The Stlyistics
Any soul music lover who was born before the 1970s, will tell you about The Stylistics. The Stylistics came from the tradition of Philly soul music and were one of the smoothest and sweetest soul music groups. The group was formed from two groups- The Percussions and The Monarch. The three members of The Stylistics- Russell Tompkins, James Smith, and Airron Love came from the Monarch. On the other hand, Murrel and James Dunn came from the Percussions. In 1970, the dynamic group recorded "You are a Big Girl Now," a song that their manager Marty Bryant co-wrote with Roberts Douglas. The song became a major hit for Sebring Records. This proved a huge success to the group. In 1971, the group was signed by Avco Records, and their single eventually climbed to number (7) seven on the US Billboard R&B chart.
After being signed by the then hugely popular record label, the sky was the limit for them. Their record label approached producer Thom Bell, who by then had produced a series of hits for The Delfonics. The label wanted the producer to work with the group. This forced Bell to personally audition the group. Unfortunately, he was not impressed. However, because Thom Bell believed in the lead singer's voice for the group, Russell Tomkins, he agreed to produce for the group. Thereafter, Avco gave Bell complete control over the group and he proceeded to focus on the group's sound.
On his first assignment with the group, Bell, together with his collaborator, lyricist Linda Creed recorded Stop, Look, Listen among others. On these hits, Bell borrowed some of the techniques he had previously perfected with the The Delfonics. Together with Thomkin's falsetto, the arrangements worked perfectly well. Additionally, the sweet lyrics from Creed were a major key factor that created memorable music. Some of the hits produced by The Stylistics include: Betcha By Golly Wow," "I'm Stone in Love With You," and "Break Up to Make Up." Following their huge success in the music industry, The Stylistics' include: "Betcha By Golly Wow," "I'm Stone in Love With You," and "Break Up to Make Up." Following their huge success in the music industry, The Stylistics' smooth sounding music found it very easy to transition onto the adult contemporary music airwaves than most other soul music artists.