Chris Bartley (April 17, 1947 – October 26, 2009) – Gotta Tell Somebody (About My Baby) (1967)

This phenomenal upbeat opening cut to the unsung soul singer's debut LP on Vando Records was written, arranged, and produced by Van McCoy.

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Chris Bartley was a soul singer who Van McCoy produced as a solo artist during the late 1960s, and in 1972 sang lead on the only album ever released by the Ray Alexander Technique.

Born in Harlem, Bartley formed a vocal group in the early sixties called the Soulful Inspirations. They went through several name changes, and at one point were known as the Mindbenders. When Bartley and one of his former bandmates auditioned for producer Van McCoy as a duo in the mid-sixties, McCoy signed Bartley as a solo artist.

The first single McCoy produced for Bartley on Cameo Parkway sub-label Vando was the stellar love song “The Sweetest Thing This Side of Heaven” (1967) b/w “Love Me Baby,” for which he wrote and arranged both sides. It went to #10 R&B, crossed over to #32 on the Billboard Hot 100, and became the title track to Bartley’s debut album released later that year.

McCoy wrote, arranged, and produced the entire LP. Its phenomenal upbeat opening cut was “Gotta Tell Somebody (About My Baby),” which should have been a single. In fact it was, but for another singer McCoy was working with, 12-year-old Tony Talent.

Other highlights were “You Get Next To My Heart,” issued as the album’s third single, and the superb love songs “Hooked On You” and “Sugar Baby.”

One of the last records Bartley released under his own name was the hopeful anthem “Tomorrow Keeps Shining On Me,” which came out on Musicor Records in 1971.

It was written by Richard Snyder, produced by Ralph Murphy, and arranged and conducted by the unsung genius Bert DeCoteaux.

Before leaving the music industry for several years in the early seventies due to family health issues, Bartley sang lead vocals on one final project. Let’s Talk (1972) was the Ray Alexander Technique’s much sought-after sole album, and featured a phenomenal, super funky title track.

Produced by Lucy Williams, and released on Lu Jun Records, the group included Alexander (aka Raymond Jenkins) on lead guitar, bassist Douglas Wilkerson, Ron Mack on drums, and Holley Jones (aka Buzz) on congas and percussion.

Other standout tracks on the LP were the funk bomb “Wiser And Deeper,” the laid back funky jam “My Special One,” and the socially conscious early seventies New York City street tale “My World.” Original copies today sell for an average of $250 on Discogs.

Happy Heavenly Birthday to the great Chris Bartley.

Further info:

“Chris Bartley RIP,” soul-source.co.uk, October 28, 2009.

#soul #funk #VanMcCoy #ChrisBartley