Worth Another Listen - Take That

I had decided it was time for me to feature the first British boyband, Take That, but, honestly, was running a bit out of gas with what songs to use. So, I checked in with my 'resident' Take That fan, Sue, who offered up a few titles for me to check out. But before Italk more about the process, let's learn a little about the band. Gary Barlow, Mark Owen, Howard Donald, Robbie Williams and Jason Orange were cast in a 'New Kids On The Block' style boyband after an exhaustive search throughout the UK. By 1991, they released their first single, Do What U Like, Which barely made it on to the charts, topping out at #82 on the UK charts. It wasn't until 1992 they had their first Top 10 hit, a remake of the old Tavares song, It Only Takes A Minute, which went to #7. But the following year, they finally made it to the top of the charts with the song Pray, a traditional R&B-style ballad.



They followed it up with their second #1, Relight My Fire with the amazing LuLu featured with her distinctive vocals. Yes, twenty-six years after taking the world by storm with the song To Sir With Love, LuLu was back on top with the young boyband.



Finishing off a string of four #1UK hits in a row, they did a throwback disco-style song with Everything Changes, which topped the chart in 1994. It also featured the lead vocals of Robbie Williams, the energetic and charismatic member of the group.



By the middle of 1995, the five-man group was down to a quartet, as Williams decided to embark on a successful solo career. And while the remaining boys opted to venture forward together, it was not for long, as they decided to call it quits in April of 1996.



However, much like the decision to keep going with Williams, the decision to retire was not set in stone, as Gary Barlow, Mark Owen, Howard Donald and Jason Orange reformed in 2005 and released a new album and single to celebrate that in 2006. The first single returned them to the top of the charts, as Patience hit #1.



Proving the success of their return to music, Beautiful World, to be no fluke, the second single, Shine, hit the airwaves in 2007. And, for the second single in a row, they established a new sound that was less 'pretty' and had a bit of a rockier edge.



Their popularity has continued on since the reformation, with another #1 with Greatest Day, a #2 with Rule the World, and a Top 20 with Up All Night. They are currently working on material for an album to come out at the end of the year, and in a recent interview, Robbie Williams stated that he and the boys had made up, and he would look forward to working with the band again soon, although no one knows when that will be. For more about Take That, check out their official website here.

Worth Another Listen - 5th Dimension

Sometimes, there is certain music that just is a part of your childhood because siblings are listening to it. The 5th Dimension are like that for me, as my sister Kathy listened to them, and had their albums. The five original members were Billy Davis, Jr., Florence LaRue, Marilyn McCoo, Lamonte McLemore, and Ron Townson. And from the point of view in this post, they are the only members of the group, for they stayed together through 1975, when all their great music was recorded. They worked with some of the great pop writers of the time, including Ashford & Simpson, Laura Nyro, Burt Bacharach and Hal David, and Jimmy Webb.



Jimmy Webb penned such songs as By The Time I Get To Phoenix, The Magic Garden, MacArthur Park, and The Worse That Could Happen, to name a few. He also wrote Up, Up And Away, a Top 10 hit for the 5th Dimension. It went to #7 on the Billboard Top 100 pop chart.



Laura Nyro wrote and performed Stoned Soul Picnic, but in 1968, it was the 5th Dimension that made the song a hit. As the group went on and become more popular, they would add more soul to the recordings, more of their own flavor. They manage to take a hippie folk song and make it a rolling soul number, a call to a neighborhood party.



Aquarius/Let The Sun Shine was written by James Rado, Gerome Ragni, and Galt MacDermot, and were centerpieces of the American Tribal Love-Rock Musical, Hair. Released in 1969, the recording sat at #1 on the Billboard chart for six weeks, and was certified platinum in sales, a much greater rarity than it is now. The later part of the song utilized the gospel voice of Billy Davis, Jr, who that very year married the gorgeous Marilyn McCoo. And dig the groovy video, folks.



Written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David, One Less Bell To Answer was a prime example of a pop ballad as only those two could write. Marilyn McCoo started to step out in front, and warmed the hearts of all who heard the heartbreaking song. The song stormed up the US charts and topped out at #2. "I end each day the way they start out, cryin' my heart out." Great stuff. If you don't sing along to this song, you have no heart.



In 1975, Marilyn McCoo and Billy Davis, Jr. left the group, embarking on a solo career that included top hits like You Don't Have To Be A Star, Baby, hosting their own television show, and hosting duties on the show Solid Gold. At last check, Florence LaRue was still doing some touring, utilizing the band name. But nothing can compare to when the band was at their height, 40 years ago.