Thom Bell, a producer, arranger and songwriter who was one of the architects of the Philly Sound in the late 1960s and early 1970s and had hits with soft soul vocal groups backed by his engaging orchestrations, died on December 22. He was 79.
Thom pioneered a movement that ushered in a new soul style that featured mostly male vocal groups singing lush, romantic songs. The groups he produced in the studio at Philadelphia's Sigma Sound were highly choreographed for stage and TV shows, such as Soul Train. Often dressed in what today can be described as elaborate prom outfits, their shirt collars were wide and lay over ruffled velvet jackets. Groups such as the Delfonics, the Dramatics, the O'Jays, the Stylistics, the Spinners, Blue Magic, Tavares and others sang about the ecstasy of being in love, the beauty of women and the twists and turns of relationships.
Lead vocalists of these groups often sang in higher voice to emphasize vulnerability and pull in both male and female record buyers. The movement was perfectly timed. By the early 1970s, car cassette and 8-track players had become affordable and turned cars into bachelor and bachelorette living rooms on wheels. In performance, the other members of soft-soul groups sang background and danced in a manner that illustrated the lyrics of a song.
Thom was among the first to produce these groups in Philadelphia. He also composed the music and arranged many of the hit songs his groups recorded. With the Stylistics, Thom collaborated with lyricist Linda Creed. Today, the songwriting pair still haven't been given their due. Creed, who was white, died of breast cancer at age 26.
I miss Thom. We spoke multiple times over the years by phone about his songwriting and the soft-soul revolution. He was key to my "Anatomy of a Song" column on the Spinners' I'll Be Around (go here), which can also be found in my new book, Anatomy of 55 More Songs (here).
Here are 10 songs plus three bonus tracks produced, arranged, conducted and, in some cases, co-written by Thom:
Here's La-La Means I Love You (1968) by the Delfonics, co-written, arranged and produced by Thom Bell...
Here's Didn't I (Blow Your Mind This Time) (1970) by the Delfonics, co-composed, arranged and produced by Thom Bell. Catch the French horn at the start...
Here's You Are Everything (1971) by the Stylistics, co-written by Thom Bell and Linda Creed, and arranged and produced by Thom...
Here's Betcha by Golly, Wow (1972) by the Stylistics, co-written by Thom Bell and Linda Creed, and arranged and produced by Thom. The lead vocal is by Russell Thompkins Jr....
Here's Break Up to Make Up (1972) by the Stylistics, co-written by Thom Bell, Linda Creed and Kenny Gamble, and arranged and produced by Thom...
Here's I'll Be Around (1972) by the Spinners, co-written, arranged and produced by Thom Bell. Dig drummer Earl Young's early, pure disco beat...
Here's the Spinners' Could It Be I'm Falling in Love (1972), produced, arranged and conducted by Thom Bell...
Here are the Spinners with Dionne Warwick singing Then Came You (1975), arranged and conducted by Thom Bell...
Here's Games People Play (1975) by the Spinners, arranged and conducted by Thom Bell. The Spinners' Bobby Smith sang lead vocal, with Evette Benton of the Sweethearts of Sigma singing the female lead part...
Here one of the Spinners' least-known, outstanding tracks, I'm Tired of Giving, off their Spinners/8 album (1977), arranged and conducted by Thom Bell. Dig Thom's arrangement...
Bonus: Here's Thom's strings-and-horns arrangement for The Back Stabbers (1972), by the O'Jays...
Here's Deniece Williams singing It's Gonna Take a Miracle (1982), arranged and produced by Thom Bell. The No. 1 single was a remake of the Royalettes' hit in 1965...
And here's Thom's arrangement for Elton John of Mama Can't Buy You Love (1979), co-written by Thom Bell...
