British soul: Difference between revisions

However, a clear genre of British soul did not emerge until the 1980s, when a number of [[Black British|black]] and [[White British|white]] artists who made soul their major focus, influenced by [[contemporary R&B]], began to enjoy some commercial success. British soul artists began gaining popularity in the United States in the late 2000s, leadingresulting to talk ofin another [[British Invasion]], this time a ''soul invasion'' (in contrast to the 1960s [[rock music|rock]] and [[pop music|pop]], and 1980s [[Second British Invasion|new wave and synthpop invasions]]).

A handful of British artists continued to perform soul-inspired music in the 1970s. These included [[David Bowie]], whose "[[Plastic soul]]" on his ''[[Young Americans (album)|Young Americans]]'' album (1975), helped keep the sound in the British mainstream.<ref>D. Buckley, ''David Bowie: the complete guide to his music'' (Omnibus Press, 2nd edn., 2004), p. 39.</ref> [[Elton John]] gained blue eyed soul hit "Benny and the Jets". He experimented with the [[Philadelphia soul|Philadelphia soul/disco]] sound while working with producer [[Thom Bell]] in 1977, sessions which eventually resulted in a UK #1 for John when "[[Are You Ready for Love]]" was re-released in 2003. [[The Equals]] (with Eddy Grant), who had come to prominence in the late 1960s playing Caribbean-influenced pop-rock, embraced harder funk sounds on their 1970s releases, most notably on their UK top 10 hit "[[Black Skin Blue Eyed Boys]]".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://pitchfork.com/features/article/9916-black-skin-blue-eyed-boys-the-story-of-pioneering-interracial-rock-band-the-equals/ |title=Black Skin Blue Eyed Boys: The Story of Pioneering Interracial Rock Band the Equals |last=Heller |first=Jason |date=18 July 2016 |website=[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]]|access-date=2 May 2017}}</ref> [[Sweet Sensation (band)|Sweet Sensation]] were the first all-black British soul band to score a UK number one hit with their song "[[Sad Sweet Dreamer]]" in 1974.<ref name=tc>{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2003/jul/01/artsfeatures.britishidentity |title=Wigan? Is that in Camden? |last=Christian |first=Terry |author-link=Terry Christian|date=1 July 2003 |website=[[Theguardian.com]] |access-date=2 May 2017}}</ref> One of the key figures in Britain's soul and [[disco]] scenes during the 1970s was [[Biddu]], an [[British Indian|Indian-born British]] composer and producer who gained breakthrough success with chart-topping hits such as "[[Kung Fu Fighting]]" (1974) with [[Carl Douglas]] and "[[I Love to Love (But My Baby Loves to Dance)]]" with [[Tina Charles (singer)|Tina Charles]], while his own Biddu Orchestra records also appeared in the charts.<ref name="dutton_biddu">{{cite web|title=Biddu: Futuristic Journey & Eastern Man|url=http://www.duttonvocalion.co.uk/products.asp?cat=379|publisher=[[Dutton Vocalion]]|access-date=8 July 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110928162904/http://www.duttonvocalion.co.uk/products.asp?cat=379|archive-date=28 September 2011}}</ref> "Kung Fu Fighting" in particular sold eleven million records worldwide.<ref name="metro_biddu">{{cite web|title=Biddu|author=James Ellis|work=[[Metro (British newspaper)|Metro]]|date=27 October 2009|url=http://www.metro.co.uk/showbiz/interviews/412-biddu|access-date=2011-04-17|archive-date=2011-09-02|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110902182831/http://www.metro.co.uk/showbiz/interviews/412-biddu|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="times_2004">{{cite news|date=August 20, 2004|title=It's a big step from disco to Sanskrit chants, but Biddu has made it|author=Malika Browne|work=[[The Sunday Times]]|url=http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/article471655.ece|access-date=2011-05-30|location=London}}</ref> In 1975, Carl Douglas released more soulful song "Dance the Kung Fu".<ref> [https://www.allmusic.com/song/dance-the-kung-fu-mt0000221961 Dance the Kung Fu] Retrieved 20 June 2022</ref>

Other British soul acts working with Biddu at the time included the Outriders and [[Jimmy James (singer)|Jimmy James]].<ref name="dutton_biddu"/> Jimmy James & the Vagabonds recorded funky song "Disco Fever"(1976). [[Maxine Nightingale]] had an international pop disco hit in late 1975 and early 1976 with "[[Right Back Where We Started From]]".<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/maxine-nightingale-mn0000396531|title=Maxine Nightingale &#124; Biography, Albums, Streaming Links|website=[[AllMusic]]|access-date=5 September 2020}}</ref> [[The Real Thing (soul group)|The Real Thing]],<ref>{{cite web|title=34. Biddu|url=http://www.nme.com/list/the-50-greatest-producers-ever/262849/article/263448|work=The 50 Greatest Producers Ever|publisher=[[NME]]|access-date=28 August 2012|year=2012}}</ref> who were the most successful black rock/soul act in England during the 1970s,<ref name="Cohen2007">{{cite book|last=Cohen|first=Sara|title=Decline, renewal and the city in popular music culture: beyond the Beatles|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tLIkj9-B6XYC&pg=PA51|access-date=24 June 2010|year=2007|publisher=Ashgate Publishing, Ltd.|isbn=978-0-7546-3243-6|page=51|quote=Earlier on The Real Thing, Britain's biggest selling soul act of the 1970s....}}</ref> had major success with "[[You to Me Are Everything]]" and "[[Can't Get By Without You]]", UK chart number 1 and 2 respectively, produced by writers Ken Gold and Michael Deanne, and later tracks written by band members [[Chris Amoo|Chris]] and [[Eddie Amoo]] and produced by them with Dennis Weinreich. Gold also masterminded and produced British soul/funk group [[Delegation (band)|Delegation]], who scored several moderate hits including "Where Is The Love (We Used To Know)" and the US R&B hit "Oh Honey"(1977). The 1977 [[Saturday Night Fever: The Original Movie Sound Track|disco soundtrack]] for ''[[Saturday Night Fever]]'', mostly featured songs by British soul/disco act [[Bee Gees]], who also produced the project, and went on to become the [[List of best-selling albums|best-selling]] [[soundtrack album]] at the time.<ref>{{Citation | last = Morgan | first = Laura | title = The Winning Score | newspaper = [[Entertainment Weekly]] | date = December 10, 1999 | url = https://ew.com/article/1999/12/10/whitney-houstons-winning-score/ | access-date = August 5, 2010 | archive-date = April 25, 2009 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090425215813/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,271992,00.html | accessurl-datestatus =August 5,live 2010}}</ref> Also of note were the [[Average White Band]], one of the few white soul groups to attain both critical respect and commercial success, particularly in the United States, where they simultaneously hit the number one spot on the ''Billboard'' pop singles and albums charts with "[[Pick Up the Pieces (Average White Band song)|Pick Up the Pieces]]" and its album'' [[AWB (album)|AWB]]'', and scoring a Top 10 follow-up with 1975's "[[Cut the Cake (album)|Cut the Cake]]".<ref name=tc /><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.allmusic.com/artist/the-average-white-band-mn0000064454/biography |title=The Average White Band - Biography & History |last=Ankeny |first=Jason |website=[[AllMusic]] |access-date=2 May 2017}}</ref> After dabbling in reggae, pop-soul, glam rock, hard rock and bubblegum pop, [[Hot Chocolate (band)|Hot Chocolate]] enjoyed major success by settling on a pop-disco formula in the mid-1970s, enjoying a stream of hit singles such as "[[Brother Louie (Hot Chocolate song)|Brother Louie]]", "[[Emma (Hot Chocolate song)|Emma]]", "[[You Sexy Thing]]", "[[So You Win Again]]" and "Every 1's a Winner", whilst including more experimental material on their albums.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/musicblog/2015/may/06/why-errol-brown-hot-chocolate-died-strange-group |title=Why Errol Brown's Hot Chocolate were a far stranger group than they are given credit for |last=Petridis |first=Alexis|author-link=Alexis Petridis|date=6 May 2015 |website=[[Theguardian.com]] |access-date=2 May 2017}}</ref> [[Heatwave (band)|Heatwave]], a multi-national but British-based disco-funk band, not only scored transatlantic hits with "[[Boogie Nights (song)|Boogie Nights]]", "[[Always and Forever (Heatwave song)|Always and Forever]]" and "[[The Groove Line]]", but also launched the career of songwriter [[Rod Temperton]], who went on to write some of [[Michael Jackson]]'s biggest hits, including "[[Off the Wall (Michael Jackson song)|Off the Wall]]", "[[Rock with You]]" and "[[Thriller (song)|Thriller]]", as well as working with acts such as [[George Benson]], [[Donna Summer]], [[Herbie Hancock]] and [[Aretha Franklin]], among others.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2016/oct/06/rod-temperton-obituary |title=Rod Temperton obituary |last=Sweeting |first=Adam |author-link=Adam Sweeting|date=6 October 2017|website=[[Theguardian.com]] |access-date=2 May 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.grimsbytelegraph.co.uk/rod-temperton-was-worth-125m-not-bad-for-a-boy-from-meggies/story-29811061-detail/story.html |title=Rod Temperton 'was worth $125m' - not bad for a boy from Meggies! |last=Blow |first=Simon |date=15 October 2016 |website=[[Grimsby Telegraph]] |access-date=2 May 2017 }}{{Dead link|date=July 2019 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

In the 1980s, the situation began to change radically, with a wave of nostalgia for 1960s soul music. There were flourishing soul scenes in major cities like London and Manchester, often with many black artists, supported by local and pirate radio stations, but most acts were unable to break out into the national consciousness.<ref name=Wood2002/> Britain's [[post-disco]] sound contributed some new black artists to the emerging [[contemporary R&B]] sound (originating in the U.S.) by artists such as [[Imagination (band)|Imagination]]. Also of note were [[Junior Giscombe|Junior]], whose major hit "[[Mama Used to Say]]" made him the first black British act to appear on ''[[Soul Train]]'', followed by [[Princess (singer)|Princess]] with "[[Say I'm Your Number One]]" (1985), [[Jaki Graham]] with "[[Could It Be I'm Falling in Love#Cover versions|Could It Be I'm Falling in Love]]", [[Central Line (band)|Central Line]] with "[[Walking into Sunshine]]" (1981) and the bands [[Linx (band)|Linx]] and [[Freeez]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Central Line Page |url=http://www.soulwalking.co.uk/Central%20Line.html|website=Soulwalking.co.uk| access-date=2 March 2022}}</ref><ref name=tc /> [[Loose Ends (band)|Loose Ends]], [[Five Star]], [[52nd Street (band)|52nd Street]], [[Beggar and Co]] and [[the Pasadenas]] gained R&B hits also. Increased interest in soul was reflected and fuelled by a series of covers and songs inspired by soul for a number of major acts including [[Phil Collins]]' [[You Can't Hurry Love#Phil Collins version|cover]] of "[[You Can't Hurry Love]]" (1982), [[Paul Young]]'s "[[Everytime You Go Away#Paul Young version|Every Time You Go Away]]" (1984), [[Steve Winwood]]'s "[[Higher Love]]" (1986) and "[[Roll with It (Steve Winwood song)|Roll with It]]" (1988) and songs by [[New wave music|new wave]] acts including [[the Style Council]]'s "[[Shout to the Top]]" (1984), [[Eurythmics]]' "[[Here Comes the Rain Again]]" and "[[Missionary Man (Eurythmics song)|Missionary Man]]" (1986), [[ABC (band)|ABC]]'s "[[When Smokey Sings]]" (1987), and [[Spandau Ballet]]'s "[[True (Spandau Ballet song)|True]]" and "[[Only When You Leave]]".<ref name=Wald1997/> [[Dexys Midnight Runners]] also achieved two UK number ones in "[[Come On Eileen]]" and "[[Geno (song)|Geno]]" with their distinctive blend of [[Celtic folk]], new wave and, most importantly, soul music.

In the 1990s, British soul-influenced acts included [[Omar Lye-Fook|Omar]] and [[acid jazz]] bands [[Incognito (band)|Incognito]], [[Jamiroquai]] and [[Brand New Heavies]].<ref name=Wood2002/> Particularly noticeable was the proliferation of British female black singers; many, like American artists of the 1950s and 1960s, coming out of a [[Gospel music|gospel]] tradition. These included [[Mica Paris]], [[Caron Wheeler]], [[Gabrielle (singer)|Gabrielle]], [[Des'ree]], [[Beverley Knight]] and [[Pauline Henry]] (the Chimes).<ref name=Wood2002/> Other British artists who gained success during the 1990s include [[Eternal (group)|Eternal]], [[Carleen Anderson]] ([[Vicki Anderson]]'s daughter), [[Dina Carroll]], [[Honeyz]], [[Nu Colourz]], [[D'Influence]], [[Heather Small]], [[Kele Le Roc]], [[Damage (British group)|Damage]], [[Mark Morrison]], and [[Shola Ama]].

Since then, [[Adele]] has global superstardom around the world, speciallyespecially in the United States, where she had [[List of songs by British artists which reached number-one on the Hot 100 (USA)|several number one hits]] in 2011 and 2012.<ref>"Her sophomore album '21' sold more than 30 million copies worldwide, bringing soul music to mainstream American audiences." Jeffries, [http://www.allmusic.com/artist/adele-mn0000503460 "Adele: biography"], ''AllMusic'', retrieved 20 July 2012.</ref> Her album ''[[21 (Adele album)|21]]'' became the most sold-out of the 21st century and one of the most sold in history with over 35 million copies. In the United Kingdom, it was the second best-selling album ever. Then in 2015, ''[[25 (Adele album)|25]]'' by Adele also saw much success across the ''Billboard'' 200, as it became the [[Lists of fastest-selling albums|fastest-selling album]] in music history in the US, UK, Canada, New Zealand and globally.

*''[[The Craig Charles Funk and Soul Show]]'' - a [[BBC Radio 6 Music|BBC 6 Music]] radio programme<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0072ky7 |title=ArchivedBBC copyRadio 6 Music - the Craig Charles Funk and Soul Show |access-date=2020-11-17 |archive-date=2020-11-14 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201114172815/https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0072ky7 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

[[Category:BritishMusic musicof the United Kingdom]]