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T he P ortland O bserver • A ugust 18, 1993
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W ith thirty years as hitmakers,
The O ’Jays have the special distinc­
tion of being one of the select few
groups still making albums that con­
sistently become best-sellers. Their
1991 EMI set Emotionally Yours, set
the pace for The O ’Jays’ latest decade
o f hit records by achieving gold status
and with the 1993 release of Heart-
breaker, the group is destined to
achieve new heights.
With new member Nathaniel Best
(former musical director for Miki
Howard and an accomplished musi­
cian and vocalist in his own right)
replacing Sammy Strain (who went
back to his original group Anthony
and the Imperials), original members
Eddie Levert and W alter W illiams
are excited about the prospects for
their latest work. “We wanted the
new album to be a little more well-
rounded. It’s not about taking the
R&B edge off but making the music a
little broader in its appeal,” says
Levert, whose distinctive vocal style
has graced over fifty hit singles since
the group began racking up chart
singles in 1963.
The father of Gerald and Sean
Levert (two-thirds of the hitm aking
group Levert) knows a thing or two
about staying current: “The one thing
w e’ve found is that good lyrics and
good melodies are always the key. It’s
only the drum and bass sounds that
really change with eachdccade. W e’ re
keeping our natural vocal sound —
just adapting to those musical change.
That way, we stay in the game.”
Heartbreaker presents The O ’ Jays
in a variety o f musical settings, from
the edgy “C ryin’ The Blues’ to the
gospel-laden “He Loves You (fea­
turing Sherena Wynn). T he pop/
R&B’’ feel of “One Wonderful G irl”
contrasts with the urgent, funky sound
of “Trouble” ; while upbeat cuts like
“C an’t Let Go” and the infectious
“Decisions” have an immediate, in ­
stant appeal.
No O ’Jays album would be com­
plete without its requisite share of
soulful ballads: “ Somebody E lse
W ill,” “Show Me The Right Way.”
“No Can Do” and the album ’s title
track more than fit the bill. Balancing
different sides of The O ’Jays’ musi-
ii
Oregon
cality, Heartbreaker is a showcase for
the virtuosity o f this legendary outfit.
Heartbreaker features the pro­
duction talents of Levert, W illiams
and longtime musical associate Dwain
M itch ell (collectively know n as
W E D Productions); and Gerald
Levert and Edwin Nicholas who con­
tributed two o f the album ’s ten cuts.
Eddie Levert articulates The O ’Jays
their latest work: “For us, it’s all
about reaching everybody, young, old,
the R&B audiences, the pop record
buyers while still keeping our iden­
tity. We like to be adventurous with
out music and at the same time, keep
that earthy feel that’s always been a
part of The O ’Jays’ sound.”
T he ‘earthy feel’ that Eddie
Levert refers to has been the earmark
o f The O ’Jays work since the group
came into existence in the 1950 in
Canton, Ohio when Levert and Walter
W illiams began singing gospel tunes
on a local radio station. The following
year, the duo became The Mascots, a
quintet with the addition of William
Powell, Bobby Massey and Bill Isles.
A popular “live’ act in Ohio, the
group signed with King Records of
Cincinnati and in 1961, The Mascots
released their first single, “M iracles.”
Shortly afterwards, the team adopted
the name of their m anager local radio
personality Eddie O ’Jay; in 1963,
The O ’Jays enjoyed their first na­
tional hit with the Levert-W illiams
composition “Lonely Drifter (ini­
tially released on Little Star Records,
later picked up by Imperial Records.)
A series of hit singles for several
labels, B ell, N eptune, and Saru
Records allowed the group national
attention. After a one-shot single
(“Peace”) with the Ohio-based Saru
label, the O ’Jays signed with Gamble
& H uff's CBS-distributed Philadel­
phia International Records. W ith the
departure of Bill Isles, who left before
the Bell Recordings, and later Bobby
Massey, the group became a trio and
in 1972, the release of the Back
Slabbers album began a seven-year
period of gold and platinum albums
and a non-stop run of hit singles.
Aside form being the title of their
first gold album, Back Stabbcrs was
also the first of seven No. 1 R&B hits
’JAYS
The O'jays: Eddie Levert Walter Williams and Nathaniel Best
The O ’Jay senjoy cd during their Phila­
delphia International years. Follow­
ing the 1973 release of The O ’Jays In
Philadelphia (a collection of their
Neptune Recordings), the platinum
Ship Ahoy album yielded the No. 1
pop and R&B smash in "Love Train,"
and the classics “Put Your Hands
T ogether” and “for The Love of
Money" (a Top 3 R&B. Top 10 pop
million-selling single).
The momentum kept going with
Live In London (1974) and Survival
(1975), both gold albums and hit
singles “Let Me Make Love To You,"
and "Give The People What They
Renewal Of Gabi’s Liquor
License Postponed
Lottery
Pow erball
08/11/93 44-42-13-39-22 PB 44
08/14/93 10-11-14-34-36 PB 10
M egabucks
08/11/93 07-10-24-31-39 41
08/14/93 21-07-29-33-25-16
OMLflHU
The carnival rides at the 1993
O regon State Fair, August 26-Sep-
tember 6, will be provided by Funtastic
Shows Inc. of Portland Some o f the
rides scheduled for the Fair were made
abroad in Italy, Germany and E n ­
gland. which adds a touch of interna­
tional flavor as well as thrills.
The scheduled rides will include
traditional, proven favorites as well
as several new and thrilling addi­
tions. The hottest ride, of course will
be the Fair Chairlift, which is a ski-
lift style ride running from one end of
the fairgrounds to the other. The
C hairlift offers a magnificent view of
the entire Fair from 20 feet above.
Fairgoerscan purchase eithcra single
trip or round trip ticket, also new. The
Ballon Race which is made in Italy, is
an intermediate ride and mild enough
for parents and children The ride
consists o f eight balloons in a circle
that lifts seven to eight feet in the air
and then swings back and forth
Traditional rides scheduled in­
c lu d e : T h e G ran d W h eel, T h e
M atterhorn (made in Germany ), The
Wave Swinger (made in Germany),
The Enterprise (made in Germany).
The Orbiter (make in England), The
Monster (made right here in Salem,
OR), The Kamikaze (made in Italy),
The Sea Dragon (made in Kansas),
Super Loops (made in Texas), Tilt- A-
M U S IC
M IL L E N N IU M
32nd & E. BURNSIDE
2 3 1 -8 9 2 6
23rd & NW JOHNSON
2 4 8 -0 1 6 3
C o n sid e ra tio n o f a h earings
exam iner’s recommendation to re­
new the liquor license for G abi’s Res­
taurant and Lounge, 4700 NE M artin
Luther K ing Jr. Blvd.. Portland, by
the five members of the Oregon Li­
quor Control Commission has been
postponed, according to OLCC Hear­
ing D irector Lee Moore.
W hen OLCC hearings examiner
David Slansky issued his 79-page
recom m endation and proposed order
last month, the Aug. 16 commission
m eeting was the first possible time for
action by the liquor board members,
Moore said
PORTLAND OBSERVER ;
.. ’ . O llic c : (603, 200-0033 ¡ ;- j
;
Fax'#:/' (503,200-0015 /
: ’ 3 m
Show:
Celebrate Diversity
8:00 - Midnight
MASONIC TEMPLE
1120 S.W. 10th
a*
W heel and more
•
« « «4
“However, when the Attorney
G eneral’s office raised legal issues
concerning the proposed order, it be­
came clear there just w asn’t enough
time to work through the issues before
the August meeting,” he said. Moore
also explained that exceptions to a
proposed order were filed, and they
must be considered by the hearings
examiner before the commissioners
review the order and make their final
decision.
The Liquor Commission mem­
bers meet for two days each month
The next two scheduled meetings are
Sept. 27-28 and Oct. 25-26.
/ 4 *««■** • • *
► 5 - 4 * « f « * - * “* Mk.
W ant” : 1975’s platinum Family Re­
union set, featuring the million-seller
“1 Love Music” (No. 1 R&B, No. 5
pop) and “Livin’ For The Weekend
In 1975, W illiam Powell left the
group, due to illness, passing away
two years later. He was later replaced
by Sammy Strain. The mid- to late-
seventies produces two gold albums,
M essage In T he M usic (1 9 7 6 ),
Travelin” At The Speed O f Thought
(1977) and two more platinum sets,
So Full O f Love (1978) and Identify
Yourself (1979), spurred by a slew o f
hit singles that included “ D arlin”
D arlin” Baby ” “Use Ta Be My G irl”
(an R&B chart-topper and Top 5
smash in 1978), "Brandy,” “Sing A
Happy Song,” and “Forever M ine.”
The O ’Jays continued their asso­
ciation with Philadelphia Interna­
tional through the albums They Year
2000 (1080), My Favorite Person
(1982), Will I See You Again (1983)
and Love And More (1984) and in
1985, Gamble & Huff initiated a deal
with EMI Records, the group recorded
the Love Fever album.
1987’s Let Me Touch You set
featured production by Gamble & Huff
and Thom Bell and yielded “L ovin’
You,” an R&B smash that knocked
M ichael Jackson o ff the top o f
Billboard’s Hot Black Singles chart
at the end of “87.
W ith the 1991 release of the gold
album Emotionally Yours. T heO ’Jays
reached a new pinnacle of success.
The title track, with an all-star choir
providing soulful support, was a m a­
jor hit for the group as was “Keep On
Lovin’ Me.”
Now comes Heartbreaker, an­
other hit-filled album from the leg­
endary team destined to expand The
O ’Jays’ universal appeal. “T here’s
no doubt that the success of the group
Levert has helped us,” says Eddie.
“It’s made young people aware of us.
They want to see these ‘old guys’ and
they find that w e’re actually not that
old and that we’ve got some great
music for them,. It’s great because
now w e’ve got three generations of
people coming to see our shows: our
fa n s, th e ir c h ild re n a n d th e ir
children's children!”
Finally gaining the industry -w ide
and public recognition that is clearly
their due after three decades of pro­
viding hit-making music, The O 'Jays
are ready to take it to the next phase.
Heartbreaker should help make the
achievement of the group's goal of
across-the-board and international
acceptance a reality.
HOMOWA FESTIVAL
an African Harvest Festival
Featuring african music, dance, food & crafts
2:00 pm
M ai Chi and Kubatana
2 :4 5 pm
Obo Addy’s Okropong
with Ghanaian
guest artists
5 :0 0 p m
Kukrudu
6 :0 0 p m
Les Tetes Brulees
Sunday,
August 29,
1993
2 p m - 7 :3 0 p m
R o s e G a rd e n
A m p h ith e a tre
FREE!
Part of the
Bank of America
Rose Garden
Concert series
Funding for the Festival comes from The National Endowment for the Arts. Metropolitan Arts
C om m ission, O regon A rts C om m ission. C ollins Foundation, and Tem pleton Foundation.