The Trammps | |
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| Background information | |
| Origin | Philadelphia,Pennsylvania,U.S. |
| Genres | |
| Years active | 1972–present |
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| Past members |
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| Website | Official website |
The Trammps are anAmericandisco andsoulband, who were based inPhiladelphia and were one of the first disco bands.
The band's first major success was their 1972cover version of "Zing! Went the Strings of My Heart", while the first disco track they released was "Love Epidemic" in 1973. However, they are best known for their song "Disco Inferno" which was included on theGrammy-winningSaturday Night Feversoundtrack. When originally released in 1976, "Disco Inferno" became a UK pop hit and US R&B and Dance hit topping the Dance chart for 6 weeks in early 1977. After inclusion on theSaturday Night Feversoundtrack, the song was re-released in 1978 and became a US pop hit peaking at number 11.
The history of the Trammps grew from the 1960s group the Volcanos, who later became the Moods.[1] With a number of line-up changes by the early 1970s, the band membership included gospel-influenced lead singer Jimmy Ellis, drummer and singer (bass voice)Earl Young, with brothers Stanley and Harold 'Doc' Wade. Members of the Philadelphia recording bandMFSB played with the group on records and on tour in the 1970s with singer Robert Upchurch joining later. The group was produced by the Philadelphia team of Ronnie Baker, Norman Harris and Young, all MFSB mainstays who played on the recording sessions and contributed songs.
Their debutchart entry came via an upbeatcover version of the standard "Zing! Went the Strings of My Heart", featuring Young's bass voice, which became a top 20 USR&B charthit in 1972.[1][2]
Their first few recordings were released onBuddah Records, including "Hold Back the Night", which was a hit on theBillboard R&B chart in 1973, before a re-release saw it climb in the UK two years later. Several R&B hits followed during a stay with Philadelphia International subsidiary Golden Fleece (run by Baker-Harris-Young) before they signed toAtlantic Records.
Theirsingle "Disco Inferno" (1976), which was included on theGrammy Award-winningSaturday Night Fever: The Original Movie Sound Track in 1977,[1] reached No. 11 on theBillboard Hot 100 chart in May 1978.[3]
In a time when real soul groups, especially of the uptempo persuasion, have become as rare assnail darters, the Trammps fill a gap.
Other major hits included "Hold Back the Night" (1975) (UK No. 5)[5] and "That's Where the Happy People Go" (1976). In late 1977, the Trammps released the song "The Night the Lights Went Out" to commemorate the electricalblackout that affectedNew York City onJuly 13–14, 1977.
Their signature song "Disco Inferno" has beencovered byTina Turner andCyndi Lauper. In addition,Graham Parkercovered "Hold Back the Night" on "The Pink Parker EP" in 1977, and reached No. 24 in theUK Singles Chart,[6][7] and top 60 in the US. In 2021, "Disco Inferno" was certified Silver by theBritish Phonographic Industry, together with "Can We Come Together" (from the albumWhere the Happy People Go).[8]
On September 19, 2005, the group's "Disco Inferno" was inducted into theDance Music Hall of Fame at a ceremony held inNew York. The song was part-written by Ron Kersey, a producer-arranger and a member of MFSB, who also played with the Trammps in the 1970s for a time. During the ceremony, the original band members performed together for the first time in 25 years. Disco Inferno has also had a resurgence and has garnered new fans with the2016 presidential campaign of Bernie Sanders in the USA due to the song's refrain ofburn, baby, burn (slightly altered to "Bern, baby, Bern").
By 2007, two versions of the group, with differing line-ups, toured the nostalgia circuit.[9]
On March 8, 2012, lead singer Jimmy Ellis died at a nursing home inRock Hill, South Carolina (where he was born on November 15, 1937), at the age of 74. The cause of death was not immediately known but he suffered fromAlzheimer's disease.[2]
Themusic journalistRon Wynn noted: "the Trammps' prowess can't be measured by chart popularity; Ellis' booming, joyous vocals brilliantly championed the celebratory fervor and atmosphere that made disco both loved and hated among music fans."[1]
On June 30, 2019, the Trammps appeared on HBO'sBig Little Lies, Season 2, episode 4 entitled "She Knows".
Stan Wade died in January 2021.[10]
Stan & Doc Wade & Robert Upchurch Trammps (original) current touring group
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