ABBA

When he was a teenager he formed the group The Epsilons with John Whitehead who he would collaborate with for much of his career. They were noticed by Otis Redding who they were managed by and toured with him as his backing singers until he died in 1967.

Following the death of Otis Redding they had a brief time with Stax Records and released the song “The Echo” in 1970 which became a minor hit.

They changed their name to Talk of the Town and joined up with the production team of Gamble & Huff and signed to their Philadelphia International record label. This was the start of what would be a successful period for them when they were noticed for their writing talents when The O’Jays had a huge hit with their “Back Stabbers”.

This led to them being involved in the creation of the sound of Philadelphia soul and writing in the region of 400 songs with hits that included “Soul City Walk” for Archie Bell & The Drells, “Bad Luck”, “Where Are All My Friends” and “Wake Up Everybody” for Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes and “I’ll Always Love My Mama” for The Intruders.

In 1979 they had their own hit when they released the hugely successful “Ain’t No Stoppin’ Us Now” which went to No. 1 on the R&B chart and No. 5 in the UK. It appeared on their 1979 album of the same name but they did not see the same success with their two following albums..

In 1981 he was the co-composer of the incidental music and lyrics for the Broadway production of Inacent Black starring Melba Moore.

In 2004 he became ill with cancer of the lungs and liver and passed away in Philadelphia at the age of 57 in 2006.

His legacy lives on with the songs of McFadden & Whitehead appearing in many movies and television shows today. His work can be heard on the soundtracks of The Associate, Boogie Nights, Brown Sugar, Carlito’s Way, Life, Next Friday and Shrek 2 to name a few.

His success as a musician, songwriter and producer resulted in two Grammy nominations, two platinum records and 22 gold records.

Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes recordings

To Be Free To Be Who We Are (Victor Carstarphen, Gene McFadden, John Whitehead)

Philadelphia International – SPIR 4909 (UK 45)

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