Thom Bell

[JSngry]

At the time, I did not approve.

I was wrong. Very wrong.

Where have you gone, Thom Bell?

Thom Bell is BAAAAAAAAAAADDD!

[Kalo]

I love that early Spinners stuff. I did then, I do now.

Thom Bell was, indeed, bad!

What else would you point to as his best, Jim?

[JSngry]

Well, it's all good, but I pulled out this one last night, and it mildly blew me away.

It's just ear candy, but such rich ear candy it is! And it's also a little mind-b;owing to hear this lush, multi-textured orchestral pop/R&B all made by real people playing real instruments and then try to imagine anybody making the same type of record the same way today. The guy didn't just have "tricks" as an arranger, he had a genuine pallate, and he painted with it in an unstinting manner. I dig hearing cats who can do that, and who aren't afraid to do that. The actual material on the above album is actually pretty "variable", but it's Bell's arrangements that draw me (and keep me in) in every time.

I also like his arrangements for the O'Jays, HArold MElvin, and for the Dusty In Memphis album. At the time, I was pretty down on the Pfilly Soul trip, because it was so slick and when it came to R&B, I was still a hardcore Southern Soul & hard funk guy. But over time, I came to appreciate the work of Bell, & Gamble/Huff. But Gamble & Huff were primarily songwriters and producers. Bell, it seems, was the one who actually painted the pictures that they so skilfully framed. It's an art that I definitely appreciate more now than I did then.

Edited May 28, 2005 by JSngry

[Kalo]

Thanks, Jim. Nice observations about his arranging style, as well as the wonder of a real band playing it (though that wonder is magnified about 100 times when contemplating Sinatra/Riddle, Basie, or especially Ellington).

I'll have to delve deeper into Philly Soul.

The early Spinners arrangements are slick on the surface, but really odd underneath (like Bacharach was at times). My favorite thing about the Spinners, though, is Phillip Wynne's eccentric singing. He's even more whacked-out than Al Green, and that's saying something.

[kinuta]

A strange coincidence. A few weeks ago I spun a few old Philly soul sides out of sheer curiosity as to how they sounded after 30 odd years and ended up really addicted. I ended up listening to almost nothing but 70's soul for about ten days.

Some of it sounds just too slick, but stuck in there are some real gems.

A few things I listened to -

Shirley Brown Roy Ayers Little Anthony Attitudes johnny Bristol Margie Joseph Bloodstone O'Jays Brainstorm William Bell Blue Magic JR Bailey ( great ) Chilites

Creative Source Chicago gangsters Gene Chandler Detroit Spinners to name a few. The O Jays and Spinners stand up very well.

[SGUD missile]

Thom Bell was one of my favorite pop arrangers back in the 70s. He definitely brought something special to all those Philadelphia Productions of the time.

Fingertip fact: Several musicians here in Bellingham have told me that THom Bell had moved here for several years but I was never able to catch up with him ( although his name was listed in the local phonebook up until 2 years ago ..)

[Kalo]

I just went back to the records and I'll have to retract my statement about Wynne. Though he was definitely more whacked-out mentally than Al Green, his singing is several notches less eccentric than Green's. Still pretty eccentric, though.