The Brand New Heavies is an acid jazz and funk group formed in 1985 in Ealing in west London. Centered around songwriters/multi-instrumentalists Simon Bartholomew and Andrew Levy, the core members of the group since its founding, Brand New Heavies are best known for a string of successful singles in the early 1990s featuring N'Dea Davenport as lead vocalist. They are currently on tour with a best of set, incorporating a string section and 70’s influenced sequinned trousers.
The Brand New Heavies began in the 1980s as an instrumental acid jazz group called Brothers International.[1]
The group came up with the Heavies name after signing their first record contract, borrowing from a liner note on a James Brown single declaring the artist "Minister of New Super Heavy Funk".[2] As The Brand New Heavies they gained a cult following in the London club scene and soon signed to Cooltempo as acid jazz replaced rare groove in clubs. The band issued a debut recording for Eddie Piller's Acid Jazz label in 1990 with Jay Ella Ruth as lead singer.[3]
A single, "Got to Give", came out on Cooltempo before the Brand New Heavies signed to Acid Jazz Records and released Brand New Heavies to critical acclaim. The band signed to a division of Chrysalis Records in the UK,[1] and American distribution was picked up by influential label Delicious Vinyl, and N'Dea Davenport (who had signed an artist development deal with Delicious Vinyl) joined the group. A revamped version of the first album with vocals by N'Dea Davenport was then released, and the singles "Dream Come True", "Never Stop" and "Stay This Way", all with Davenport on lead vocals, became hits on both sides of the Atlantic, with the latter becoming a music video directed by Douglas Gayeton that saw heavy rotation on MTV.
The Brand New Heavies released Brother Sister in 1994 which was the last album for a while with N'Dea Davenport, who had left to complete her solo album (which she had put on hold to join the Heavies). The album spawned more singles, though one of them, a cover of Maria Muldaur's "Midnight at the Oasis", was popular only in the UK because it was not included in the US version of the album.
Siedah Garrett joined the group for their next album, Shelter (1997). It contained the minor hit, the Carole King-penned song "You've Got a Friend" that was originally made famous by James Taylor. Again, though, this song did not appear on the US version of the album. The album also contained the hit "Sometimes". The remix of "Sometimes" included the rap vocals of Q-Tip.
2000s–present
The Brand New Heavies then released their greatest hits album, Trunk Funk – The Best of The Brand New Heavies (2000) with Carleen Anderson on vocals for some newly recorded songs, followed by the Japan only album We Won't Stop (2003) featuring a variety of vocalists and Allaboutthefunk (2005) co-written and co-produced by Nicole Russo (as detailed on the album sleeve) who also featured as Lead vocalist.
For We Won't Stop album, The Brand New Heavies relied on singer/songwriter Sy Smith for the bulk of the female vocals.[4] Original member Jan Kincaid takes the lead on three of the tracks, and Los Angeles-based poet Gina Loring[5][6] makes several appearances on the album.[7] Where the Heavies typical sound had typically been more 1970s funk-styled and acoustically driven, We Won't Stop sees the band experimenting with more electronic elements and contemporary R&B.[8]
The album marked the first commercial release of "What Do You Take Me For", the band's lone track featuring former flagship lead vocalist N'Dea Davenport.[9] The track would be later re-recorded in a more modern configuration with Nicole Russo on lead for the Allabouthefunk album.[10] The sound and musical arrangement heard on these first releases of "Music", "Love Is...", and the title track "We Won't Stop" were re-recorded with new leads on N'Dea Davenport's 2006 return to the band for the comeback album Get Used to It.[11]
In April 2006, the Brand New Heavies reunited with N'Dea Davenport and former label Delicious Vinyl. A new album, Get Used to It was released on 27 June 2006 via Starbucks and more traditional music retail outlets. The album was recorded in New York and London; and the lead single "I Don't Know Why (I Love You)" was issued in early May. The single was notable for being one of very few late releases to feature the trademarked A Tom Moulton Mix, as he had been asked to contribute remixes. Later that year, their Heavy Rhyme Experience, Vol. 1 album track "Jump 'n' Move" featuring Jamal-ski was featured on the soundtrack for the 2006 computer-animated feature filmHappy Feet and the in-game soundtrack for 2004's NBA Live 2005 and 2009's NBA 2k10. The band toured at the end of 2006.
The Heavies recorded a cover of "C'est Magnifique" (originally from Cole Porter's 1953 musical Can-Can) for an early 2009 TV ad by Lancôme. The song also appeared in an early track listing of the Heavies' 2009 live album, but wasn't eventually included. The 2-CD Live in London was released in October 2009. The studio version of "C'est Magnifique" was released as a download and also included on a couple of various artists compilations.
The Brand New Heavies released a download instrumental album called Dunk Your Trunk in November 2011.[12] The album, recorded in only four days and described as 'funky library music' is directed at 'TV and Movie people to add to their programmes and films'. The 5-track Dunk Your Trunk Remixed E.P. was released on download on 1 May 2013.
Dawn Joseph was lead vocalist for The Brand New Heavies from 2013 to 2015.
The Brand New Heavies eighth studio album Forward was released on 6 May 2013. Lead vocal duties on the album are divided evenly between N'Dea Davenport, who features on the first single "Sunlight", Jan Kincaid and Simon Bartholomew, making his debut as lead vocalist on this album, and new UK vocalist Dawn Joseph.[13] While the album was produced by the Heavies themselves, as all their previous albums, there are also new collaborators, including songwriters Johan Jones Wetterberg, Marc Jackson Burrows, Rita Campbell and Tim Laws and mixing engineer Toni Economides.
On 10 October 2013, The Brand New Heavies announced via their website that Dawn Joseph had officially joined the band as full-time lead vocalist and that the band were working on a new studio album slated for release in early 2014.[14]
On 21 February 2014, The Brand New Heavies played at Buxton Opera House with support from British acoustic blues singer songwriter Matt Woosey. The Brand New Heavies ninth studio album Sweet Freaks, with Dawn Joseph on vocals, was released on 24 October 2014.
Jan Kincaid and Dawn Joseph both left The Brand New Heavies in late 2015. In July 2016, the band began touring extensively in Europe and Japan with Sulene Fleming on vocals. She stayed until 2018. In November 2018 the band started touring with Angela Ricci on vocals.
The Brand New Heavies premiered their new single "Getaway" with N'Dea Davenport on vocals in April 2019. A new studio album, TBNH, was released on 6 September 2019 on Acid Jazz Records and features Davenport, Siedah Garrett, Angie Stone, Beverley Knight, Angela Ricci, Jack Knight, Honey Larochelle, and Laville. The fUnKin in the UK Tour brought the band all across the UK in 2021,[15] after the live shows were rescheduled following the COVID-19 pandemic.
Jamiroquai are an English funk and acid jazz band from London. Formed in 1992, they are fronted by vocalist Jay Kay, and were prominent in the London-based funk and acid jazz movement of the 1990s. They built on their acid jazz sound in their early releases and later drew from rock, disco, electronic and Latin music genres. Lyrically, the group has addressed social and environmental justice. Kay has remained as the only original member through several line-up changes.
Acid jazz is a music genre that combines elements of funk, soul, and hip hop, as well as jazz and disco. Acid jazz originated in clubs in London during the 1980s with the rare groove movement and spread to the United States, Japan, Eastern Europe, and Brazil. Acts included The Brand New Heavies, D'Influence, Incognito, Us3, and Jamiroquai from the UK and Buckshot LeFonque and Digable Planets from the U.S. The rise of electronic club music in the middle to late 1990s led to a decline in interest, and in the twenty-first century, the movement became indistinct as a genre. Many acts that might have been defined as acid jazz are seen as jazz-funk, neo soul, or jazz rap.
The Dazz Band is an American R&B/funk band most popular in the early 1980s. Emerging from Cleveland, Ohio, the group's biggest hit songs include "Let It Whip" (1982), "Joystick" (1983), and "Let It All Blow" (1984). The name of the band is a portmanteau of the description "danceable jazz".
A Certain Ratio are an English post-punk band formed in Flixton, Greater Manchester in 1977 by Peter Terrell and Simon Topping, with Jez Kerr, Martin Moscrop, Donald Johnson (drums), and Martha Tilson (vocals) joining soon after.
Ugly Kid Joe is an American hard rock band from Isla Vista, California, formed in 1989. The band's name spoofs the glam metal band Pretty Boy Floyd's name.
N'Dea Davenport is an American singer, songwriter, dancer and producer. She was the lead vocalist in the UK acid jazz band the Brand New Heavies and made pioneering contributions to the genre of acid jazz.
Providence was an American six-piece rock band, active from 1971 to 1974. The group originated in Boise, Idaho, but was later based in Portland, Oregon. The Moody Blues signed Providence to a recording contract with Threshold. They released one album, Ever Sense the Dawn, in 1972.
"Midnight at the Oasis" is a song written by David Nichtern. It was recorded in 1973 by American folk and blues singer Maria Muldaur for her self-titled album (1973) and is her best-known recording; it peaked at #6 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and #21 in the UK Singles Chart in the spring of 1974. Billboard ranked it as the No. 13 song for 1974. It was also nominated for both Record of the Year and Song of the Year at the 17th Annual Grammy Awards, held in 1975. In Canada, the song reached #2 in the RPM magazine singles charts and #45 in the year-end chart.
The Brand New Heavies is the debut album by British acid jazz and funk group The Brand New Heavies.
Brother Sister is an album by British acid jazz and funk group the Brand New Heavies, released on March 22, 1994, by Delicious Vinyl. It spawned several singles, including "Spend Some Time" which spent two weeks at number two on the American dance charts. A cover of Maria Muldaur's "Midnight at the Oasis" became popular in the UK, but was not included in the US version of the album.
Mekaal Hasan Band is an international sufi rock band formed in Lahore, Pakistan in 2000 by composer, singer-songwriter and guitarist Meekal Hasan.
All About the Funk is a funk album released by the Brand New Heavies. After their most identifiable lead singer N'Dea Davenport left the band to pursue a solo career in the mid-1990s, the band rotated in several African-American singer/songwriters Siedah Garrett, Carleen Anderson, and Sy Smith as lead vocalists on previous projects. This independent follow-up release features British singer Nicole Russo on vocals for the entire project. The band covers Jimmy Cliff's "Many Rivers to Cross", as well as covering their own "What Do You Take Me For", which previously featured N'Dea Davenport on their 2003 album We Won't Stop.
Get Used to It is a funk album by the Brand New Heavies released 27 June 2006 via Starbucks and more traditional music retail outlets.
Following a 10-year tenure with their record labels, funk band the Brand New Heavies released two greatest hits albums titled Trunk Funk, a wordplay on the band's long standing elephant logo.
Helen Rogers is a British singer/songwriter who has been active since 1978. She has been featured vocalist with Brit funk bands Direct Drive and 7th Heaven. She has also been a session singer for Paul Hardcastle.
Live in London is a live album by the Brand New Heavies released in October 2009.
N'Dea Davenport is the self-titled studio album by American singer and songwriter N'Dea Davenport, released on June 30, 1998, by V2 Records. The album peaked at number 56 on the Billboard R&B Albums chart and number 14 on the Heatseekers Albums chart.
Sulene Fleming is a British singer and songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist for the band the Brand New Heavies from 2016 to 2018.
"Dream On Dreamer" is a song by British acid jazz and funk group the Brand New Heavies, released in March 1994 by FFRR as the lead single from the group's third album, Brother Sister (1994). The song is also featured on their remix album, Excursions: Remixes & Rare Grooves (1995), that was released in the US. It remains one of their most successful hits, peaking at number 15 in the UK and number 19 in Scotland. In the US, it reached number 51 on the Billboard Hot 100, while in Canada, it hit number 47 on the RPM Top Singles chart. The accompanying music video for "Dream On Dreamer" was directed by American director Josh Taft.
This is the discography documenting albums and singles released by American singer N'Dea Davenport.
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