In life some artists only ever record 1 Gem of an album in their careers & sink without trace. So is the case of The Players. To say this album is good does it no justice whatsoever,IMHO its BRILLIANT!...beyond words! the Players weren’t really a group at all. They were strictly a
studio concoction of singers from other groups … well, mostly from one
other group.The lead singer was Herbert Butler, and he was joined by four members
of the Dells, Chuck Barksdale, Johnny Carter, Vern Allison, and Mickey
McGill. They got together in a studio in Chicago in 1966 and cut a
record called “He’ll Be Back,” which was released by Minit Records. The
sweet, sad ballad was a hit on the R&B chart but didn’t manage a
crossover to the Pop chart. Still, it was a big enough record to send
the Players out on the road to tour, and since there were no real
Players, and the Dells were busy with their own career, Otha Lee Givins
and Tony Lee Johnson joined Butler to perform the song live. The brain trust at Minit knew that it was important to follow up the
success of the single with an album, so they rushed one out with the two
new members accompanying Butler on most of the album tracks. The Vietnam war was raging on and is not forgotten by the artists.The story
that began with “He’ll Be Back” had a happy ending that was depicted in
the second Players single, “I’m Glad You Waited,” in 1966. The only Dell
that sang on that one was the bass vocalist Chuck Barksdale, and Joe
Brackenridge was added to the touring unit. The Players released Two more singles for Minit in 1967, but neither
“That’s the Way,” or “Get Right” found any chart success and the short,
sweet career of the Players was over, leaving only two modest hit
records, and the beautiful first tenor voice of Herbert Butler as a
memory...But also this fantastic slab of soul!...thanks to Yves for the nudge!
AMM
The Tasters!
Tracks Below
20 comments:
Thanks AMM. Very high praise so VERY interested.
This is an album that should be recognized at its fair value. Every Soul lover should have it in their collection.
Thank you for posting it to let everyone know.
Yves
thank you for this gem AMM!
Thanks AMM great review
Another great find... thank you AMM for this review
BigD
1 very interesting gem. Thanks AMM
Wow! He'll Be Back is a great record, just love it but I never realized they had done an album of the same name, thanks AMM, can't wait to hear it
Tasty slab to play around with. Looking forward!
Thank you AMM For this Album
Thanks once again for such an eye-opening review
Good music. Thanks for letting us see these posts and hear the great music.
thank you so much another obscure soul music!!
Please count me in AMM for this one, many thanks for the review!
This looks like an absolutely great record - and surely will sound that way, too. Thanks for review, P.
Thanks for the review AMM the info with regards to the group is appreciated
I got the 45 by the players a long time ago but did not have any info on them so it's a big thanks to AMM
Cheers Pedro
Thanks AMM for this rare album and all the info
Reb
Great review thanks for sharing
Absolute magnificent. Great review AMM!!
Hi AMM, Thanks for the review.
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