The Flirtations (R&B musical group)
| The Flirtations | |
|---|---|
| Also known as | The Gypsies |
| Origin | South Carolina, United States |
| Genres | R&B, soul |
| Years active | 1960–present |
| Labels | Old Town Records, Josie, Deram, Centre City Records |
| Members | |
| Ernestine Pearce Shirley Pearce Viola Billups |
|
| Past members | |
| Leslie Johnson Betty Pearce Loretta Noble |
|
The Flirtations (previously The Gypsies) are an all-female musical group who have recorded since the early 1960s.
Contents |
[edit] History
In 1962 in New York, four women from South Carolina formed The Gypsies. They were Lestine Johnson and sisters Ernestine Pearce, Shirley Pearce and Betty Pearce.
In 1964 they signed to Old Town Records, where they released their debut single "Hey There, Hey There". The song achieved airplay only on local radio stations, but their next single — the J.J. Jackson-written "Jerk It" — was more successful, reaching #111 (pop) and #33 (R&B) in the spring of 1965. Despite the relative success of "Jerk It", Lestine Johnson left the group, replaced by Viola Billups. The Gypsies released only two singles on Old Town Records in 1966, giving them a total of four.
That year, now on Josie Records, the four women renamed themselves The Flirtations and released the well-regarded northern soul dancer "Change My Darkness Into Light". It was ignored by DJs and sales suffered. The quartet then moved to Festival Records, where they released "Stronger Than Her Love" and "Settle Down" as a single, which failed to spark much interest.
Betty Pearce left the group, reducing the Flirtations to a trio. After winning a small local talent contest in 1968 to see who could sound the most like the Supremes, they packed their bags and headed for England, where they signed to the Parrot label, joining artists like Tom Jones. Their only release was "Someone Out There" backed with "How Can You Tell Me?". Although the song received more airplay and recognition than their other singles, it did little.
In late 1968 the trio signed with Deram Records and released what would become their signature recording: "Nothing But A Heartache" — a dense, dynamic, earth-shattering melodrama produced by Englishman Wayne Bickerton and written by Bickerton with Tony Waddington. The B-side was a Christmas song, "Christmastime Is Here Again".
In early 1969 the record was released in the United States, but with "How Can You Tell Me?" as the B-side. In March "Nothing But A Heartache" entered the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at #34 in May and remaining on the Hot 100 for a then-impressive 14 weeks. The single also reached #31 in Cash Box. Reminiscent of mid-60s Supremes – particularly "Stop! In the Name of Love" — the single is now generally regarded as a pop and northern soul classic.
The follow-up was less of a dance tune than the previous single. "South Carolina" was a ballad that reached only #111 pop in July 1969. In 1970, "Keep On Searching" was released and did nothing. However, this may have been due to confusion over whether the newest single was "Searching" or "What's Good About Goodbye My Love". The latter rocketed to #17 R&B in early 1970, but failed to make a dent in the pop charts. In July 1970 the trio scored another hit with the original version of Tom Jones's "Can't Stop Loving You". The song made #96 in Cash Box.
1971 saw their sixth and last Deram single, "Give Me Love" (not the George Harrison song). Not orinally in their 1970 LP Sounds Like the Flirtations, but subsequntly added to their 2008 CD version, it did not do well in the charts. The rest of their singles were not released in the U.S. Loretta Noble replaced Viola Billups in 1972. Viola Billups embarked on a solo career as Vie and as Pearly Gates. During 1971 & 1972, the group were the resident vocal band on the long running BBC TV series It's Cliff Richard, backing Cliff on various numbers, performing their own songs and supporting other guests on the show.
Throughout the 1970s the Flirtations released material on various labels. 1971 and 1972 Polydor titles included "Little Darling (I Need You)", "Take Me In Your Arms (& Love Me)", "Hold On To Me Babe" and "Love A Little Longer". In 1973, their Mojo Records releases included "Why Didn't I Think of That". In 1975 it was RCA's turn: "Dirty Work", "Mr. Universe", and "One Night of Love", which gained enough sales and airplay for another LP, Love Makes the World Go Round, just before 1976.
The Flirtations sang high energy songs such as "Earthquake" (1983), "Read All About It" (1986) and "Back On My Feet Again" (1989), the latter reuniting Viola with the Pearce sisters.
The band were rediscovered in the disco and northern soul circuits of Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the UK and the U.S.. In the UK "Nothing But A Heartache" was used in an advertising campaign for KFC and in 2007 was covered by The Freemasons.[1][2] Ernestine Pearce can be seen at various venues along with Clem Curtis and Jimmy James as part of "The Soul Explosion" tour.[3]
With Ian Levine forming his label Centre City Records, 2007, the ladies recorded regularly for the label compilations. In 2009, they released their first single in 20 years, Roulette,[4] produced by Soren Jensen for Night Dance Records, including mixes and a music video. The track peaked at #10 in Music Week's Commercial Pop Club Chart by December 2009.
[edit] Albums discography
- 1969 Nothing But A Heartache
- 1970 Sounds Like The Flirtations
- 1976 Love Makes the World Go Around
[edit] Singles discography
[edit] The Gypsies
- 1964 "Hey There" / "Blue Bird"
- 1965 "Jerk It" / "Diamonds, Rubies, Gold And Fame"
- 1965 "It's A Woman's World (You Better Believe It)" / "They're Having A Party"
- 1966 "Oh I Wonder Why" / "Diamonds, Rubies, Gold And Fame"
- 1966 "Look For The One Who Loves You" / "Oh Girl"
[edit] The Flirtations
- 1966 "Change My Darkness Into Light" / "Natural Born Lover"
- 1967 "Stronger Than Her Love" / "Settle Down"
- 1968 "How Can You Tell Me"/ "Someone Out There"
- 1968 "Nothing But A Heartache" / "Christmas Time Is Here Again"
- 1968 "Nothing But A Heartache" / "How Can You Tell Me"
- 1969 "Need Your Loving" / "South Carolina"
- 1969 "Keep On Searchin'" / "I Wanna Be There"
- 1969 "Can't Stop Lovin' You"/ "Everybody Needs Somebody"
- 1970 "Give Me Love, Love, Love" / "This Must Be The End Of The Line"
- 1971 "Take Me In Your Arms And Love Me" / "Little Darling (I Need You)"
- 1972 "Hold On To Me Baby" / "Love A Little Longer"
- 1983 "Earthquake"
- 1986 "Read All About It"
- 1986 "Get Up (Come On Over)"
- 1989 "Back On My Feet Again"
- 2009 "Roulette"
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- soulfulkingmusic.net - List of recordings by The Flirtations/The Gypsies.
- vikingsound.co.uk - Band Information Profile.
- Discogs:The Flirtations
