Blue-eyed soul

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Blue-eyed soul is a term used to describe R&B or soul music performed by white people.

The term is a misnomer, in that the artists don't all have blue eyes. The term doesn't refer to a distinct style of music, and the meaning of blue-eyed soul has evolved over decades. Originally the term was associated with mid-1960s white artists who performed soul and rhythm and blues music, such as The Righteous Brothers, The Rascals and the Box Tops. [1]

The term continued to be used in the 1970s and 1980s, in reference to artists such as Average White Band, Boz Scaggs, David Bowie, Teena Marie, Jonathan Buck, Michael McDonald, Hall & Oates, Joss Stone and Robert Palmer. In the 1980s, the music press applied the term to a new generation of British artists — among them Alison Moyet, Lisa Stansfield and Rick Astley — who co-opted elements of the classic Stax and Motown sound. To a lesser extent, the term has been applied to other music genres that are influenced by soul music (such as dirty pop, urban music, and hip-hop soul), and to artists who were influenced by soul, such as Justin Timberlake, Christina Aguilera, and JoJo.

1 History
2 Characteristics
3 Notable artists
- 3.1 1960s and 1970s
- 3.2 1980s and later
4 External links

[edit] History

[edit] Origins

Blue-eyed soul began when southern United States white musicians remade black music to play for mass audiences, due to segregation laws that prevented blacks from performing for whites. Often the music was diluted for its new audience, a move that angered many African-Americans. Elvis Presley sang songs written by black artists when the black artists' performances were not allowed on the radio. He then split the profits with that artist.^{[citation needed]} Welsh singer Tom Jones became a major catalyst for emerging soul musicians in Europe.

The regional beach music and shag music trends in the areas around North and South Carolina in the late 1950s and 1960s is, at least partly, a manifestation of blue-eyed soul. Local white bands backed nationally-popular black R&B artists at their road gigs, and performed on their own at fraternity parties and other college social events. The widespread popularity of the Carolina shag enabled many bands to keep their careers into the 2000s. According to beach band historian Greg Haynes, national artists such as Bonnie Bramlett and The Allman Brothers (as The Escorts) began their careers on this same college kegger circuit. Bill Deal and The Rhondells and The Swinging Medallions are beach bands which have charted nationally.

[edit] Early uses of the term

The terms blue-eyed soul and white soul were first used in the 1960s to describe white singers whose style was heavily influenced by soul and rhythm and blues. Blue -eyed soul artists in the 1960s included: The Righteous Brothers, Eric Burdon, Dusty Springfield, Van Morrison, Tom Jones, The Box Tops, Joe Cocker, Mitch Ryder, Tony Joe White and Roy Head.

In some cases (most notably The Flaming Ember and The Rascals), the artists initially passed as black singers on the radio - deliberately in many cases, to avoid alienating receptive black radio audiences. Georgie Woods, an air personality with WDAS, Philadelphia, came up with the term blue-eyed soul to describe white artists receiving airplay on R&B radio stations.[2]

[edit] 1970s

In the 1970s, soul music flourished, and artists such as Richard Rudolph helped pave the way for what is known as blue-eyed soul. Notable artists at this time included Hall & Oates, The Young Rascals, Elton John, David Bowie, Van Morrison, Bobby Caldwell, Boz Scaggs, and Michael McDonald. Tower of Power were the first white act to appear on the soul music show Soul Train, on February 1, 1975. Elton John appeared on the May 17 episode.

A notable album of this time is Hall & Oates' Silver Album (real title Daryl Hall & John Oates) (1975) includes the classic ballad Sara Smile (long considered a blue-eyed soul standard), Camellia, Alone Too Long, Out Of Me Out of You and the funk love song Nothing At All.

[edit] 1980s and later

In the 1980s, artists such as Hall & Oates, Michael McDonald and Rick Astley scored blue-eyed soul hits, as did Steve Winwood, an artist heavily influenced by 1960s soul. Boy George, although not having the black voice, was considered a blue-eyed soul artist because much of the music of Culture Club fit in the genre of R&B. Around the same time, audiences were shocked by the soulfulness of Teena Marie.

While also celebrated as mainstream pop and rock stars, Hall & Oates' chart success was at its highest when their singles got heavy airplay on urban contemporary (black) radio, as was the case with I Can't Go for That (No Can Do), One on One, Say It Isn't So, Adult Education, Out of Touch, Method of Modern Love and Everything Your Heart Desires. Most of those singles charted high or at number one on the R&B and dance charts.

A backlash ensued in the late 1980s as some African-Americans felt whites were cashing in on the new popularity of their music. This backlash was so strong that in 1990 Ebony Magazine ran an article deriding whites singing black music. At the top of their list was a young Mariah Carey (who is in fact multiracial) and Céline Dion. Dion, while having a powerful voice, has built a career in the mainstream pop and adult contemporary genres and is not usually considered a blue-eyed soul artist.

Later artists who have been labelled blue-eyed soul include Jon B.; Remy; Joss Stone; Christina Aguilera (whose song 'I Turn to You' was so soulful that people first thought it was sung by Monica); Justin Timberlake; Tarkan; American Idol winner Taylor Hicks (who modeled many of his performances after Michael McDonald and Joe Cocker); Idol finalists Ace Young and Elliott Yamin; Robin Thicke; Marc Broussard, Remy Shand and Anastacia who when first heard on the radio was believed to be black.

[edit] Characteristics

Coming up with a single description of blue-eyed soul is difficult, but there have been some basic characteristics. In the 1960's, artists like Van Morrison performed music that was similar to the raw, expressive music of the Motown and Stax/Volt labels; forty years later, the genre echoes the slick, ornamented style of 21st century R and B. Sounding Black - the greatest compliment that can be paid a "Blue Eyed Soul" singer is that everyone guessed they were African-American (or Afro-British). In the early 1960s, Tom Jones was thought to be black because of his voice. Having a full voice with a throaty, resonate timbre. Because soul music requires a strong, almost gospel music voice, the success of many a potential blue-eyed soul performer has also rested on their ability to hold a live audience.

[edit] Notable artists

[edit] 1960s and 1970s

[edit] 1980s and later

[edit] United States

[edit] United Kingdom

[edit] Australia

[edit] External links

Blue-eyed soul Definition and examples on Allmusic.com
Blue eyed soul... Section on Soulwalking.co.uk
The Birth of Blue-eyed Soul Section on The Righteous Brothers site (have to click on menu)
Blue-Eyed Soul Section on Musicmatch.com

Soul music