Sounds of Blackness
| Sounds of Blackness | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota |
| Genres | Gospel, R&B |
| Years active | 1969–present |
| Labels |
Perspective Records A&M Records Zinc Records Atomic K Records Malaco Music Group |
| Associated acts | Paris Bennett, Cynthia Johnson, Alexander O'Neal |
| Website | www.soundsofblackness.com |
| Past members |
Ann Nesby James "Big Jim" Wright Jamecia Bennett |
Sounds of Blackness is a Grammy Award-winning vocal and instrumental ensemble from Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota who perform music from several genres music including gospel, R&B, soul, and jazz.[1] The group scored several hits on the Billboard R&B chart and Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart in the 1990s. Cynthia Johnson of Lipps Inc. fame and Grammy winner Ann Nesby are the group's most prominent alumni.
History
Origins
The group was founded in 1969 by Russell Knighton at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota, and the group was called the Macalester College Black Voices. It was in 1971 when current director Gary Hines took leadership over the ensemble, and the group name was officially changed to Sounds of Blackness (SOB). The group had acquired local celebrity status throughout the years though never signed with a record company because of various reasons including the fact that many companies were not comfortable with the group's name. Some companies even suggested to Hines that the group's name be changed to "The Sounds of Music."
The chief lead singer of the group was Ann Nesby until 1995 when Nesby left the group to pursue a solo career. The group continues to perform internationally.
Awards and honors
The group has received three Grammy Awards, four Stellar Awards, one Emmy nomination, the International Time for Peace Award, the International Dance Music Award, five NAACP Image Award nominations and 1 NAACP Image Award.
Sounds of Blackness's "Time For Love" was nominated for the 7th Annual Independent Music Awards for R&B Song of the year.
Members (The Perspective Records Lineup)
Vocalists
First Sopranos: Jamecia Bennett, Dorothy A. Brown, Sandra Harris, Angela Henderson, Wanda Lewis, Renee J. McCall
Second Sopranos: Jayn R. Bell, Ann Nesby, Kellie Hickman, Cheryl D. Warder- Reeves, Elizabeth J. Turner
First Altos: Kimberly Gayle Brown, Coré Cotton, Shirley Marie Graham, Carrie Harrington, Wendy Ingram, Valarie Johnson, Regina Williams, Cynthia Johnson
Second Altos: Patricia Lacy, Lisa D. Russell, Dorothy Shelby, Dorothy J. Towns, Jennifer Whitlock
First Tenors: Michael L. Bowens, Robert Edwards, Terence O. Frierson, William H. Smith
Second Tenors: Dr. Robert J. Jones, Russell B. Knighton, Jr., Otis Montgomery, Willie Wesley
Baritones: Freddie Winston, David Brim Young
Basses: Reverend Ira Conley, Timothy W. Lee, Rojeem Taylor
Spirit V
Gordon Bruce, Gregory Sears (Second basses)
Geoffrey Jones (First baritone)
Minneapolis Gospel Sound
Billy Steele - Organ
Robert "Speedy" Pittman - Bass
Chico Cockrell - Drum programming
The Sounds Of Blackness Orchestra
Gary Hines - musical director, conductor, arranger, piano, congas, tympani, drum programming
Deevo, Soli Hughes - guitar
Brandon Commodore, Larry Robinson- drums, percussion
Billy Steele- keyboards
James "Big Jim" Wright - keyboards, organ, additional vocals
Kevin Whitlock - congas, tympani
Reverend Joseph Young, Jr. - bass
Larry "Section" Sims - Trumpet
Louis Wilson - Tenor Sax
Franklin Wharton - Alto Sax, Flute
David J Wright III - Alto Sax, Tenor Sax, Baritone Sax, Clarinet, and Flute
Discography
Studio Albums
- The Evolution of Gospel (Perspective, 1991)
- The Night Before Christmas...A Musical Fantasy (Perspective, 1992)
- Africa To America - The Journey Of The Drum (Perspective, 1994)
- Time For Healing (Perspective, 1997)
- Reconciliation (Zinc, 1999)
- Soul Symphony (Sounds Of Blackness, 2002)
- The Night Before Christmas II (Atomic K, 2004)
- Unity (SLR/Lightyear, 2005)
- Kings & Queens - Message Music From The Movement (P-Vine, 2007)
- The 3rd Gift - Story, Song & Spirit (CC Entertainment, 2009)
- The Sounds of Blackness (Atomic K, 2011)
Compilations
- Journey Of The Drum Remix Collection (Perspective, 1995)
- The Very Best Of Sounds Of Blackness (A&M, 2001)
- The Collection (Spectrum, 2003)
- The Best Of Sounds Of Blackness - The Millennium Collection (20th Century Masters) (A&M, 2007)
Other appearances
Singles
| Year | Single | Peak chart positions | Album | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US 100 [2] |
US R&B HipHop [3] |
US Dance [4] |
US Gospel [5] |
SWI [6] |
UK [7] | |||||||
| 1991 | "Optimistic" | — | 3 | 17 | — | — | 45 | The Evolution Of Gospel | ||||
| "Pressure (Pt. 1)" | — | 16 | 1 | — | — | 71 | ||||||
| 1992 | "Testify" (US only) | — | 12 | 7 | — | — | — | |||||
| "Optimistic / Testify" (UK only) | — | — | — | — | — | 28 | ||||||
| "Pressure (Pt. 1) (CJ Mackintosh Remix)" (UK only) | — | — | — | — | — | 49 | ||||||
| "Joy" (US only) | — | — | 27 | — | — | — | Mo' Money OST | |||||
| "Soul Holidays / Joy" (UK only) | — | — | — | — | — | 79 | The Night Before Christmas - A Musical Fantasy | |||||
| 1993 | "I'm Going All The Way" (UK only) | — | — | — | — | — | 27 | Africa To America; The Journey Of The Drum | ||||
| 1994 | "I Believe" | 99 | 15 | 1 | — | — | 17 | |||||
| "Gloryland" (with Daryl Hall) | — | — | — | — | 37 | 36 | Official Theme Song Of World Cup USA 94 | |||||
| "Everything Is Gonna Be Alright" | — | 29 | 10 | — | — | 29 | Africa To America; The Journey Of The Drum | |||||
| "I'm Going All The Way" | — | 39 | 41 | — | — | 14 | ||||||
| 1995 | "Black Butterfly" (US only) | — | 86 | — | — | — | — | |||||
| 1996 | "Children Of The World" | — | 90 | 19 | — | — | 141 | People: A Musical Celebration Of Diversity OST | ||||
| 1997 | "Spirit" | — | 29 | — | — | — | 35 | Time For Healing | ||||
| 1998 | "The Pressure (new remixes)" (UK only) | — | — | — | — | — | 46 | single only | ||||
| "Try" | — | — | — | — | — | — | Reconciliation | |||||
| 2005 | "Unity" | — | — | — | 29 | — | — | Unity | ||||
| 2011 | "Fly Again" | — | 93 | — | 22 | — | — | The Sounds Of Blackness | ||||
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released. | ||||||||||||
See also
- Grammy Awards of 1992
- List of number-one dance hits (United States)
- List of artists who reached number one on the US Dance chart
References
- ↑ "Official Website of Sounds of Blackness". Retrieved July 14, 2014.
- ↑ "Sounds Of Blackness - US Hot 100". billboard.com. Retrieved 17 September 2014.
- ↑ "Sounds Of Blackness - US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs". billboard.com. Retrieved 17 September 2014.
- ↑ "Sounds Of Blackness - US Dance Club Songs". billboard.com. Retrieved 17 September 2014.
- ↑ "Sounds Of Blackness - US Hot Gospel Songs". billboard.com. Retrieved 17 September 2014.
- ↑ "Sounds Of Blackness - Swiss chart". hitparade.ch. Retrieved 17 September 2014.
- ↑ "Sounds Of Blackness - UK Chart". The Official Charts Company. Retrieved 17 September 2014.