Day 22: Blue Magic- Blue Magic
More sweet soul
Note: This post is part of a series where I listen to an album each day in December. Past posts can be found on my substack. All hyperlinked songs go to Spotify links, Youtube links can be found at the end of the post.
I typically try to do my listening in a quiet environment while using my stereo or headphones to ensure good sound quality. Today, I was stuck in terrible traffic and didn’t want to lose precious listening time. The catch was that my mom was driving, so out of respect for her, whatever album I was going to queue should be one she would enjoy too. Growing up, the majority of my music taste was molded by my dad. He was always listening to something and often in control of the radio. My mom likes music but has a different relationship to it than how I interpret my dad’s and mine. That’s not to say she hasn’t significantly impacted my taste. I attribute my love of soundtracks to her, and seeing the joy music brings to her as a casual listener has helped me take my taste less seriously.
Anyway, while sitting in our hour-plus traffic jam, I asked my mom to name some records she listened to repeatedly. According to her, she wore out Blue Magic’s self-titled debut album. Released in 1974, the album features some of the group’s greatest hits and is another example of the Philly Soul of the 70s. As I’ve mentioned before, talking about albums and the memories others have of them is such an illuminating dialogue. One of the questions I wanted to know was where she bought the record. It was her older brothers, but discussing the consumption of music in the 70s vs today is so interesting.
There are a lot of similarities between The Stylistics and their debut album I wrote about earlier this week. Both records were recorded at Sigma Sound in Philly, which means the instrumental support came from the iconic MFSB. The singing groups both feature a falsetto male vocalist and present their listeners with smooth ballads. Important figures to the Philadelphia International label were also involved in both productions. Norman Harris and Bruce Gamble producing for Blue Magic, and Thom Bell for The Stylistics.
Blue Magic seems to be a group that’s less remembered with time, but the music on this album is great. The group for the debut album consisted of Vernon Sawyer, Richard Pratt, Wendell Sawyer, Keith Beaton, and Ted Mills. I didn’t realize how many of their hit songs were on this album. Songs like “Welcome to the Club,” “Spell,” and “Start to Stop” played around me, but I never connected all of the dots to the group or their debut.
Listening to this album with another person was a refreshing change. It was particularly enjoyable to listen with my mom, and though the circumstance that kept us in the car long enough to listen to the entire 43-minute album was negative, the memory will be positive for many years. It was fascinating to see how much my mom remembered about the arrangements and musical details of the album. Notoriously, she is bad with lyrics. Often mishearing and then creating her own lyrics for songs, but at the end of “Just Don’t Want To Be Lonely,” she sang along with the saxophone solo. I know this is one of her favorite songs, but the version I like more and hear more often is the cover popularized by The Main Ingredient.
Regarding the music itself, the entire album leans more toward the sad side of love but doesn’t feel depressing. It’s definitely relatable, but I’ve always interpreted it as a spectacle to behold. A look inside someone else’s heartbreak. The most popular song on the album, “Sideshow,” builds the relationship between the listener and the heartbroken characters in the song. I was creeped out by the circus/carnival sounds of the track growing up. Now it is haunting in a good way and a quirky method to talk about heartbreak. If you look at the choreography, which the group was known for, in this live performance, you can see how the group visualized that creepy, almost animatronic feeling.
If you’re looking for even more sweet soul sounds, Blue Magic is a good group to check out. They don’t have the most unique sound in the world, but this album proves strong material can help a group propel to the top of the charts. I personally always enjoy the following.
Until Tomorrow,
Emily
Listen to Blue Magic on YouTube