A House on Fire: The Rise and Fall of Philadelphia Soul [Hardcover]

John A. Jackson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 15, 2004

"If You Don't Know Me By Now," "The Love I Lost," "The Soul Train Theme," "Then Came You," "Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now"--the distinctive music that became known as Philly Soul dominated the pop music charts in the 1970s. In A House on Fire, John A. Jackson takes us inside the musical empire created by Kenny Gamble, Leon Huff, and Thom Bell, the three men who put Philadelphia Soul on the map.
Here is the eye-opening story of three of the most influential and successful music producers of the seventies. Jackson shows how Gamble, Huff, and Bell developed a black recording empire second only to Berry Gordy's Motown, pumping out a string of chart-toppers from Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes, the Spinners, the O'Jays, the Stylistics, and many others. The author underscores the endemic racism of the music business at that time, revealing how the three men were blocked from the major record companies and outlets in Philadelphia because they were black, forcing them to create their own label, sign their own artists, and create their own sound. The sound they created--a sophisticated and glossy form of rhythm and blues, characterized by crisp, melodious harmonies backed by lush, string-laden orchestration and a hard-driving rhythm section--was a glorious success, producing at least twenty-eight gold or platinum albums and thirty-one gold or platinum singles. But after their meteoric rise and years of unstoppable success, their production company finally failed, brought down by payola, competition, a tough economy, and changing popular tastes.
Funky, groovy, soulful--Philly Soul was the classic seventies sound. A House on Fire tells the inside story of this remarkable musical phenomenon.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In his latest meticulously detailed slice of pop music history, Jackson (American Bandstand: Dick Clark and the Making of a Rock and Roll Empire) focuses on the creation, expansion and dissolution of Philadelphia International Records, whose songs and artists dominated soul and pop airwaves throughout the 1970s. Specifically, he follows the careers of three men who defined the company's "Philly Soul" sound: Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff, a powerhouse producing-writing team who made stars of Teddy Pendergrass and the O'Jays, and Thom Bell, whose solo work as a producer brought success to groups such as the Spinners and the Stylistics. On the musical side, Philadelphia International combined the smooth harmonies and sophistication of Motown with the hard-driving funk of the Memphis-based Stax Records; on the business end, the black-owned label mirrored the almost dictatorial Motown machine while seeking to emulate the family feel of the smaller Stax. The unlikely combination of the outgoing Gamble and the gruff, taciturn Huff—"a study in complementary talents"—managed to create some of the most memorable songs of the era, including "Back Stabbers" and "If You Don't Know Me By Now." Though by 1983 the label was but "a shell of what it once had been," the Philadelphia International sound influences pop-soul and rap artists today. Photos not seen by PW.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Jackson tells the inside story of 1970s Philadelphia soul, "a multilayered, bottom-heavy brand of . . . glossy urban rhythm and blues" featuring "crisp, melodious harmonies backed by lush, string-laden orchestration"--a sort of polite funk notably delivered by songwriters Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff of Philadelphia International Records and Thom Bell, whose creations graced various Philly-area labels. Their hits' performers--the O'Jays, Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes, the Spinners, the Stylistics, Gamble--gave Gamble-Huff and Bell's songs a smooth, urbane sound rivaling Berry Gordy's Motown sound for success with black and white audiences alike. Indeed, the vapid 1974 Hues Corp. record "Rock the Boat" actually charted higher on the pop charts than on those for R&B/Disco (1 and 2, respectively). Endorsement or indictment of Philly soul, this is just one of the informative tidbits embedded in Jackson's highly readable text, the writing of which was made much more difficult by Gamble and Huff's notorious inaccessibility. Essential for thorough pop-music collections. Mike Tribby
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 368 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA; 1ST edition (November 15, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0195149726
• ISBN-13: 978-0195149722
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.2 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #220,080 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars At last a thorough book on the Philly soun, May 4, 2005

By 

J. Marshall "Jbug" (Chicago) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: A House on Fire: The Rise and Fall of Philadelphia Soul (Hardcover)

In 1975, Tony Cummings wrote a book titled 'The Sound Of Philadelphia.' The book has been long out of print and was written well before the demise of TSOP. Ever since I read it, I wondered why no one else had thought to do a follow up book, perhaps one with a new slant. With so many hit records and albums produced it was difficult to understand why only one book had been written on the subject. For years, I was completely baffled and could not understand how in the music business a company could be so big yet fly under the radar. Finally, John Jackson answered the bell. There was so much I didn't know about the whole picture. I had never heard any of the negative stuff nor was I aware that some of the people responsible for the music had passed away.

For me, it started with two singing groups The Intruders ("Cowboys To Girls") and Archie Bell & The Drells ("I Can't Stop Dancing"). The albums put out on both groups were the first I ever purchased as a teenager. They had a totally different sound than what I was hearing on the radio from other groups. I was pleasantly surprised while reading the back of the albums that both groups shared the same writers, producers, arrangers, musicians and recording studio. This was my introduction to the Philly Sound.

Jackson's book is the better of the two because it's focus on the subject is tighter. Cummings book takes in the whole Philadelphia music scene pre and leading up to TSOP. Because the Cummings book was written while the show was still in progress, it adds little insights and information that you won't find in the Jackson book. I caught a mistake in the Cummings book when he says that when Bobby Starr takes over the lead singer role from the Intruders "Little Sonny," that he does one record and then departs to parts unknown. The truth is that Bobby did an entire album titled, "When We Get Married," plus a handful of singles. Jackson's book is a fasinating look at the behind the scene workings that I felt privileged to watch unfold but Jackson doesn't go into details about events such as the death of Little Sonny. I wanted to know the mindset and circumstances that led to him taking his own life.

There is still room to do another book on the "Philly Sound." I would like to hear more from the singers and musicians who were mentioned but not interviewed for one reason or another. I want to hear more from arranger Bobby Martin whom I thought was just as important as the big three. I would like to get his insight on his style of arranging songs. I would also like to know (if it can be explained) how he and Thom Bell came up with those (inner ear) sounds that were common with the Philly sound. The genius of Gamble & Huff was that they had a different sound on each group or individual. Archie Bell didn't sound like the Ojays and the Ojays didn't sound like Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes. Billy Paul had a sound and Lou Rawls had his own sound. That was one of the big differences between TSOP and Motown.

As the saying goes, "All good things must come to and end." I would add that all man made things come to an end and the Philly sound saw its day in the sun and that same sun setting on them. Bittersweet to say the least. I have read this book multiple times now now and highly recommend it to anyone who is interested in music history. The Philly sound rivaled the world wide, well known Motown Sound. If you ask people have they heard of G&H or Thom Bell or TSOP don't be surprised if they say no. The music and the artist are better known than the men who helped create it which to me is rather sad. To my knowledge there aren't any documentary films or videos on the Philly sound. Not even PBS has tackled the subject. I'm still scratching my head on this one but at least after more than two decades, we finally get a second book. I hope the next one comes from someone who was an insider. Regardless, thanks to you Mr. Jackson.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Cold Fire, May 2, 2005

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Kevin Killian (San Francisco, CA United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: A House on Fire: The Rise and Fall of Philadelphia Soul (Hardcover)

John A. Jackson's book is thoroughly researched and a story compellingly told. It is a book with no heroes, so it's hard to develop an abiding interest in it. Gamble and Huff on the one hand, and Thom Bell on the other, all exhibit--in John Jackson's retelling of this mythic story--delusions of grandeur that come to destroy their empire. It may be that all three are "really" sterling human beings, but Jackson makes out each man out to be a megalomaniac whose success first went to his head, then turned around and bit him in the ass. Nevertheless the records produced and written by these three guys will stand the test of time as well as any pop music made in the 20th Century. The Stylistics, The Spinners, the Delfonics, The Three Degrees, Jackson has spoken to them all. A curious deficiency of the book is that none of the individual musicians or singers really comes to life, they all become a blur, their personalities rubbed out in the service of keeping the narrative movements.

As you read further it becomes apparent that a case could clearly be made out that this hit factory was the dominant music force of its time and place. And the tragedy is that human error caused its collapse. The book's later chapters are studies in the pathetic that have rarely been equalled. It is not really an inspiring book; but it is one that will get your pulses moving and your toe tapping, as all the magic tunes come back to life, one by one.

And what happened to Linda Creed? Far as I'm concerned, she had just as much talent as the big three. Jackson seems unwilling or unable to take a stand on this issue. Was she just a jumped-up backup singer? Or was she Philly's answer to Carole King or Lucinda Williams?

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating read on incredible music, December 18, 2004

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Timothy R. Sullivan - See all my reviews
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This review is from: A House on Fire: The Rise and Fall of Philadelphia Soul (Hardcover)

I believe the soul music coming out of Philly in the 1970's is the best music ever made, and this book gets on the inside on how it all came together.

Jackson's exhaustive research is impressive. He has documented everything in detail, talked to 100's of people, read many documents, and just plain got his reserach down perfectly.

Jackson tells how the music was made with interesting anecdotes throughout the book. Mostly it's about the business side of music and how Kenny Gamble, Leon Huff, and Thom Bell not only created and produced, but also assembled teams of amazing musicians, writers, and singers to develop this amazing music.

It doesn't always paint a rosy picture, remember this is not only the rise, but also the fall of Philly soul. And if you're a Kenny Gamble fan, this book doesn't portray him in the most positive light, though much of it is earned by Mr. Gamble himself. One can put the blame on his big, fat ego for the downfall of the world's most incredible music company, Philadelphia International.

All kinds of musicians are interviewed. I would've preferred to have heard more words from The O'Jays and Spinners, and other big groups, but clearly Jackson's intent was to focus on Gamble, Huff, and Bell, and the backing musicians who labored hard without much glory. (But what's a music book without whiney studio musicians?)

Philadelphia soul hit its peak in the early and mid-70's led by The O'Jays, Spinners, Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes, and The Stylistics just to name a few .. then the decline set in caused by -- no surprise here -- too much ego.

The author, Jackson, puts it all together in this fantastic read.