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ALBUMTheir Best (Rerecorded Version) - EPHarold Melvin & The Blue Notes
Albums by Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes
ALBUMTalk It Up (Tell Everybody) (Expanded Edition) [Remastered]Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes
ALBUMThe Blue Album (feat. Sharon Paige)Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes
ALBUMWake Up Everybody (feat. Teddy Pendergrass)Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes
ALBUMTo Be True (Expanded Edition) [feat. Teddy Pendergrass]Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes
ALBUMBlack & Blue (Expanded Edition) [feat. Teddy Pendergrass]Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes
ALBUMI Miss You (Expanded Edition) [feat. Teddy Pendergrass]Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes
ALBUMHarold Melvin & The Blue Notes (feat. Teddy Pendergrass)Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes
Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes's Popular Music Videos
Hope That We Can Be Together Soon (feat. Sharon Paige) [From Love Train: The Sound of Philadelphia - Live In Concert]
Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes
The Love I Lost (From Love Train: The Sound of Philadelphia)
Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes
Artist Playlists
Harold Melvin Essentials
He and his vocal group personified Philly soul with a conscience.
Inspired by Harold Melvin
Their legacy lives on in neo-soul and R&B A-lists.
Artist Biography
Fronted by the charismatic Teddy Pendergrass during their peak years, Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes helped to define the lush and soulful “Philly Sound” of the ’70s.
• Melvin formed the group as a Philly doo-wop outfit called The Charlemagnes in the mid-’50s. They soon changed their name to Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes, and in 1956, they released their debut single, “If You Love Me.”
• In 1965, they scored a minor R&B hit with “Get Out (And Let Me Cry).”
• Teddy Pendergrass joined in 1970, rounding out a lineup that also included Melvin, Lloyd Parkes, Lawrence Brown, and Bernard Wilson. The quintet signed with Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff’s Philadelphia International label in 1972.
• The group struck gold with 1972’s “If You Don’t Know Me By Now,” an R&B chart-topper that reached No. 3 on pop. The song earned a Grammy nomination for Best R&B Vocal Performance by a Duo, Group, or Chorus.
• Featuring disco drums and strings, 1973s “The Love I Lost” gave the group another No. 1 on Billboard’s R&B chart. The single peaked at No. 7 on the pop charts.
• The Blue Notes notched two more No. 1 R&B hits before Melvin left for a solo career in 1977: “Hope That We Can Be Together Soon” and “Wake Up Everybody.” The latter appears on 1975’s platinum-selling Wake Up Everybody.
• Following Pendergrass’ departure, the group’s remaining members—fronted by Sharon Paige and David Ebo—returned with 1977’s Reaching for the World. The LP spawned a pair of Top 20 R&B hits.
• The Blue Notes issued their final album, Talk It Up (Tell Everybody), and continued to tour until 1997, when 57-year-old Melvin died from stroke complications.
Hometown
Philadelphia, PA, United States
Genre
R&B/Soul