BLOODSTONE on Motown

[jsmith]

Bloodstone were going nowhere [[commercially) at the start of the 70's. So they relocated to the UK, teamed up with Mike Vernon here and started to have success. They were recording in London & rural Oxfordshire [[Chipping Norton) & started to have hits. They were soon a hot act on the charts and remained so thru to the mid 70's.
But their hits were mainly back in the US, so they moved back home ... AND ... signed a new record deal with Motown.
THEY THEN GOT LOST, despite cutting some good stuff while with Motown.
Were they just another act who Motown failed to promote in the mid to late 70's period ?
Why was there Motown stuff not promoted properly ? or had their sound 'gone out of style' [[it hadn't in my opinion).
They soon moved on & signed with another act who's spell with Motown hadn't gone great [[the Isleys).
Anyone here know just what went wrong for them after they signed with Motown ?

[jsmith]

A goodie off their album ...

[jsmith]

Another one from them ...

[jsmith]

and yet another one ...

[jsmith]

Bloodstone had hits on London till 1976, then started having hits again when they signed with T Neck ... it was just when on Motown that the hits stopped ... their Motown 45 / 12 ...
it was good enough to be a hit ...

[BayouMotownMan]

I was a DJ in the late 70s and always pushed Motown product. I was always on the phone with Skip Miller and Marlene Reyes. You could always tell when there was excitement about a new act just in how they promoted them.

Motown's fortunes began slowly diminishing in 1977 when fewer singles and albums charted. They signed a slew of new acts; Rick James, Switch, Platinum Hook, 3 Ounces of Love, Bloodstone, High Inergy, 21st Creation to name a few. Of these only James, Switch and High Inergy took off. I remember they heavily promoted Bonnie Pointer's first lp. They would bring it up in every conversation. Their promotional budgets were getting slashed and each year there were layoffs until around 1980 when Gordy took the music division back over after the movies began to not do well either.

In most cases the new acts were just spitting out cheap disco. That was how I felt about Bloodstone's lone Motown album. The title track was the only quality cut to my ears. Billy Preston & Syreeta did a soundtrack lp to the failed Fast Break movie. The obvious hit on that lp was the breath taking With You, I'm Born Again. Instead they issued a cheap disco Go For It. It would be over a year later when the Brits took With You to the top of the charts and then, with little promotion from Motown, it hit here as well. Without Berry Gordy's attention the music division of Motown was a disorganized mess. There was some good music that was squandered away in that period. I'm thinking of the 3 Ounces of Love album and 21st Creation had a decent debut lp. Cuba Gooding was wasted on cheap disco. Mary Wilson's solo debut was also disco but Hal Davis gave it a little more quality, but the worst song on that lp was put out as the first single, killing it off. Scherrie and Susaye's duo lp wasn't even distributed properly, it had to be special ordered. I was playing all this stuff on the radio, but I was the only one doing so it seemed.

[Graham Jarvis]

One of there best " Just Wanna Get The Feel Of It" 1978, shame not many Motown 45's from Bloodstone. The Promos are around , however you see very few of the normal 45 record.




https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hlh_y-kqvjI

[copley]

Bloodstone were going nowhere [[commercially) at the start of the 70's. So they relocated to the UK, teamed up with Mike Vernon here and started to have success. They were recording in London & rural Oxfordshire [[Chipping Norton) & started to have hits. They were soon a hot act on the charts and remained so thru to the mid 70's.
But their hits were mainly back in the US, so they moved back home ... AND ... signed a new record deal with Motown.
THEY THEN GOT LOST, despite cutting some good stuff while with Motown.
Were they just another act who Motown failed to promote in the mid to late 70's period ?
Why was there Motown stuff not promoted properly ? or had their sound 'gone out of style' [[it hadn't in my opinion).
They soon moved on & signed with another act who's spell with Motown hadn't gone great [[the Isleys).
Anyone here know just what went wrong for them after they signed with Motown ?

Bloodstone only had one minor UK hit 'Natural High' which peaked at #40.

[jsmith]

.... RE: Bloodstone only had one minor UK hit 'Natural High' which peaked at #40 .....
. . . I never said Bloodstone had many UK pop chart hits. They based themselves here, recorded here & were a popular live act here. However, when their UK recordings started hitting big in the US, it was only a matter of time till they moved back home.
In the US they had 2 x top 10 R&B 45's in 73, both of which were pop chart hits. They then had 2 x 45 R&B hits in 74, 75 & 76 [[most of them also charting pop). With all that US success, it was a non-brainer to go home & play big live shows across the States.
With the profile that they had built up by 76, they should have been treated much better by Motown when they signed with the company.

[Philles/Motown Gary]

One of there best " Just Wanna Get The Feel Of It" 1978, shame not many Motown 45's from Bloodstone. The Promos are around , however you see very few of the normal 45 record.




https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hlh_y-kqvjI

Graham, I especially like this track. The strings and the back-up vocals sure remind me of something, but I can't quite put my finger on it. Maybe Van McCoy and Choice Four's "Is It Love"????

https://youtu.be/azbUnacVR5A?si=v1jMiBRIsVveQOrv

[jsmith]

Bloodstone on UK TV late 73 ... Old Grey Whistle Test ... this track was cut in the US in 72, the recordings after this [[a 1973 LP) were cut in the UK ...