Marion Black

Last updated
Marion Black
Genres Soul
Funk
OccupationMusician
InstrumentVocals
Years active1969 — 1973 (aprox.)
LabelsCapsoul
Shakat Records
Rome

Marion Black is an American soul singer and songwriter from Columbus, Ohio, best known for his 1970 song "Who Knows".

Contents

Biography

Black's career began in 1969, when he approached local music operator Bill Moss, with his self-penned song "Who Knows". The resultant single launched Moss's Capsoul record label. The A-side, "Go On Fool", became a minor hit in 1971, peaking at #39 on the US Billboard R&B chart. [1] Black continued his job as a head waiter at the time of the release, and only toured lightly in support of the single.

After a dispute over royalties with Capsoul founder Bill Moss, Black left Capsoul for another local label, Prix Records, [2] where he later recorded at Harmonic Sounds studio. [3] His releases there included "Listen Black Brother", "I'm Gonna Get Loaded", and "(More Love) Is All We Need", none of which achieved commercial success.

Later in the 1970s, Black recorded at Jack Casey's Rome Studio on East Broad Street, which yielded another nationally distributed single, "Off The Critical List" on Shakat Records.

Three decades later, a tape with a previously unreleased song entitled "Come On and Gettit" was found at an estate sale in Columbus. [4]

It's assumed that Black stopped working on the music industry during the 1970s and instead continued working as the head waiter at the Holiday Inn in Columbus. He retired in 1995, after having worked at the restaurant for 25 years. [5]

Black's recordings have been featured on two compilation albums issued by The Numero Group. He is represented on Eccentric Soul: The Capsoul Label (2004) by two tracks, "Who Knows" and "Go On Fool". The compilation Eccentric Soul: The Prix Label (2007) features "Listen Black Brother", along with Black's unreleased track "Come On and Gettit".

"Who Knows" was later sampled by the American musician RJD2 in the song "Smoke and Mirrors", from his 2002 album Deadringer . [2] It was also featured on the 2005 soundtrack album Weeds: Music from the Original Series from the first season of Weeds .

"Who Knows" was played behind the closing credits of the 2006 documentary film Who Killed the Electric Car? . [6]

In February 2013, "Who Knows" was featured on a TV BlackBerry advertisement shown during the U.S. Super Bowl game.

"Who Knows" was featured in season 2, episode 7 of Hulu's Original Series Casual .

"Who Knows" was featured at the end of Michael Moore's "Rumble" podcast (episode 248: "Forget Me Not").

"Who Knows" was featured at the end of episode 4 of the first season of Bad Sisters on HBO.

"Who Knows" was featured at the end and behind the closing credits of episode 6 of Netflix's miniseries Griselda .

"Who Knows" was also featured in episode 8 of the second season of Apple TV's show Severance .

In November 2024, "Who Knows" was featured on a TV commercial for The Farmer's Dog. [7]

Discography

Title (A-side/B-side) [8] LabelYear
"Go on Fool"/"Who Knows"Capsoul1970
"I'm Gonna Get Loaded"/"You're Not Alone"Prix1971
"Listen Black Brother"/"Listen Black Brother - Pt.2"Prix1972
"(More Love) is All We Need"/Inst.Prix1973
"Off The Critical List" Part 1/Part 2Starr/Shakat1973
"He Kept it For His Self"/"You Don't Want Me"Rome2025

References

  1. ↑ "Best Selling Soul Singles chart". Billboard Magazine. 83 (12). Nielsen Business Media, Inc.: 34 March 20, 1971. ISSN   0006-2510 . Retrieved August 14, 2011.
  2. 1 2 DeVille, Chris: "Headliners: Numero's Eccentric Soul Revue Archived 2011-07-27 at the Wayback Machine " Columbus Alive! November 5, 2009.
  3. ↑ "1972 International Directory of Recording Studios - Columbus (Area Code 614)". Billboard . Vol. 84, no. 24. June 10, 1972. p. 45. ISSN   0006-2510 . Retrieved August 13, 2011. Harmonic Sounds Studio, Records: "You're not Alone", "Just Another Fool", "Take To The Streets" & "It's Your Brother"; Artist: Marion Black.
  4. ↑ "Eccentric Soul: The Prix Label liner notes". OtherMusic.com. Archived from the original on July 15, 2011. Retrieved March 7, 2013.
  5. ↑ A Closer Look at Unsung Soul Great, Marion Black & "Who Knows What Tomorrow Will Bring". By Max Bell February 5, 2013, Passionweiss.com
  6. ↑ "Who Killed the Electric Car? (2006) - Soundtracks". IMDb . Retrieved 2020-04-05.
  7. ↑ The Farmer's Dog Commercial: Delivery Day
  8. ↑ A list of Marion Black recordings at 45rpmrecords.com Retrieved December 27, 2010.
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