- Ohio Players
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Ohio Players Also known as The Ohio Untouchables Origin Dayton, Ohio, United States Genres Funk
R&B
SoulYears active 1959–1997 Labels Westbound, Mercury, Boardwalk Website http://theofficialohioplayers.com/ Past members Cornelius Johnson
Walter "Junie" Morrison
Leroy Bonner
Marshall "Rock" Jones
Robert "Rumba" Jones
Billy Beck
Wes Boatman
Mervin Pierce
Ralph "Pee Wee" Middlebrooks (deceased)
Jimmy Sampson
Vincent Thomas
James "Diamond" Williams
Clarence Willis
Greg Webster
Bruce Napier
Andrew Noland
Clarence "Satch" Satchell (deceased)
Bobby Lee Fears
Dutch RobinsonThe Ohio Players were an American funk and R&B band, most popular in the 1970s. They are best known for their double #1 hit songs "Fire" and "Love Rollercoaster".
Contents
Biography
The band formed in Dayton, Ohio in 1959[1] as the Ohio Untouchables, and initially included members Robert Ward (vocals/guitar), Marshall "Rock" Jones (bass), Clarence "Satch" Satchell (saxophone/guitar), Cornelius Johnson (drums), and Ralph "Pee Wee" Middlebrooks (trumpet/trombone). They were best known at the time as a backing group for Detroit's The Falcons.[1] The Ohio Untouchables broke up in 1963 with Ward leaving for a solo career, but the core members of the group returned to Dayton and the following year added Gregory Webster (drums) along with Leroy "Sugarfoot" Bonner (guitar), who would become the group's front man.[1] The group added two more singers, Bobby Lee Fears and Dutch Robinson, and became the house band for the New York based Compass Records in 1967.
The group disbanded again in 1970. After again reforming with a line-up including Bonner, Satchell, Middlebrooks, Jones, Webster, trumpeter Bruce Napier, vocalist Charles Dale Allen, trombonist Marvin Pierce and keyboardist Walter "Junie" Morrison, the Players had a minor hit on the Detroit-based Westbound label in 1971 with "Pain," which reached the Top 40 of the Billboard R&B Chart. Dale Allen shared co-lead vocals on some of the early Westbound material, although he was not credited on their albums Pain and Pleasure.
The band's first big hit single was "Funky Worm", which reached #1 on the Billboard R&B chart and made the Top 20 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the spring of 1973. It sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc by the R.I.A.A. in May of that year.[2] The band signed with Mercury Records in 1974. By this time, their line-up had changed again, with keyboardist Billy Beck instead of Morrison and Jimmy "Diamond" Williams on drums instead of Webster. On later album releases, they added second guitarist/vocalist Clarence 'Chet' Willis and conga player Robert "Rumba" Jones.
The band had seven Top 40 hits between 1973 and 1976. These included "Fire" (#1 on both the R&B and pop chart for two weeks and one week respectively in February 1975 and another million seller) and "Love Rollercoaster" (#1 on both the R&B and pop charts for one week in January 1976; another gold disc recipient).[2] The group's last big hit was "Who'd She Coo?" a #1 R&B hit in August 1976. It was their only success in the United Kingdom, where it peaked at #43 in the UK Singles Chart in July 1976.[3]
Clarence Satchell (born April 15, 1940) died December 30, 1995 after suffering a brain aneurysm,[4] Ralph Middlebrooks (born August 20, 1939) died in November 1997,[5] and Robert Ward (born October 15, 1938) died at home December 25, 2008.[6] Marshall Jones resides in Jamestown, Ohio.[1]
Discography
Studio albums
Year Album Chart positions[7] Record label US US
R&B1968 First Impressions — — Trip Observations in Time — — Capitol 1972 Pain 177 21 Westbound Pleasure 63 4 1973 Ecstasy 70 19 1974 Skin Tight 11 1 Mercury Climax 102 24 Westbound Fire 1 1 Mercury 1975 Honey 2 1 Rattlesnake 61 8 Westbound 1976 Contradiction 12 1 Mercury 1977 Angel 41 9 Mr. Mean 68 11 1978 Jass-Ay-Lay-Dee 69 15 1979 Everybody Up 80 19 Arista 1981 Tenderness 165 49 Boardwalk Ouch! 201 — 1984 Graduation — — Century Vista 1988 Back — 55 Track Record "—" denotes the album failed to chart Live albums
Year Album Chart positions Record label US US
R&B1996 Jam — — Mercury 1997 Ol' School — — Castle "—" denotes the album failed to chart Compilation albums
Year Album Chart positions[7] Record label US US
R&B1974 The Ohio Players — 32 Capitol 1975 Greatest Hits 92 22 Westbound 1976 Gold 31 10 Mercury 1977 The Best of the Early Years, Vol. 1 — 58 Westbound 1995 Funk on Fire: The Mercury Anthology — — Mercury 1998 Orgasm: The Very Best of the Westbound Years — — Westbound 2000 The Millennium Collection: The Best of the Ohio Players — — Mercury 2008 Gold (2008) — — Island/Mercury "—" denotes the album failed to chart Singles
Year Single Chart positions[8] US US
R&B1968 "Tresspassin'" — 50 1971 "Pain (Part 1)" 64 35 1972 "Pleasure" — 45 "Varee Is Love" — — 1973 "Funky Worm" 15 1 "Ecstasy" 31 12 "Sleep Talk" — — 1974 "Jive Turkey (Part 1)" 47 6 "Skin Tight" 13 2 "Fire" 1 1 1975 "I Want to Be Free" 44 6 "Sweet Sticky Thing" 33 1 "Love Rollercoaster" 1 1 1976 "Fopp" 30 9 "Rattlesnake" 90 69 "Who'd She Coo?" 18 1 "Far East Mississippi" — 26 1977 "Feel the Beat (Everybody Disco)" 61 31 "Body Vibes" — 19 "O-H-I-O" 45 9 "Merry Go Round" — 77 "Good Luck Charm (Part 1)" 101 51 1978 "Magic Trick" — 93 "Funk-O-Nots" 105 27 "Time Slips Away" — 53 1979 "Everybody Up" — 33 1981 "Try a Little Tenderness" — 40 "Skinny" — 46 1984 "Sight for Sore Eyes" — 83 1988 "Sweat" — 50 "Let's Play (From Now On)" — 33 "—" denotes the single failed to chart Million sellers
Gold discs, due to records selling at least one million copies, were awarded to the singles "Funky Worm," "Skin Tight," "Fire," and "Love Rollercoaster;" plus to their albums Skin Tight, Fire, and Honey.[2]
See also
- List of number-one hits (United States)
- List of artists who reached number one on the Hot 100 (U.S.)
References
- ^ a b c d McGinn, Andrew (May 30, 2009). "Ohio Players bassist retires to funky town — Jamestown". Springfield (Ohio) News-Sun. http://www.springfieldnewssun.com/entertainment/music/ohio-players-bassist-retires-to-funky-town-jamestown-130160.html. Retrieved 2011-06-29.
- ^ a b c Murrells, Joseph (1978). The Book of Golden Discs (2nd ed.). London: Barrie and Jenkins Ltd. pp. 332, 348, 349 & 362. ISBN 0-214-20512-6.
- ^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 405. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
- ^ Thedeadrockstarsclub.com (1995) Accessed April 2010
- ^ Thedeadrockstarsclub.com (1996) Accessed April 2010
- ^ Cartwright, Garth (March 4, 2009). "Obituary: Robert Ward". The Guardian. guardian.co.uk. http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2009/mar/04/music-obituary-robert-ward-soul-blues. Retrieved 2011-06-29.
- ^ a b "Ohio Players US albums chart history". allmusic.com. http://www.allmusic.com/artist/p5062. Retrieved 2010-06-08.
- ^ "Ohio Players US singles chart history". allmusic.com. http://www.allmusic.com/artist/p5062. Retrieved 2010-06-08.
External links
- Ohio Players Official website
- Ohio Players at Wenig-LaMonica Associates
- Ohio Players on Myspace
Categories:- Musical groups established in 1959
- American dance music groups
- American funk musical groups
- Mercury Records artists
- Musical groups from Dayton, Ohio
- Musical groups from Ohio
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