In 1964, 14-year-old Robert Bell founded the core of KOOL & THE GANG under the then name “Jazziacs”.
In 1968 Robert Bell was nicknamed “Kool” and his band was called “Kool And The Flames”.
As early as 1969, he signed a record deal with the newly founded DeLite label and worked with producer Gene Redd. Due to a name collision (James Brown’s then “Flames”) they called themselves KOOL & THE GANG. Although their debut single, an instrumental piece and simply titled Kool & The Gang, immediately made it into the US soul and pop charts at the time, it still took a few years before the big success came.
1973 release of the gold album “Wild And Peaceful”. KOOL & THE GANG established themselves as the most popular party band in the USA with the top singles “Funky Stuff” (Gold), “Jungle Boogie” (Gold), “Hollywood Swinging” (Gold).
The next gold album “Light Of Worlds” was released in 1974.
In 1976, KOOL & THE GANG had to assert themselves against growing competition: The Commodores and Earth, Wind & Fire rushed forward, only with the title “Open Sesame” from the soundtrack “Saturday Night Fever” did the KOOLs stay in the minds of their fans.
In 1979 the gold/platinum album “Ladies’ Night” was released. With this LP the band presented their new frontman and lead singer James Taylor as well as the new style of music: gentle sounds and powerful rhythms. The singles “Ladies’ Night” and “Too Hot” went gold and platinum.
In 1980, KOOL & THE GANG released their first No. 1 single “Celebration” (gold and platinum) from the album of the same name, which also achieved gold and platinum status.
In 1981 the third platinum LP in a row was released: “Something Special”. Gold went to the singles “Take My Heart” and “Get Down On It”.
The production “As One” and the single “Big Fun” went gold in 1982. “Let’s Go Dancin'” went gold and platinum. They managed to enter the album charts for the first time. After years of success, the men around Robert ‘Kool’ Bell decided to increasingly implement their own ideas.
The LP “In The Heart”, 1984, proved that this decision was the right one. More rock-oriented, the album went gold and platinum. The singles “Fresh” and “Joanna” went gold and platinum, while “Tonight” achieved gold status. To take the whole thing to the extreme: “Joanna” was named the most played pop song in the USA in 1984 based on BMI statistics.
In 1985, KOOL & THE GANG achieved double platinum with their album “Emergency”. “Emergency” became the best-selling LP by a colored group in the USA. The four top 20 hits “Misled”, “Fresh”, “Cherish” and “Emergency” were released. The last three received nothing less than platinum. This was followed by recognition from the industry such as “Top Black Album of the Year” in the Billboard poll, two American Music Awards for “Most Popular Band of the Year” and “Best Soul/R&B Album of the Year”. The KOOLs won the election as “Top Black Artists of the Year”.
But the streak of success didn’t stop: in 1986, KOOL & THE GANG were declared the most successful band of the 80s with 14 Top 40 singles in the US charts.
Titles like “Stone Love” and “Victory” (Gold) from the new album “Forever” (Gold), which was released in 1987, became bestsellers again. Extensive European tours followed, which took them to sold-out halls.
In 1988, Skip Martin and Odeen Mays took over for James Taylor. This was followed by the Best Of LP “Best Of the ’80s — Everything’s Kool & The Gang … Greatest Hits and More” and another European tour.
In 1989, the album “Sweat” ushered in a new era for KOOL & THE GANG. Due to great demand, the KOOLs were able to fill European concert halls for a third time.
In 1989/91 they worked with Color Me Badd: KOOL & THE GANG took part in the production of the Color Me Badd hit “I Wanna Sex You Up”, the title song for the film “New Jack City”. After 20 years, the men around Robert ‘Kool’ Bell left their old label De-Lite and signed a contract with the JRS label. From now on you found yourself in the best company with, for example, George Benson, Bobby Womack, Jimmy Cliff and Rick James…
In 1992 KOOL & THE GANG returned with their studio album “Unite”. “Unite” was produced by L.A. & Babyface – known for their collaborations with Bobby Brown, Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey. “Unite” is a mixture of danceable soul and soulful ballads in the usual KOOL & THE GANG style. But time has not left this successful group unscathed either. “Unite” features modern funky sounds, raggamuffin, hip hop – everything that makes a good dance record these days.
1995/1996 release of the CD “State off Affairs” and the single “Salute to the Ladies”
At that time, KOOL & THE GANG already had more than 25 R&B Top 10 hits (9 of which made it to number 1), nine Top 10 pop hits, 27 gold or platinum CDs, and they had already received seven American Music Awards .
You simply have to experience for yourself what accounts for the group’s unique success:
The music speaks for itself.
Lists…
