This articleneeds additional citations forverification. Please helpimprove this article byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "California Soul" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(September 2014) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
| "California Soul" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
Netherlands picture sleeve | ||||
| Single bythe Messengers | ||||
| A-side | "Window Shopping" | |||
| Released | September 7, 1967 (1967-09-07) | |||
| Recorded | 1967 | |||
| Genre | Funk-soul | |||
| Label | Soul | |||
| Songwriter | Ashford & Simpson | |||
| Producer | Jeffrey Bowen | |||
| The Messengers singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Official audio | ||||
| "California Soul" on YouTube | ||||
"California Soul" is afunk-soul tune written byAshford & Simpson, issued originally as theB-side ofthe Messengers' single "Window Shopping" in 1967 under the Motown group of labels.
Both the 5th Dimension's version and the Gaye-Terrell version were modest chart hits. The 5th Dimension's performed better, reaching number 25 on the pop singles chart.[7] Marvin and Tammi's cover was the B-side of "The Onion Song". The duo's version of "California Soul" reached number 50 pop but never charted on the US R&B chart.[8] The duet was released after Terrell's death from a brain tumor in March 1970.
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| New Zealand (RMNZ)[10] | Gold | 15,000‡ |
| United Kingdom (BPI)[11] Sales since 2004 | Gold | 400,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. | ||