African Queens is the fourth studio album recorded by American female vocal trio the Ritchie Family, released in 1977 on the Marlin label.
| African Queens | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1977 | |||
| Recorded | Sigma Sound, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | |||
| Genre | Disco | |||
| Label | Marlin | |||
| Producer | Jacques Morali | |||
| The Ritchie Family chronology | ||||
| ||||
History
editThe album features the track, "Quiet Village", which peaked at No. 1 on the Hot Dance/Disco chart along with songs "African Queens" and "Summer Dance". "Quiet Village" also peaked at No. 68 on the Hot Soul Singles chart.
Critical reception
edit| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
The Bay State Banner wrote that "the music moves swiftly via massive string swoops and spurts of high hat drumming, jetting far away from present reality towards exotic distances only the world of fantasy can reckon."[2]
Track listing
editAll tracks are written by Jacques Morali, Henri Belolo and Phil Hurtt, except where noted
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "African Queens (Nefertiti, Cleopatra and the Queen of Sheba)" | 4:35 |
| 2. | "Theme of Nefertiti" | 1:30 |
| 3. | "Theme of Cleopatra" | 1:30 |
| 4. | "Theme of the Queen of Sheba" | 1:30 |
| 5. | "African Queens (reprise) (Nefertiti, Cleopatra and the Queen of Sheba)" | 3:40 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6. | "Summer Dance" | 5:28 | |
| 7. | "Quiet Village" | Les Baxter | 5:45 |
| 8. | "Voodoo" | 5:35 |
Personnel
edit- Gwendolyn Oliver, Cassandra Ann Wooten and Cheryl Mason Jacks - Vocalists
- Russell Dabney – drums
- Alfonso Carey – Fender bass
- Jimmy Lee – lead guitar
- Rodger Lee – rhythm guitar
- Nathaniel "Crocket" Wilke – Fender Rhodes electric piano, clavinet
- Babatunde Olatunji – Ngoma drums, Shekere, bongos
- Ralph MacDonald – tambourines, triangle, bell tree, cowbell
- Mario Grillo – timbales
- Anthony Robinson – congas
- J.M. Diatta – ngoma drums
- Charles Payne – Djembe
Production
edit- Jacques Morali – producer, rhythm, percussion and vocal arrangements
- Henri Belolo – executive producer
- Phil Hurtt – vocal arrangements
- Horace Ott – strings and horns arrangements
- Gerald Block – engineer
- Carla Bandini, Jeff Stewart – assistant engineers
- John Galluzzi – photographer
Charts
edit| Chart (1977) | Peak [3] |
|---|---|
| Australia (Kent Music Report)[4] | 66 |
| U.S. Billboard Top LPs | 164 |
| U.S. Billboard Top Soul LPs | 57 |
- Singles
| Year | Single | Peak chart positions | |
|---|---|---|---|
| US R&B [3] |
US Dan [3] | ||
| 1977 | "Quiet Village" | 68 | 1 |
| "African Queens" | — | ||
| "Summer Dance" | — | ||
References
edit- ^ African Queens review at AllMusic. Retrieved 2016-06-28.
- ^ Freedberg, Mike (25 Aug 1977). "Record Reviews". Bay State Banner. No. 97. p. 17.
- ^ a b c The Ritchie Family > US Charts at AllMusic. Retrieved 2016-07-11.
- ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 253. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
External links
edit- African Queens at Discogs (list of releases)