| British soul | |
|---|---|
| Stylistic origins | |
| Cultural origins | Early 1960s,United Kingdom |
| Typical instruments | |
| Derivative forms | |
British soul,Brit soul, or (in a US context) theBritish soul invasion, issoul music performed byBritish artists. Soul has been a major influence onBritish popular music since the 1960s, andAmerican soul was extremely popular among some youth subcultures, such asmods,skinheads, and theNorthern soul movement. In the 1970s, soul gained more mainstream popularity in theUK during thedisco era.
However, a clear genre of British soul did not emerge until the 1980s, when a number ofblack andwhite artists who made soul their major focus, influenced bycontemporary R&B, began to enjoy some commercial success. British soul artists began gaining popularity in the United States in the late 2000s, resulting in anotherBritish Invasion, this time asoul invasion (in contrast to the 1960srock andpop, and 1980snew wave and synthpop invasions).
Widespread British interest insoul music developed after the advent ofrock and roll from the mid-1950s and the subsequent interest in American music. In the early 1960s,rhythm and blues, including soul, was particularly popular among some members of thebeat music boom, includingthe Beatles,[1] and among bands of who contributed to the blues rock,British blues boom, includingthe Spencer Davis Group,Alexis Korner,John Mayall,the Rolling Stones, the Animals, Them andVan Morrison.[2] Most of these were popular with members of the Mod subculture, out of which grew theNorthern soul movement, in whichnorthern English youths avidly collected and played rare soul records.[3]
Britain produced a handful of soul acts in the 1960s, most significantly theblue-eyed soul singersTom Jones andDusty Springfield.Dusty in Memphis (1969) is one of the few albums by a British performer considered among the great soul recordings.[4] In 1964, Springfield became the firstBritish Invasion act after the Beatles to chart well in the US.[5] A string of US and British hits followed.[5] In 1965, Springfield hosted a television showThe Sound of Motown, that has been widely credited with introducing what was called "The Sound of Young America" to British audiences.[5] Arguably the most notableMotown-influenced act from the UK aside from Springfield werethe Foundations, a multi-racial soul group described byBillboard as "the best practitioners of the Motown sound to be found on the far side of the Atlantic" in the late 1960s, who scored transatlantic hits with "Baby Now That I've Found You" (the first UK number one for a multi-racial band), "Build Me Up Buttercup" and "In the Bad Bad Old Days (Before You Loved Me)".[6] British pop soul group the Equals gained hit "Baby Come Back".[7]
It has been suggested that the performance of soul in Britain was so limited becausewhite fans saw it as exclusively a black genre, and becauseblack British performers, while incorporating some sounds into other forms such asreggae, considered soul a distant American genre.[8] At the same time, bands led by black singers, notablyGeno Washington and the Ram Jam Band, andJimmy James and the Vagabonds, established strong reputations as live acts in Britain, largely playingcover versions of American soul records; Washington was an American expatriate, and James was fromJamaica.[9]
A handful of British artists continued to perform soul-inspired music in the 1970s. These includedDavid Bowie, whose "Plastic soul" on hisYoung Americans album (1975), helped keep the sound in the British mainstream.[10]Elton John gained blue eyed soul hit "Benny and the Jets". He experimented with thePhiladelphia soul/disco sound while working with producerThom Bell in 1977, sessions which eventually resulted in a UK #1 for John when "Are You Ready for Love" was re-released in 2003.
The Equals (with Eddy Grant), who had come to prominence in the late 1960s playing Caribbean-influenced pop-rock, embraced harder funk sounds on their 1970s releases, most notably on their UK top-10 hit "Black Skin Blue Eyed Boys".[11]Sweet Sensation were the first all-black British soul band to score a UK number one hit with their song "Sad Sweet Dreamer" in 1974.[12]
Also of note were theAverage White Band, one of the few white soul groups to attain both critical respect and commercial success, particularly in the United States, where they simultaneously hit the number one spot on theBillboard pop singles and albums charts with "Pick Up the Pieces" and its albumAWB, and scoring a Top 10 follow-up with 1975's "Cut the Cake".[12][13] Although they were ignored in the UK, the Caribbean-British bandCymande enjoyed American success in the first half of the 1970s with their mix of funk, jazz, rock,Afrobeat and Caribbean influences, becoming the first British act to play theApollo Theater inHarlem. After their split in 1975, their music became popular as a source ofbreaks among earlyhip-hop DJs includingGrandmaster Flash,DJ Kool Herc andJazzy Jay, was championed in the UKrare groove scene, and went on to be sampled extensively in rap anddance music, by acts including theFugees,Wu-Tang Clan andNorman Cook.[14]
One of the key figures in Britain's soul anddisco scenes during the 1970s wasBiddu, anIndian-born British composer and producer who gained breakthrough success with chart-topping hits such as "Kung Fu Fighting" (1974) withCarl Douglas and "I Love to Love (But My Baby Loves to Dance)" withTina Charles, while his own Biddu Orchestra records also appeared in the charts.[15] "Kung Fu Fighting" in particular sold eleven million records worldwide.[16][17] In 1975, Carl Douglas released more soulful song "Dance the Kung Fu".[18] Other British soul acts working with Biddu at the time included the Outriders andJimmy James.[15] Jimmy James & the Vagabonds recorded funky song "Disco Fever"(1976).Maxine Nightingale had an international pop disco hit in late 1975 and early 1976 with "Right Back Where We Started From".[19]
The Real Thing,[20] who were the most successful black rock/soul act in England during the 1970s,[21] had major success with "You to Me Are Everything" and "Can't Get By Without You", UK chart number 1 and 2 respectively, produced by writers Ken Gold and Michael Deanne, and later tracks written by band membersChris andEddie Amoo and produced by them with Dennis Weinreich. Gold also masterminded and produced British soul/funk groupDelegation, who scored several moderate hits including "Where Is The Love (We Used To Know)" and the US R&B hit "Oh Honey"(1977). The 1977disco soundtrack forSaturday Night Fever, mostly featured songs by British soul/disco actBee Gees, who also produced the project, and went on to become thebest-sellingsoundtrack album at the time.[22]
After dabbling in reggae, pop-soul, glam rock, hard rock and bubblegum pop,Hot Chocolate enjoyed major success by settling on a pop-disco formula in the mid-1970s, enjoying a stream of hit singles such as "Brother Louie", "Emma", "You Sexy Thing", "So You Win Again" and "Every 1's a Winner", whilst including more experimental material on their albums.[23]Heatwave, a multi-national but British-based disco-funk band, not only scored transatlantic hits with "Boogie Nights", "Always and Forever" and "The Groove Line", but also launched the career of songwriterRod Temperton, who went on to write some ofMichael Jackson's biggest hits, including "Off the Wall", "Rock with You" and "Thriller", as well as working with acts such asGeorge Benson,Donna Summer,Herbie Hancock andAretha Franklin, among others.[24][25]
In the 1980s, the situation began to change radically, with a wave of nostalgia for 1960s soul music. There were flourishing soul scenes in major cities like London and Manchester, often with many black artists, supported by pirate radio stations such asInvicta,Solar Radio,Kiss FM, andLWR, but most acts were unable to break out into the national consciousness.[8] Britain'spost-disco sound contributed some new black artists to the emergingcontemporary R&B sound (originating in the U.S.) by artists such asImagination. Also of note wereJunior, whose major hit "Mama Used to Say" made him the first black British act to appear onSoul Train, followed byPrincess with "Say I'm Your Number One" (1985),Jaki Graham with "Could It Be I'm Falling in Love",Central Line with "Walking into Sunshine" (1981) and the bandsLinx andFreeez.[26][12]Loose Ends,Five Star,52nd Street,Beggar and Co andthe Pasadenas gained R&B hits also. Increased interest in soul was reflected and fuelled by a series of covers and songs inspired by soul for a number of major acts includingPhil Collins'cover of "You Can't Hurry Love" (1982),Paul Young's "Every Time You Go Away" (1984),Steve Winwood's "Higher Love" (1986) and "Roll with It" (1988) and songs bynew wave acts includingthe Style Council's "Shout to the Top" (1984),Eurythmics' "Here Comes the Rain Again" and "Missionary Man" (1986),ABC's "When Smokey Sings" (1987), andSpandau Ballet's "True" and "Gold".[27]Dexys Midnight Runners also achieved two UK number ones in "Come On Eileen" and "Geno" with their distinctive blend ofCeltic folk, new wave and, most importantly, soul music.
For the first time since the 1960s, there were also notable acts who specialised in soul. These includedGeorge Michael, who reinvented himself awhite soul singer with the multi-platinum albumFaith (1987).[27] Also significant wereRuby Turner,Sade,Loose Ends, and toward the end of the decade,Tongue 'n' Cheek,the Chimes,Lisa Stansfield andSoul II Soul.[27] The latter's breakthrough hits "Keep On Movin'" and "Back to Life" in 1989 have been seen as opening the door to the mainstream for black British soul and R&B performers.[27]
Whilst bands such as Soul II Soul started to see international success, a new underground wave ofstreet soul began to emerge.[28][29][30]
In the 1990s, British soul-influenced acts includedOmar andacid jazz bandsIncognito,Young Disciples,Jamiroquai andBrand New Heavies.[8] Particularly noticeable was the proliferation of British female black singers; many, like American artists of the 1950s and 1960s, coming out of agospel tradition. These includedMica Paris,Caron Wheeler,Gabrielle,Des'ree,Beverley Knight andPauline Henry.[8] Mica Paris scored a US R&B hit with "I Wanna Hold On to You" in 1993.[31]
British soul in the 2000s was dominated by female singers and female-led bands, most notablyAmy Winehouse,Estelle,Joss Stone,Duffy,Paloma Faith,Florence Welch,Adele,Floetry,Noisettes,Jessie J andLeona Lewis.[32] They enjoyed success on the American charts, leading to talk of anotherBritish Invasion, known as the "Third British Invasion", "R&B British Invasion" or "British Soul Invasion".[33][34] In 2008,Amy Winehouse won 5 Grammy Awards, at the time, more than any British female artist had won in one night.[35][36] In 2009,Jay Sean's single "Down" reached the number one spot on theBillboard Hot 100 and sold millions in the United States,[37] making him "the most successful male UKurban artist in US chart history" at the time.[38]
In 2010, Jay Sean's success was followed byTaio Cruz also topping the USBillboard Hot 100 in March 2010.[39] The success of Sean and Cruz, as well as the upcoming US release ofTinchy Stryder, led to talk of how "U.K. stars seize American R&B".[40] British R&B also increasingly incorporatedelectropop sounds in the late 2000s into the 2010s, exemplified by the music of Jay Sean and Taio Cruz.[41]
Since then,Adele achieved global superstardom around the world, especially in the United States, where she had several number-one hits in 2011 and 2012.[42] Her album21 became the most sold-out of the 21st century and one of the most sold in history with over 35 million copies. In the United Kingdom, it was the second best-selling album ever. Then in 2015,25 by Adele also saw much success across theBillboard 200, as it became thefastest-selling album in music history in the US, UK, Canada, New Zealand and globally.
Several other names gained popularity as well, includingPaolo Nutini,[43]Michael Kiwanuka andSamm Henshaw[44] who achieved remarkable success in recent years.
Northern soul has also seen a resurgence in the UK and British artists such asPaul Stuart Davies, Johnny Boy and Stefan Taylor have contributed to its popularity in the present day.[45][46]
Earlier on The Real Thing, Britain's biggest selling soul act of the 1970s....