Leroy Burgess, is an American singer, songwriter, keyboard player, recording artist, arranger and record producer. Burgess was a member of Black Ivory and lead vocalist o ...

Stuart Bascombe Stuart D. Bascombe (born January 20, 1954) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. Bascombe is an original member of the Rhythm and blues, R&B/Soul music, soul vocal group Black Ivory who recorded a number of R&B hits ...

Russell Patterson Russell Patterson (December 26, 1893 – March 17, 1977) was an American cartoonist, illustrator and scenic designer. Patterson's art deco magazine illustrations helped develop and promote the idea of the 1920s and 1930s fashion style known as t ...

Production

Produced, conducted and arranged by Patrick Adams *Vocal arrangements by Leroy Burgess *String arrangements on "If I Could Be A Mirror", by Leroy Burgess "Don't Turn Around" / "I Keep Asking You Questions" (singles) * Patrick Adams, Robert Ayers: Piano *Val Burke: Bass * Norman Harris & Patrick Adams: Guitar *Arnold Ramsey: Drums *

Vince Montana Vincent Montana Jr. (February 12, 1928 – April 13, 2013), known as Vince Montana, was an American composer, arranger, vibraphonist, and percussionist. He is best known as a member of MFSB and as the founder of the Salsoul Orchestra. He has ...

: Vibes *Larry Washington: Conga

References

{{authority control 1971 songs 1971 singles Songs written by Patrick Adams (musician)