Releasing her first solo self-titled album in 1977, it wasn’t until 1985 where she joined the Philadelphia International Records roster, where she dropped her first PIR album titled “Living All Alone” in 1986. Other records recorded for the label includes; Prime of My Life, I Refuse to Be Lonely, and Forever with You.

On June 30, 1995, Hyman took her own life at the age of 45. She would have been 61 years old today.

For more Phyllis Hyman visit, http://www.phillysoulclassics.com/artists/phyllis-hyman

Feel free to check out all of her music on Amazon.com, all her albums and compilations are listed there as CDs & MP3 downloads.

Please enjoy the music of Phyllis Hyman in celebration of the soulful music she left behind.

Held in honor of Black Music Month, the evening pays tribute to the legendary music of Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff.

Billy Paul, the Philadelphia soul singer whose Grammy Award-winning No. 1 single “Me & Mrs. Jones” introduced him to the rest of the world. His vocal versatility spans the spectrum of musical styles from jazz to sophisticated R&B to ballads, and the recent Philadelphia Walk of Fame inductee continues to captivate live audiences on every continent.

The Original Intruders (Phil Terry and Robert “Big Sonny” Edwards): As the first group to have hit songs under the direction of Gamble & Huff, they played a major role in the rise of the Sound of Philadelphia. Their 1968 hit, “Cowboys to Girls,” topped the R&B charts, was a Top 10 pop hit, and became the template for what would become the Philly Sound. And let’s not forget their follow-up hit, “(Love Is Like a) Baseball Game.”

For more information, go to http://www.antimusic.com.

Before receiving their degrees, Gamble and Huff participated in a luncheon hosted at the David Friend Recital Hall at the Berklee College of Music. Berklee and Boston Arts Academy students were able to attend a question-and-answer session led by John P. Kellogg, Berklee’s Professor of Music Business and Management and former O’Jay’s attorney.

To read this follow up artcle to our original posting “Gamble & Huff Honored by Berklee College of Music During 2010 Commencement Ceremony”, please visit http://www.baystatebanner.com

Soul diva Patti LaBelle turns 66 years old today. May 24, 1944 marks the day Patti was brought into this world, she grew up singing in a local Baptist choir, and in 1960 teamed with friend Cindy Birdsong to form a group called the Ordettes.

Patti has won 2 Grammy Awards and has been nominated about a dozen times. Also, in 2003 “Lady Marmalade’ was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.

Recently, Patti LaBelle was inducted into Apollo Walk of Fame in NYC.

For more information on Patti Labelle, visit http://www.phillysoulclassics.com/artists/patti-labelle

Kenneth Gamble Delivered Commencement Address to Berklee Graduates, Families and Invited Guests.

Legendary Rock and Roll Hall of Fame songwriter-producers Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff was honored together with doctor of music degrees during this year’s commencement ceremony at Berklee College of Music. Mr. Gamble was also selected as the commencement speaker, and addressed more than 860 Berklee graduates, their parents, and invited guests during the proceedings on Saturday, May 8 at the 7,000-seat Agganis Arena at Boston University.

Gamble & Huff will be presented with their honorary doctorates by Berklee College of Music President Roger Brown, who also will be recognizing Paco de Lucia, Angelique Kidjo and Kenny Barron at the ceremony.

Gamble & Huff join an elite group of industry giants who have received honorary Berklee music doctorates, including Duke Ellington, Quincy Jones, Dizzy Gillespie, Aretha Franklin, David Bowie, Loretta Lynn and last year’s honoree, their dear friend, Motown great Smokey Robinson. One of Gamble & Huff’s earliest hits as songwriters, prior to creating PIR, was the Motown smash “I’m Gonna Make You Love Me,” covered in 1966 by the superstar combination of the Temptations and the Supremes.

“To be awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Music from The Berklee College of Music for our music career accomplishments is a feeling that goes beyond our wildest dreams,” said Gamble & Huff. “We are very humbled and truly blessed to be chosen to join a list of extraordinary luminaries.”

As architects of the world-renowned “Sound of Philadelphia,” Gamble & Huff are being recognized for their vast achievements and influence in music, and for their enduring contributions to American and international culture. Their message songs of peace, love, empowerment, social conscience and turmoil sold millions of records, as they fashioned the sweet, sexy, stirring, socially conscious Philly Sound at Philadelphia International Records (PIR). Gamble & Huff have recorded and collaborated with a galaxy of stars from the pop, rock, soul and jazz universes, including Michael Jackson and the Jacksons, Elton John, Lou Rawls, Teddy Pendergrass, Patti LaBelle, Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes, Aretha Franklin, the Spinners, the Stylistics, the Delfonics, Dusty Springfield, Jerry Butler, Wilson Pickett, Labelle, Archie Bell & the Drells, the Soul Survivors, Laura Nyro, the Trammps, McFadden & Whitehead, Phyllis Hyman and Grover Washington Jr. Their songs also have been covered by a myriad of artists including Elvis Presley, the Rolling Stones, Bette Midler, Simply Red, Michael Buble, Johnny Mathis, Lesley Gore, Donny & Marie, Thelma Houston, the Brand New Heavies and most recently, Rod Stewart, who sings four Gamble & Huff classics on his current album, Soulbook.

On commencement eve, as is Berklee’s tradition, students will paid tribute to the honorees by performing music associated with their careers in a private concert and ceremony at the Agganis Arena.

Next year marks the 40th anniversary of Philadelphia International Records, where the Gamble & Huff music machine generated over 100 Gold and Platinum records and over 70 #1 hits, including “Love Train” by the O’Jays, “Me & Mrs. Jones” (Billy Paul), “If You Don’t Know Me By Now” (Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes) and “Enjoy Yourself” (the Jacksons). In 2012, Gamble & Huff will celebrate the 50th anniversary of their historic songwriting partnership, beginning with their meteoric rise as writers and producers of early hits for the Intruders (”Cowboys to Girls”) and the Soul Survivors, who delivered the duo’s first No. 1 pop hit, “Expressway to Your Heart.”

Gamble & Huff became a hot independent R&B producing team in the late 1960s, leading to the creation of Philadelphia International Records in 1971. Almost from the day PIR first opened, artists began to dominate the charts. Within the first year, the O’Jays had #1 R&B and pop hits like “Back Stabbers” and “Love Train,” Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes were riding high with “If You Don’t Know Me By Now,” and Billy Paul earned the label’s first Grammy with “Me and Mrs. Jones,” quickly turning PIR into a dominant force in the music industry. Within two years, Philadelphia International was the second-largest African-American-owned music company in America. And by 1974, Gamble, Huff and publishing partner Thom Bell placed over 25 songs on the pop and R&B charts, making Mighty Three Music the biggest-selling music publishing company of the year.

Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff have been giving back to their communities for decades, rebuilding inner cities and funding schools to educate students of all ages. They remain committed to a single purpose: the well being and welfare of their people, making lives and conditions better in the community, teaching responsibility and self-respect, encouraging people to vote and clean up their neighborhoods, and honoring the importance of family. They have received countless awards during their illustrious careers not only for their musical genius, but for their sincere dedication to address the plight of those less fortunate.

One of Gamble & Huff’s proudest moments in Philadelphia International history involves a song and album they recorded with the entire PIR roster, “Let’s Clean Up The Ghetto,” adopted by states throughout America. The ensuing non-profit campaign, which earned their first invitation to the White House, has evolved into a special personal dream – the renovation of Mr. Gamble’s South Philadelphia neighborhood – an ongoing accomplishment he continues to realize as one the largest community revitalization efforts in the city of Philadelphia’s history through his Universal Companies. Similarly, Mr. Huff has returned regularly to Camden, NJ, to enrich the lives of the underprivileged in his home town, through renovation projects, education, and leisure trips to school-aged children. Last year, he was honored by the city with the renaming of a street in his old neighborhood to Leon Huff Way.

Gamble & Huff are among the most prolific professional songwriters of all time, having written and produced over 3,500 songs within 35 years, an output that rivals such famed songwriting teams as Lennon-McCartney and Jagger-Richards. They are enshrined in five music Halls of Fame, including the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, with a massive catalogue that includes numerous pop #1 hits, R&B #1 hits, 100 gold and platinum records, Grammy winners and BMI songwriters’ awards honorees. Featured prominently in television programs (”The Apprentice,” “Cold Case”), films (”The Nutty Professor”) and advertising spots (Verizon, Chevrolet, Coors Light, Old Navy, The Gap, Office Max) for more than 30 years, Gamble & Huff’s songs have entered the musical DNA of contemporary culture. In fact, one of their songs is played on the radio somewhere in the world every 13.5 minutes. With a stable core of artists led by the O’Jays, Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes, Billy Paul, MFSB and the Three Degrees, Gamble & Huff co-founded Philadelphia International Records and created monster hits almost from the first day of its inception. Songs they have written and produced together, like “Back Stabbers,” “Love Train,” “For The Love Of Money,” “If You Don’t Know Me By Now,” “Cowboys to Girls,” “Don’t Leave Me This Way,” “Enjoy Yourself,” “I’m Gonna Make You Love Me,” “Only the Strong Survive” and “TSOP” (better known as the “Soul Train” theme), have received songwriters’ awards from Broadcast Music International (BMI). Their songs comprise the most sampled R&B catalogue in the world, by artists such as Jay-Z, Usher, Cam’ron, Ja Rule, Jaheim, and Avant.

In 1999, four years after being inducted into the National Academy of Songwriters’ Hall of Fame, Gamble & Huff were honored by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences with the Trustees Award for their extensive body of work, both as producer and songwriter, and their contribution to the entire fabric of popular music, joining luminaries like Frank Sinatra, The Beatles, and Walt Disney. They have been inducted twice into the Dance Music Hall of Fame as well as the R&B Hall of Fame. In 2005, Gamble & Huff appeared on American Idol in a show devoted entirely to their music. In 2008, Gamble & Huff were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as the first recipients of the newly created Ahmet Ertegün Award.

The legend Patti Labelle, is apart of the first class of entertainers to be honored with stars on a new Walk Of Fame site outside of New York’s Apollo Theatre.

Also joining Patti LaBelle, is a list of Legendary artist such as The King of Pop Michael Jackson, The Godfather of Soul James Brown, Quincy Jones, Smokey Robinson, Gladys Knight and the Pips, Aretha Franklin, Little Richard and Ella Fitzgerald.

All plaques were installed this week for everyone except Michael Jackson and Aretha Franklin. Jackson and Franklin’s plaques will be unveiled in June with the Gala Benefit.

Each year at the non-profit Theater’s Spring Gala Benefit, legendary musicians, artists, and entertainers whose path to fame included the Apollo are inducted into the Apollo Legends Hall of Fame.

The Apollo theater is celebrating its 75th anniversary year.

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

The death was confirmed by Abington Health Lansdale Hospital. The cause was acute respiratory failure, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported.

To read the full article visit The New York Times website.

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.

Cain, who sang such hits as “La La Means I Love You,” and “Didn’t I (Blow Your Mind This Time),” formed the Delfonics with brothers William and Wilbert Hart while attending Overbrook High in the 1960s.

Cain left the Delfonics in 1971 and was replaced by Major Harris.

For more information, read Dan Gross’ article at Philly.com