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I had just received a record player for my 12th birthday, and I needed some records to play on it. I asked my mom to take me to Sears to buy some 45's, and when we got to Sears at the music department, a song with a beautiful female voice was playing. It was a song called "Stop, Look, Listen" by a group called The Stylistics. I fell in love with the song and that voice. I knew I was not leaving Sears without buying that record. I was fortunate to buy it, and when I got home, I played it over and over my new stereo. I even tried to sing with that female voice, but it was too high-pitched. Little did I know at that time that "female" voice was a man's voice.
That voice belonged to Russell Thompkins, Jr., and he was part of one of the greatest R N B music groups in history, The Stylistics. With Russell's signature falsetto lead vocals and producer Thom Bell's beautiful melodies, The Stylistics provided 13 Top Ten Billboard R N B music hits from 1971-1974. The highest rated song of all these hits was "Betcha By Golly Wow," which hit #2 on the Billboard R N B music charts in 1971. The Stylistics were a big part of what was called "Philly Soul" in the early 1970's, along with The Spinners and The O'Jays. But those groups did not have the "female" lead voice in Russell Thompkins. Jr. The Stylistics will always be remembered fondly in R N B music history.
The Stylistics
- Founded in 1968 in Philadelphia, PA
- Members included: Russell Thompkins, Jr., Airrion Love, Herb Murrell, James Dunn, James Smith
- Russell Thompkins, Jr. left the group in 2000, and came back in 2004 with his new group called "The New Stylistics."
- Airrion Love and Herb Murrell recruited 2 new members, Harold Brown and Van Fields, and they continue to tour as The Stylistics.
You're sitting at home, listening to the radio on a nice quiet afternoon. All of a sudden, the song "Pick Up The Pieces" by Average White Band comes on, and your mind goes back to yesteryear. Where were you when you first heard this song? Was it your first high school dance? Was it at a party with family and friends? Where were you? Think back...
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