| Chirpin' | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1977 | |||
| Recorded | 1977 | |||
| Genre | A capella, R&B | |||
| Length | 34:22 | |||
| Label | Elektra [1] | |||
| Producer | David Dashev | |||
| The Persuasions chronology | ||||
| ||||
Chirpin' is an album by the American musical group the Persuasions, released in 1977. [2] [3] It was rereleased in 1990, following the success of the PBS documentary Spike Lee & Company: Do It a Cappella . [4]
The album was produced by David Dashev. [5] After two albums that contained instrumental accompaniment, Chiripin' was a return to an a capella style, albeit without member Jayotis Washington. [1]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [6] |
| Christgau's Record Guide | B+ [7] |
| The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [8] |
| The Rolling Stone Record Guide | [9] |
The Richmond Times-Dispatch praised the "rich, gutsy and romantic harmonies," and considered Chirpin' the group's best album. [10]
Greil Marcus, in The Village Voice , wrote of "Willie and Laura Mae Jones": "'That was another place, and another time,' runs the last line of Tony Joe White’s chorus; as the Persuasions sing it, it is full of dignity, close to bitter, and empty of regret. I don’t know that I have heard new black music this strong since the days that followed Sly Stone’s There’s a Riot Goin’ On." [11] He later listed the album as one of the ten best of the 1970s. [12]
Earth, Wind & Fire is the debut studio album by American band Earth, Wind & Fire, released in February 1971 by Warner Bros. Records. The album got to No. 24 on the Billboard Top Soul Albums chart.
The B-52's is the debut album by American New wave band the B-52's. The kitschy lyrics and mood, and the hook-laden harmonies helped establish a fanbase for the band, who went on to release several chart-topping singles. The album cover was designed by Tony Wright.
The Clash is the debut studio album by the English punk rock band the Clash, released on 8 April 1977 through CBS Records. Recorded and mixed over three weeks in February 1977 for £4,000, it would go on to reach No. 12 on the UK charts, and has been included on many retrospective rankings as one of the greatest punk albums of all time.
Give 'Em Enough Rope is the second studio album by the English punk rock band the Clash, released on 10 November 1978 through CBS Records. It was their first album released in the United States, preceding the US version of the self-titled studio album. The album was well received by critics and fans, peaking at number two in the United Kingdom Albums Chart, and number 128 in the Billboard 200. The album is tied with Combat Rock (1982) for being the highest-charting album for the Clash in their native United Kingdom.
Robert Thomas Christgau is an American music journalist and essayist. Among the most well-known and influential music critics, he began his career in the late 1960s as one of the earliest professional rock critics and later became an early proponent of musical movements such as hip hop, riot grrrl, and the import of African popular music in the West. Christgau spent 37 years as the chief music critic and senior editor for The Village Voice, during which time he created and oversaw the annual Pazz & Jop critics poll. He has also covered popular music for Esquire, Creem, Newsday, Playboy, Rolling Stone, Billboard, NPR, Blender, and MSN Music, and was a visiting arts teacher at New York University. CNN senior writer Jamie Allen has called Christgau "the E. F. Hutton of the music world – when he talks, people listen."
Here, My Dear is the fifteenth studio album by music artist Marvin Gaye, released as a double album on December 15, 1978, on Motown-subsidiary label Tamla Records. Recording sessions for the album took place between 1977 and 1978 at Gaye's personal studios, Marvin Gaye Studios, in Los Angeles, California. The album was notable for its subject matter focusing largely on Gaye's acrimonious divorce from his first wife, Anna Gordy Gaye.
The Persuasions were an American a cappella group that formed in Brooklyn, New York in 1962, singing under corner streetlights and in subway corridors. Their style combined gospel, soul, early rock, and jazz into melodic five-part harmonies. Since being discovered by Frank Zappa, the Persuasions have released 23 studio albums to date.
Wild Gift is the second studio album by American rock band X, released on May 4, 1981, by Slash Records. It was very well received critically, and was voted the year's second best album in The Village Voice's Pazz & Jop poll. Wild Gift was later ranked at number 334 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.
Little Criminals is the fifth studio album by American singer-songwriter Randy Newman. Like most of Newman's work, the album eschews traditional pop-music themes in favor of musical story-telling, often featuring quirky characters and cynical views. The first song on the album – "Short People" – became a hit single in its own right. The album itself peaked at #9 on the US Billboard 200 chart, Newman's highest-charting album to date.
Singles Going Steady is a compilation album by English punk rock band Buzzcocks, first released on I.R.S. Records in the United States on 25 September 1979.
Clydie Mae King was an American singer, best known for her session work as a backing vocalist. King also recorded solo under her name. In the 1970s, she recorded as Brown Sugar, and her single "Loneliness " reached No. 44 on the Billboard R&B charts in 1973.
Smokey is the debut studio album by American soul singer, songwriter, and producer Smokey Robinson. It was released on June 19, 1973, by Tamla Records and was Robinson's first solo record after his departure from The Miracles. The album featured the single "Sweet Harmony", which was his tribute to his former singing partners in the Miracles: Bobby Rogers, Pete Moore and Ronnie White. Smokey was arranged by Dave Blumberg, Gene Page and Willie Hutch. It also featured the song "Baby Come Close", his first solo hit single, and the single "Just My Soul Responding", a protest song dealing with ghetto life in America, and the plight of the American Indian. Smokey peaked at number 70 on the Billboard albums chart, on which it spent 19 weeks.
Hey, Man, Smell My Finger is the sixth studio album by American funk musician George Clinton, released October 12, 1993, on Paisley Park Records. It is Clinton's second and last release for the Paisley Park label, owned by Prince. The album features an array of musical guests including Prince, Dallas Austin, Humpty Hump from Digital Underground, Ice Cube, N'Dea Davenport, Dr. Dre, and Herbie Hancock, as well P-Funk alumni including Bootsy Collins, Bernie Worrell, Maceo Parker, and Fred Wesley. Hey, Man, Smell My Finger furthers Clinton's incorporation of hip hop elements such as electronically produced beats, rapping by Clinton, and sampling of older P-Funk material.
Super Hits is a compilation album by American soul singer, songwriter, and producer Marvin Gaye. It was released in 1970 by Motown's subsidiary Tamla Records and compiles Gaye's pop-R&B singles recorded from 1962 to 1969.
Hard Again is a studio album by American blues singer Muddy Waters. Released on January 10, 1977, it was the first of his albums produced by Johnny Winter. Hard Again was Waters's first album on Blue Sky Records after leaving Chess Records and was well received by critics.
Three or Four Shades of Blues is a studio album by the American jazz bassist and bandleader Charles Mingus. It was recorded in sessions held on March 9 and 11, 1977, at New York City's Atlantic Studios, and on March 29 at the Record Plant in Los Angeles. The album features two new versions of Mingus's "standards" and three new compositions performed by large ensembles featuring saxophonists Ricky Ford, George Coleman, and Sonny Fortune, pianist Jimmy Rowles, guitarists Larry Coryell, Philip Catherine and John Scofield, bassists Ron Carter and George Mraz, trumpeter Jack Walrath, and drummer Dannie Richmond.
Flowers is a studio album by the American girl group The Emotions, released in 1976 by Columbia Records. The album reached No. 5 on the Billboard Top R&B albums chart. Flowers has been certified Gold in the US by the RIAA.
Spinning Around the Sun is an album by country music singer-songwriter Jimmie Dale Gilmore. It was released in 1993 on Elektra Records, and was his second record for the label.
King Bee is the fourteenth and final studio album by blues singer and guitarist Muddy Waters. Released in 1981, it is third in a series of records done for the label Blue Sky Records under producer/guitarist Johnny Winter. Recorded in three days some of the band members, namely Winter and guitarist Bob Margolin, were not happy with the result. As his health deteriorated, Muddy was forced to cancel an increasing number of shows. He died of a heart attack on April 30, 1983.
Doug Sahm and Band is the debut solo album of American singer-songwriter Doug Sahm. In 1972, after leaving the Sir Douglas Quintet, Sahm moved to Austin, Texas. He was signed by Jerry Wexler to the newly opened country music division of Atlantic Records, and started the album sessions by October 1972. It featured appearances by Bob Dylan, Dr. John, David "Fathead" Newman, Flaco Jimenez, David Bromberg and Kenny Kosek.
