Apollo -- promo badge ?

[jsmith]

Apollo had one album released by Motown back in the late 70's .......
.. a track from it ........

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rGkxPXsGhE4

I don't believe it got much promotion and as a result sold badly. That's why I was amazed to see this badge for sale on ebay ...........
7318

Did Motown do similar things for other releases back at the time ?

[BayouMotownMan]

Yes they did little gimmicks to promote their artists. In Apollo's case, they were just a routine disco band. There was nothing unique or different about them. To me Astro Disco was just cheap dance music.

[marybrewster]

Yes they did little gimmicks to promote their artists. In Apollo's case, they were just a routine disco band. There was nothing unique or different about them. To me Astro Disco was just cheap dance music.

I assume Apollo didn't do well due to lack of promotion; surprising since there was Gordy kin in the group.

Is that the reason you suppose, according to legend, that Rockwell signed to Motown without Berry's knowledge? Not that in the end Rockwell faired better.....

[BayouMotownMan]

The lp was released at the height of the disco craze and Motown was swimming in red by this time. The group just didn't have the goods. There was no dynamic singer, no sex symbol, no great instrumentalist in there. The album itself was not well produced and was just cheap disco. I had to laugh in Ray's book where she said the lyrics were really cute, "It's your duty to shake your booty." Cmon Ray, those lyrics were in virtually every disco song of that day. Albums by Bloodstone and 21st Creation, while again relying on disco, were simply more imaginative. But the market was flooded with disco music and none of this stuff stood out. Gordy nixed a second album by Apollo. Kin or not, he knew they weren't star material. I think they tried going to another label but that fell thru.

[jsmith]

I quite like the track "Happiness" that I posted up above.
In the late 70's there were some awful releases, even from established good soul singers. Most acts at the time seemed to be forced into cutting disco stuff, much of it being very weak but featuring the 'right vibe' for those times. It's true to say that most of the cuts in that style haven't stood up to the test of time.
I'm sure, with a bit more care & attention, Apollo could have established themselves as a recording act.
AFTER ALL ...... Janet Jackson had no real distinguishing vocal qualities & her stage show was totally bogus BUT didn't stop her from having numerous massive worldwide hits [[though most came due to her having the right surname for those times). 'Unique or different' certainly didn't figure in Janet J's repertoire.