Release Date: July 26, 2024
Product Links:
PRE-ORDER LINK AT CHERRY RED RECORDS (US, UK, INTERNATIONAL)
• SoulMusic Records (SMR) in association with The Second Disc presents this definitive, first-time-ever 5CD box set by this Grammy-nominated artist believed to be the most- sampled female singer in popular music.
• A total of 58 tracks which includes expanded editions of the four full-length albums recorded during her association with Salsoul’s Gold Mind Records and a specially curated fifth disc that includes remixes, instrumentals, acapellas and reinventions from her Gold Mind/Salsoul catalogue. All audio has been newly and beautifully remastered by Nick Robbins.
• Key tracks include her #1 Dance smash, ‘Love Sensation’, written and produced by Grammy-nominated multi-hyphenate Dan Hartman, her first Top Three dance hit, ‘Hit and Run’, and her cover of Debby Boone’s ‘You Light Up My Life’, which earned Ms. Holloway her singular Grammy nomination.
• Includes productions by Norman Harris, Ron Kersey, Bunny Sigler, Ron Tyson and Vincent Montana Jr., all synonymous with the Philly Sound, as well as Floyd Smith, Bobby Womack, Tom Moulton and Patrick Adams, with mixes and re-edits by Larry Levan, Walter Gibbons, Shep Pettibone, Danny Krivit, and others.
• Every album features legendary musicians including The Trammps’ Earl Young, Bobby Eli, Ron Baker, Steve Gadd, Cornell Dupree, Richard Tee, George Bussey, Larry Washington and Gordon Edwards of Stuff with The Waters and The Sweethearts of Sigma (Barbara Ingram, Carla Benson and Evette Benton), among others, providing background vocals.
• A deluxe booklet designed by Ray Curenton includes comprehensive notes by the collection’s producer, God’s Music Is My Life blog & podcast creator Tim Dillinger creating the most in-depth biographical account of Holloway’s career on record with rare photographs and artifacts; associate production by Joe Marchese of The Second Disc
Stardom had been predicted for Loleatta Holloway from the time she’d emerged as a solo artist with her 1971 recording of Curtis Mayfield’s “Rainbow.” Her voice, homegrown from singing gospel with her mother’s choir and experience on the road with Albertina Walker’s group The Famous Caravans, easily transitioned to R&B with her no-holds-barred, heart-on-her-sleeve approach. With two albums under her belt and a Top 10 R&B hit with “Cry to Me” in 1975, she was signed to Salsoul Records by way of their imprint, Gold Mind Records. Disco was on the rise and Salsoul was a leader in its innovation. With players from the famed MFSB, she and producer Norman Harris recorded her first disco hits for her first Salsoul album, simply titled Loleatta. The album included two #3 Dance singles, “Hit and Run” and “Dreamin’” that, aided by Walter Gibbons and Carl Paroulo’s mixes, respectively, shook dancers all around the world with Loleatta’s staggering vocalizations, down-to-earth storytelling, and Salsoul’s renowned grooves.
Loleatta always saw herself as more than a disco artist, insisting on the inclusion of ballads on her albums, which brought her airplay that disco did not achieve. Her second Gold Mind album, Queen of the Night, featured “Only You,” a duet with Bunny Sigler, also the tune’s writer and producer, which climbed to #11 on the R&B charts. The album also included her cover of Debby Boone’s #1 pop hit, “You Light Up My Life,” which earned Holloway her singular Grammy nomination.
On the heels of her Grammy nomination, Holloway found herself in the pages of Vogue photographed by Richard Avedon and performing at the hottest discos in the country like New York City’s famed Paradise Garage. After one performance, she met artist and producer Dan Hartman who brought her the biggest hit of her career. 1980’s “Love Sensation” seemed destined to provide the career breakthrough that had always been predicted for her when it hit #1 on the Dance chart. But, sadly, “Love Sensation,” did not crossover to the R&B or pop charts. The album from which the single came, also titled Love Sensation, would be the last full-length album of her career.
But Holloway’s career was far from over. She continued to work in gay clubs for the audience that had so wholeheartedly embraced her and recorded singles for independent labels. When sampling emerged in the late 80s, her voice showed up in full force on Black Box’s “Ride on Time,” which sampled Loleatta’s vocals from “Love Sensation.” “Ride on Time” was an international smash, hitting #1 in the UK and reaching the Top 10 in fifteen other countries, attaining platinum status in the United Kingdom and Australia. Lawsuits ensued from both Holloway and Hartman, and Holloway spoke boldly and openly to the press about the disembodiment that, in her mind, sampling created. “Loleatta Holloway is not even a person,” she declared to dance music historian Tim Lawrence.
Despite the lack of compensation and credit, the “Ride on Time” melee presented new opportunities. When Mark Wahlberg (as Marky Mark & The Funky Bunch) sampled “Love Sensation” for the group’s #1 Billboard Hot 100 hit, “Good Vibrations,” she was given a feature credit, made an appearance in the music video and went on the road with the group to promote the single, which put a face with the voice, for many listeners, for the first time as she performed on MTV, the BBC, and talk shows like The Arsenio Hall Show.
Holloway continued to achieve success in the world of dance music until her death in 2011, scoring another #1 Dance hit in 1998 with “Shout to the Top,” a collaboration with Fire Island, and again in 2000 with a remix of “Dreamin’” from her first Gold Mind recording. We’re Getting Stronger: The Gold Mind/Salsoul Recordings (1976-1982) celebrates the staying power of this unsung vocal goddess whose work has stood the test of time, reaching generations of listeners all around the world.
DISC 1: LOLEATTA (EXPANDED EDITION)
1. Hit and Run (5:59)
2. Is It Just a Man’s Way (3:44)
3. We’re Getting Stronger (The Longer We Stay Together) (4:34)
4. Dreamin’ (6:19)
5. Ripped Off (4:52)
6. Worn Out Broken Heart (5:36)
7. That’s How Heartaches Are Made (3:03)
8. What Now (6:19)
Bonus Tracks:
9. Hit and Run (Original Walter Gibbons 12” Mix) (10:57)
10. We’re Getting Stronger (The Longer We Stay Together) (Original Walter Gibbons 12” Mix) (7:18)
11. Dreamin’ (12” Disco Mix by Carl Paroulo) (8:51)
12. Hit and Run (Unreleased Walter Gibbons Jungle Mix) (8:51)
DISC 2: QUEEN OF THE NIGHT (EXPANDED EDITION)
1. Catch Me on the Rebound (6:08)
2. Only You (Guest vocalist: Bunny Sigler) (6:15)
3. Good, Good Feeling (4:14)
4. Mama Don’t, Papa Won’t (4:58)
5. I May Not Be There When You Want Me (But I’m Right On Time) (7:33)
6. You Light Up My Life (4:03)
7. Two Sides to Every Story (4:29)
8. I’m In Love (4:15)
Bonus Tracks:
9. Catch Me on the Rebound (Original Walter Gibbons 12” Mix) (10:47)
10. Catch Me on the Rebound (Instrumental) (7:19)
11. I May Not Be There When You Want Me (Original Tom Moulton 12” Mix) (10:19)
DISC 3: LOLEATTA HOLLOWAY (EXPANDED EDITION)
1. The Greatest Performance of My Life (6:59)
2. All About the Paper (6:11)
3. There Must Be a Reason (6:13)
4. That’s What You Said (6:48)
5. Baby It’s You (3:55)
6. There’ll Come a Time (3:21)
7. Sweet Mother of Mine (4:39)
Bonus Tracks:
8. The Greatest Performance of My Life (Larry Levan Remix) (6:48)
9. That’s What You Said (12” Disco Version by Rick Gianatos) (10:07)
10. All About the Paper (Extended Version) (7:09)
11. The Greatest Performance of My Life (12” Disco Version) (9:26)
12. That’s What You Said (Special Edit) (3:26)
DISC 4: LOVE SENSATION (EXPANDED EDITION)
1. Love Sensation (6:02)
2. Long Hard Climb to Love (4:34)
3. Short End of the Stick (3:23)
4. I’ve Been Loving You Too Long (4:42)
5. Two Became a Crowd (5:22)
6. Dance What ‘Cha Wanna (5:10)
7. My Way (5:25)
8. I’ll Be Standing There (4:50)
Bonus Tracks:
9. Love Sensation (Original Tom Moulton 12” Mix) (6:31)
10. Love Sensation (Original Shep Pettibone 12” Mix) (7:46)
11. Love Sensation (Unreleased Tom Moulton Mix) (8:36)
12. Love Sensation (After Hours Mix) (6:51)
13. Love Sensation (Acapella) (3:30)
DISC 5: REMIXES AND REINCARNATIONS
1. Catch Me on the Rebound (Original Walter Gibbons Disco Madness Version) (7:34)
2. Hit and Run (Joey Negro Dub Sensation) (5:12)
3. Runaway (Danny Krivit Re-edit) (8:37)
4. We’re Getting Stronger (Instrumental) (6:04)
5. Mama Don’t, Papa Won’t (Mama’s Mix) (6:18)
6. Love Sensation (Shep Pettibone “Rough Mix” / Dim’s DJ Friendly Re-Edit) (7:31)
7. Stand Up (Pangaea’s Mix) (5:44)
8. Short End of the Stick (The Reflex Edit) (5:43)
9. Seconds (Special Club Version) (8:57)
10. Dreamin’ (Jazz N Groove Mix) (6:48)
11. We’re Getting Stronger (Acapella) (5:51)
