Honey is the seventh studio album by American band the Ohio Players. Released on August 16, 1975, by Mercury Records. It is generally regarded as a classic, the band's best album, and the last great full-length release of their dominant era in the mid-1970s.
| Honey | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | August 16, 1975 | |||
| Recorded | February–June, 1975 | |||
| Studio | Paragon Recording Studios (Chicago, Illinois) | |||
| Genre | Soul, funk, R&B | |||
| Length | 31:45 | |||
| Label | Mercury | |||
| Producer | Ohio Players | |||
| Ohio Players chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from Honey | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [1] |
| Christgau's Record Guide | B+[2] |
The cover image gained mild notoriety from urban legends involving one of the singles, "Love Rollercoaster", one to the effect that the honey injured model Ester Cordet's skin, ruining her career as a model, and another claiming that she was stabbed to death in the recording booth, with her scream captured on the song. These stories are false.[3]
The album was recorded and mixed at Paragon Recording Studios in Chicago, with Barry Mraz as the recording engineer. Marty Link, Steve Kusiciel, Rob Kingsland, and Paul Johnson are credited as tape operators. Gilbert Kong mastered the final mix at Masterdisk in New York City.
The album peaked at #2 on the Billboard 200 during the week of September 27, 1975, kept out of the top spot by Jefferson Starship's Red Octopus.[4] In addition, it was the third album from the band to top the Soul/Black Albums chart, where it spent three weeks.
Release history
editIn addition to the standard 2 channel stereo version the album was also released in a 4 channel quadraphonic version in 1975. This version appeared on 8-track tape in the US and was the fourth of five Ohio Players albums available in this format. The quad version was re-issued on DTS Audio CD in 2001.
Track listing
editAll tracks are written by James Williams, Clarence Satchell, Leroy Bonner, Marshall Jones, Ralph Middlebrooks, Marvin Pierce, William Beck
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Honey" | 5:15 |
| 2. | "Fopp" | 3:45 |
| 3. | "Let's Do It" | 5:15 |
| 4. | "Ain't Givin' Up No Ground" | 1:45 |
| Total length: | 16:00 | |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 5. | "Sweet Sticky Thing" | 6:13 |
| 6. | "Love Rollercoaster" | 4:52 |
| 7. | "Alone" | 4:40 |
| Total length: | 15:45 | |
Personnel
edit- James "Diamond" Williams – drums, timbales, congas, percussion, lead & background vocals
- Billy Beck – Hammond organ, acoustic and Fender Rhodes electric piano, RMI electric piano, clavinet, ARP Odyssey, ARP string ensemble, percussion, lead & background vocals
- Marvin "Merv" Pierce – trumpets, flugelhorn
- Marshall "Rock" Jones – electric bass
- Leroy "Sugarfoot" Bonner – guitars, lead & background vocals
- Ralph "Pee Wee" Middlebrooks – trumpets
- Clarence "Satch" Satchell – tenor saxophone, baritone saxophone, flute
Production
edit- Ohio Players – producers
- Barry Mraz, Gilbert Kong & Tom Hanson; engineers
- Marty Linke, Steve Kusiciel, Rob Kingsland, Paul Johnson – tape operators
- Richard Fegley – photography
- Jim Ladwig – art direction
- Joe Kotleba – design
Cover versions
edit- "Fopp" by Soundgarden, from the 1988 EP Fopp
- "Love Rollercoaster" by Red Hot Chili Peppers, from the 1996 soundtrack to Beavis and Butt-head Do America
- "Let's Love" by Vanessa Williams, on her covers album Everlasting Love
Charts
edit
Weekly chartsedit
|
Year-end chartsedit
|
Singles
edit| Year | Single | Peak chart positions | |
|---|---|---|---|
| US [10] |
US R&B [10] | ||
| 1975 | "Sweet Sticky Thing" | 33 | 1 |
| "Love Rollercoaster" | 1 | 1 | |
| 1976 | "Fopp" | 30 | 9 |
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Henderson, Alex. Honey review at AllMusic. Retrieved January 15, 2012.
- ^ Christgau, Robert (1981). "Consumer Guide '70s: O". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor & Fields. ISBN 089919026X. Retrieved March 10, 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
- ^ Mikkelson, David (May 23, 2007). "Ohio Players Love Rollercoaster". Snopes. Retrieved September 3, 2021.
- ^ "Billboard 200: Week of September 27, 1975". Billboard.com. Retrieved April 24, 2011.
- ^ "Ohio Players Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved April 10, 2021.
- ^ "Ohio Players Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved April 10, 2021.
- ^ "Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums – Year-End 1975". Billboard. Retrieved April 10, 2021.
- ^ "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1976". Billboard. Retrieved April 10, 2021.
- ^ "Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums – Year-End 1976". Billboard. Retrieved April 10, 2021.
- ^ a b "US Charts > Ohio Players". Allmusic. Retrieved 2013-03-30.