Timex Social Club is an American
R&B group
A group is a number of persons or things that are located, gathered, or classed together.
Groups of people
* Cultural group, a group whose members share the same cultural identity
* Ethnic group, a group whose members share the same ethnic ide ...
, formed in 1985 and best known for the 1986 hit single "
Rumors
A rumor (American English), or rumour (British English; see spelling differences; derived from Latin:rumorem - noise), is "a tall tale of explanations of events circulating from person to person and pertaining to an object, event, or issue in p ...
".
History
Originally known as the Timex Crew, members included Marcus Thompson (founder), Gregory "Greg B" Thomas,
Michael Marshall, Craig Samuel, and Darrien Cleage. By 1986, Samuel, Cleage, and Thomas had departed, Alex Hill and Kevin Moore were added, and the name Timex Social Club was adopted
(despite the group's name,
Timex Group USA
Timex Group USA, Inc. (formerly known as Timex Corporation) is an American global watch manufacturing company founded in 1854 as the Waterbury Clock Company in Waterbury, Connecticut. In 1944, the company became insolvent but was reformed into ...
bears no sponsorship of the group). Later in 1986, Ocea Savage was added on keyboards and background vocals. They fused
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 ...
and urban
R&B with Washington
go-go
Go-go is a music subgenre, subgenre of funk music with an emphasis on specific rhythmic patterns, and live audience Call and response (music), call and response.
Go-go was originated by African-American musicians in the Washington, D.C. area du ...
beat.
In 1986, the group released the ''
Vicious Rumors
Vicious Rumors are an American power metal band, originally formed in 1979 in the San Francisco Bay Area. The band was conceived by founder and guitarist/vocalist Geoff Thorpe, and has been actively recording and touring worldwide since their ...
'' album on Danya/Fantasy Records (A&M in Canada; Mercury in Germany). Its one major
hit
Hit means to strike someone or something.
Hit or HIT may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment and media Fictional entities
* Hit, a fictional character from '' Dragon Ball Super''
* Homicide International Trust, or HIT, a fictional organization ...
, "
Rumors
A rumor (American English), or rumour (British English; see spelling differences; derived from Latin:rumorem - noise), is "a tall tale of explanations of events circulating from person to person and pertaining to an object, event, or issue in p ...
", written by Marshall, Thompson, and Hill, peaked at #8 on the
''Billboard'' Hot 100, #13 in the UK,
and No. 1 on the ''
Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...
''
R&B,
Hot Dance Club Play
Dance Club Songs is a chart published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine in the United States. It is a national look over of club disc jockeys to determine the most popular songs being played in nightclubs across the country. It was launched as t ...
, and Hot Dance/Disco-12 inch Singles-Sales charts. The two follow-up singles, "
Thinkin' About Ya
"Thinkin' About Ya" is a 1986 song by San Francisco Bay Area-based music group Timex Social Club, from their debut album ''Vicious Rumors (Timex Social Club album), Vicious Rumors''. The song was mixed by Shep Pettibone. It reached a Hot R&B/Hip-H ...
" and "Mixed-Up World", reached the R&B Top 20.
Tour
The success of the single "Rumors", prompted hip hop impresario
Russell Simmons
Russell Wendell Simmons (born October 4, 1957) is an American entrepreneur, writer and record executive. He co-founded the hip-hop label Def Jam Recordings, and created the clothing fashion lines Phat Farm, Argyleculture, and Tantris. Simmons' ...
to hire the group as the opening act for 38 dates on
Run DMC
Run-DMC (also spelled Run-D.M.C.) was an American hip hop group from Hollis, Queens, New York City, founded in 1983 by Joseph Simmons, Darryl McDaniels, and Jason Mizell. Run-DMC is regarded as one of the most influential acts in the history ...
's
Raising Hell tour in 1986.
Other acts on the tour were
Beastie Boys
Beastie Boys were an American rap rock group from New York City, formed in 1978. The group was composed of Mike D, Michael "Mike D" Diamond (vocals, drums), Adam Yauch, Adam "MCA" Yauch (vocals, bass), and Ad-Rock, Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz (voca ...
,
LL Cool J
James Todd Smith (born January 14, 1968), known professionally as LL Cool J (short for Ladies Love Cool James), is an American rapper, songwriter, record producer, and actor. He is one of the earliest rappers to achieve commercial success, along ...
, and
Whodini
Whodini is an American hip hop group that was formed in 1982. The Brooklyn, New York-based trio consisted of vocalist and main lyricist Jalil Hutchins; co-vocalist John Fletcher, a.k.a. Ecstasy (who wore a Zorro-style hat as his trademark; Ju ...
. Besides solo dates, the group also opened for
New Edition
New Edition is an American R&B/Pop group from the Roxbury neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, formed in 1978 by Bobby Brown. Their name is taken to mean a 'new edition' of the Jackson 5. The group reached its height of popularity in the 198 ...
,
Midnight Star,
the S.O.S. Band,
Kool & the Gang
Kool & the Gang is an American R&B/soul/funk band formed in Jersey City, New Jersey, in 1964 by brothers Robert "Kool" Bell and Ronald Bell, with Dennis "Dee Tee" Thomas, Robert "Spike" Mickens, Charles Smith, George Brown, and Ricky West. T ...
, and
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 ...
.
Split
Timex Social Club disbanded shortly after the success of "Rumors". The band's producer Jay King,
Denzil Foster and
Thomas McElroy
Denzil Foster and Thomas McElroy are an American R&B record production and songwriting duo, releasing recordings under the names Foster & McElroy and Fmob. They have written and produced songs for musicians such as Club Nouveau, Tony! Toni! T ...
formed
Club Nouveau
Club Nouveau is an American R&B group formed by record producer/performer Jay King in 1986 in Sacramento, California, following the breakup of the Timex Social Club. The group's name ( French for "New Club") was changed from its original inca ...
, whose first single was "Jealousy", an
answer song An answer song, response song or answer record, is a song (usually a recorded track) made in answer to a previous song, normally by another artist. The concept became widespread in blues and R&B recorded music in the 1930s to the 1950s. Answer son ...
to "Rumors" that references Timex Social Club's split. Club Nouveau subsequently had a #1 ''Billboard'' Hot 100 hit in 1987 with a go-go cover of
Bill Withers
William Harrison Withers Jr. (July 4, 1938 – March 30, 2020) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. He had several hits over a career spanning 18 years, including "Ain't No Sunshine" (1971), "Grandma's Hands" (1971), " Use Me" (1972) ...
's "
Lean on Me".
Revival
As of 2011, the current Timex Social Club roster consisted of founding member Marcus Thompson as DJ and
Samuelle Prater on vocals.
Discography
Studio albums
Singles
Awards and nominations
See also
*
List of number-one hits (United States)
This is a list of songs that have peaked at number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and the magazine's national singles charts that preceded it. Introduced in 1958, the Hot 100 is the pre-eminent singles chart in the United States, currently mon ...
*
List of number-one dance hits (United States)
This is a list of number-one dance hits as recorded by ''Billboard'' magazine's Dance Club Songs chart – a weekly national survey of popular songs in U.S. dance clubs. It began on October 26, 1974, under the title ''Disco Action'' chart. It is c ...
*
List of artists who reached number one on the U.S. Dance chart
This is a list of recording artists who have reached number one on ''Billboard magazine's'' Dance Club Songs chart. ''Billboard'' began ranking dance music on the week ending October 26, 1974, and this is the standard music popularity chart in th ...
*
List of artists who reached number one on the US Dance chart
This is a list of recording artists who have reached number one on ''Billboard magazine's'' Dance Club Songs chart. ''Billboard'' began ranking dance music on the week ending October 26, 1974, and this is the standard music popularity chart in t ...
*
List of artists who reached number one on the Hot 100 (U.S.)
This is a list of recording artists who have reached number one on '' Billboard'' magazine's weekly singles chart(s). This list spans from the issue dated January 1, 1955 to the present. Prior to the creation of the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, ''Bil ...
*
List of bands from the San Francisco Bay Area
This is a list of bands from the San Francisco Bay Area, music groups founded in the San Francisco Bay Area or closely associated with the region. Individual musicians who formed bands under their own name there are included, but not if they are ...
References
Further reading
*
*
External links
*
Official Website*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Timex Social Club
African-American musical groups
American contemporary R&B musical groups
American soul musical groups
American boogie musicians
New jack swing music groups
Fantasy Records artists
Music of California
Musical groups established in 1985
A&M Records artists
Mercury Records artists
1985 establishments in California
Musical groups from Berkeley, California