For one night only, The O’Jays will be performing at London’s Theatre Royal Drury Lane on 15th July 2018. The current line-up – original members Eddie Levert and Walter Williams, and Eric Nolan Grant who joined in 1995 – will be performing their greatest hits including ‘For The Love Of Money’, ‘Love Train’, and ‘I Love Music’. Inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2005, the group exemplify the funky and lush sounds of Philadelphia soul.
Read below to listen to our favourite O’Jays songs!
For The Love Of Money
For our US readers, it may be difficult to detach this song from the title sequence of Donald Trump’s The Apprentice. However, in addition to a scintillating bass, wah-wah, and call-and-response vocals, there is a stern warning of the draw of money and the perils of excessive wealth. Our favourite lyric: ‘Give me a nickel, brother can you spare a dime / Money can drive some people out of their minds’.
Stairway to Heaven
For those unfamiliar with The O’Jays’ catalogue, ‘Stairway To Heaven’ is not a cover of the Led Zeppelin epic. Written by Gamble and Huff for The O’Jays’ 1975 album Family Reunion, it is an impassioned declaration of love. With sumptuous strings, the melody soars as if reflecting the ‘stairway to heaven’ – a metaphor for the otherworldly joys the narrator experiences when being with the one he loves. Eddie Levert’s gritty adlibs further lift this gorgeous ballad.
Emotionally Yours
Another powerful ballad. Written by Bob Dylan and recorded for his 1985 album Empire Burlesque, The O’Jays performed ‘Emotionally Yours’ at a concert celebrating Dylan’s 30 year recording history. The original recording is admittedly somewhat of a dirge. However, the organ, choir, and Levert’s vocal gravel give the song an entirely new energy.
Ship Ahoy
From The O’Jays’ 1973 album of the same name, ‘Ship Ahoy’ takes the listener on a 10 minute journey through the infamous ‘middle passage’ told from the perspective of captive African slaves. As noted by Craig Hansen Werner in A Change is Gonna Come: Music, Race & the Soul of America, there is no glimmer of optimism or hope. With the simulated cracking of whips, breaking of waves, and the ominous chant of ‘ship ahoy’, the narration conveys resignation and an acceptance of fate.
Back Stabbers
Beginning with a piano arpeggio which flows into electric guitar and percussion, ‘Back Stabbers’ is a sleek, elegant, composition. The vocal delivery is aggressive and paranoid, however, as the group warn their fellow men of ostensible friends who are trying to steal their lovers. Released post-Watergate, perhaps the song can be read as a commentary on the widespread suspicion and paranoia which swept the United States in the 1970s?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BfznbRucAhE
–
This special concert is presented by the MJR Group. Tickets are available here.
(Image taken from The O’Jays website)
