The Unifics were an American
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 ...
group from
Washington, D.C.
)
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History
In 1966 a group of students at
Washington D.C.
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's
Howard University
Howard University (Howard) is a private, federally chartered historically black research university in Washington, D.C. It is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity" and accredited by the Middle States Commissi ...
formed the group Al & the Vikings. Consisting of singer/songwriter
Al Johnson, Michel Ward, Greg Cook and Harold Worthington.
The group changed its name during its first year to the Unique Five and later to the Unifics. Known for their smooth harmonies and their dapper attire (including their trademark white gloves, black light effects and strobe light excitement), the Unifics soon gathered a large following in the D.C. area and began to attract attention elsewhere.
The group, with Johnson as lead singer, scored three hits on the
''Billboard'' Hot 100 in 1968 and 1969 for the
Kapp Records
Kapp Records was an independent record label started in 1954 by David Kapp, brother of Jack Kapp (who set up American Decca Records in 1934). David Kapp founded his own label after stints with Decca and RCA Victor. Kapp licensed its records to L ...
label
A label (as distinct from signage) is a piece of paper, plastic film, cloth, metal, or other material affixed to a container or product, on which is written or printed information or symbols about the product or item. Information printed dir ...
. The first, "Court of Love" climbed to #25, but reached #3 on the
US ''
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 chart
A chart (sometimes known as a graph) is a graphical representation for data visualization, in which "the data is represented by symbols, such as bars in a bar chart, lines in a line chart, or slices in a pie chart". A chart can represent tabu ...
.
The follow-up, "The Beginning of My End" got to #36 on the Hot 100 and #9 R&B. Two further releases in 1969 reached the R&B chart.
The group's debut album was issued in 1968.
Michael Ward and Hal Worthington left the group in 1970.
They were briefly replaced Marvin Brown and Tom Fauntleroy.
By 1972, the group has disbanded.
In 2005, three decades after the Unifics called it quits, Johnson and Fauntleroy decided to resurrect the group and recruited
Newport News, Virginia
Newport News () is an independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. At the 2020 census, the population was 186,247. Located in the Hampton Roads region, it is the 5th most populous city in Virginia and 140th most populous city in the Uni ...
veteran singers Charlie Lockhart and Garrett Hall to complete the quartet. Then, at the end of 2005, they self-released ''Unifics Return'', the first Unifics album in over three decades.
Member
Al Johnson had a briefly successful solo career in the 1980s and worked with
Norman Connors
Norman Connors (born March 1, 1947) is an American jazz drummer, composer, arranger, and producer who has led a number of influential jazz and R&B groups. He also achieved several big R&B hits of the day, especially with love ballads. He is pos ...
,
Jean Carn
Jean Carn, also spelled Jean Carne (born Sarah Jean Perkins; March 15, 1947) is an American jazz and pop singer. In mid career, she added a final ''e'' to her name. Carn is a vocalist credited with a five octave vocal range.
Biography
Carn was ...
,
The Whispers
The Whispers is an American group from Los Angeles, California, who have scored hit records since the late 1960s. They are best known for their two number one R&B singles, " And the Beat Goes On" in 1980 and "Rock Steady" in 1987. The Whispers ...
, Sharon Redd, Gayle Adams and Special Delivery. Al Johnson died on October 26, 2013, at the age of 65.
After Johnson's death, Fauntleroy opted to retire from performing and work as the band's choreographer/manager. He later went into full retirement. The band announced that Hall and Lockhart would be joined in a new line-up by tenor Ned Harris and baritone Bruce Justice.
Discography
Albums
* ''Sittin' in at the Court of Love'' (Kapp Records, 1968)
* ''Unifics Return'' (Somodo Records, 2005)
Singles
See also
*
R&B
References
External links
*
UNIFICS Concert Footage
{{DEFAULTSORT:Unifics, The
Musical groups from Washington, D.C.
Musical groups established in 1966
Musical groups disestablished in 1972
American soul musical groups
Kapp Records artists