Philly Soul Classics: Artists and Music from The Sound of Philadelphia

On Wednesday, January 13th, Teddy Pendergrass died at a hospital in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, after fighting a long illness.

Image via CNN.com

Pendergrass or Teddy P for short, is known for such love ballads as “Turn Off the Lights” and “Love TKO”.

As reported by CNN.com, Teddy’s family did not reveal details about his illness, but did mention that it was related to complications from a 1982 car accident, Lisa Barbaris said. Barbaris, who described herself as a close friend and his last publicist.

For more details on this story, visit CNN.com

Teddy Pendergrass is a Legend to the R&B genre. Have a LISTEN courtesy of LegacyRecordings.com

iTunes presents “The World of Philly Soul” as a featured section with all the music from the Philly Soul era. This feature includes digital music from artists such as MFSB, Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes, The O’Jays, Teddy Pendergrass, Billy Paul, The Delfonics, The Stylistics and more!

Visit iTunes for a full listing of available music from the Philly Soul artists.

And visit PhillySoulClassics.com for more information about the artist of the Philly Soul Era.

Newly-filmed Philly Soul concert revue DVD showcases performances by Jerry Butler, the Delfonics, Harold Melvin’s Blue Notes, the Intruders, the O’Jays, Bunny Sigler, G.C. Cameron, the Soul Survivors,
Jean Carne, Russell Thompkins Jr. & the New Stylistics, the Three Degrees, & more…

Shot in High Definition in 2008 at the Borgata Hotel & Casino in Atlantic City, Love Train: The Sound of Philadelphia Live In Concert is out now on DVD; DVD features both Stereo and Surround Sound mixes.

Philadelphia International Records/Legacy proudly announces Love Train: The Sound of Philadelphia Live In Concert, a new 2-hour DVD celebrating the enduring musical legacy of the mythic musical production/songwriting duo Kenny Gamble & Leon Huff, creators of the classic Philly Soul Sound that began dominating music and radio charts in the early 1970s and continues to thrive into the 21st century.

A cornerstone event in Legacy’s monumental ongoing Philly Soul reissue project, this DVD captures an historic live concert filmed June 7, 2008, at the Borgata Hotel & Casino in Atlantic City, NJ. The program was shot in High Definition with a 12-camera set-up and state-of-the-art audio reproduction. The “Who’s Who” of Philadelphia International Records talent includes Jerry Butler, the Delfonics, Harold Melvin’s Blue Notes, the Intruders, the O’Jays, Bunny Sigler, G.C. Cameron, the Soul Survivors, Jean Carne, Russell Thompkins Jr. & the New Stylistics, the Three Degrees, and more.

Love Train: The Sound of Philadelphia Live In Concert DVD is the perfect visual accompaniment to last year’s critically-acclaimed Love Train: The Sound of Philadelphia 4-CD box set, also released by P.I.R./Legacy.

PBS premiered a one-hour version of “Love Train: The Sound of Philadelphia” as part of its December 2008 Pledge Week.

In 2008, Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame with the newly-named Ahmet Ertegun Award (formerly the “non-performer category”) at a ceremony at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City on March 10, 2008. In its review of the ceremony, the San Francisco Chronicle praised Gamble & Huff for creating a “melodic, luxurious sound — perfect for a world switching from mono to stereo — (that) was consistent no matter which artist they produced.”

www.Bremagazine.com headlined a piece, “Gamble & Huff Legacy Impacts 2008 Grammys” noting that “Grammy winner Kanye West–who was nominated for Album of the Year, Best Rap Solo Performance and Best Rap Album–incorporated Edwin Birdsong’s “Cola Bottle Baby” into the track “Stronger” for his album Graduation. Michael Bublé performed “Me & Mrs. Jones” on Call Me Irresponsible, a nominee for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album. Keyshia Cole included a sample of the O’Jays’ “She’s Only A Woman” on Just Like You, a nominee for the Best Contemporary R&B Album Grammy.”

In its review of the 2008 CD release Conquer The World: the Lost Soul of Philadelphia International Records, the music magazine Blender (May 2008) summed up the profound effect of Gamble & Huff’s music in a simple succinct phrase: “Motown had polish, Stax had grit, but Philly International had it all.”