Originally Posted by
soulster
When "Machine Gun" came out in the fall of 1974, it was hot! A lot of people, including me, were blown away that they were Black, only because it was still somewhat unusual in the early 70s for top 40 radio to play Black rockers, notwithstanding The Isley Brothers. It was a bigger surprise to discover that they were on Motown!
The word was that Berry Gordy initially didn't want their faces on the jacket because he didn't want to hurt their chances on rock stations and with record buyers. But, as it turned out, they didn't really reach big success on the pop chart until "Sweet Love", as "Machine Gun" only got as high as #22, still very respectable for a very musically crowded year.
I followed the band until their "Heroes" album. After that, they lost me. I dug "Lady, You Bring Me Up", but, they had lost the magic, and seemed to be painting by the numbers. No wonder Lionel Richie left after that point.
A lot of people confused Lionel Richie's vocal with Walter Orange's voice, and it didn't help that they often exchanged leads on the same songs. Orange did most of the funk numbers, and, of course, Richie did most of the ballads.
Their biggest successful album was the 1977 self-titled album, with the hit singles "Easy" and "Brick House", but that is my least favorite. I like the earlier albums, and "Natural High" from 1978.
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