Eddie Levert (born June 16, 1942) – Put Your Hands Together (1973)

For Ship Ahoy, the second album by the O'Jays on Philadelphia International Records, Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff co-wrote and produced this powerful unity anthem.

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Living legend Eddie Levert Sr. is the longtime lead singer of the O’Jays.

Born in Alabama, Edward Willis Levert’s family moved to Canton, Ohio when he was six. He began singing in his church choir and performed on a gospel radio show in his early teens. In high school, he put together a vocal group called The Triumphs along with classmates Walter Williams, William Powell, Bill Isles, and Bobby Massey. They were signed to Cincinnati-based King Records, had their name changed to The Mascots by label president Sid Nathan, and became well known around the region.

In 1963, they changed their name again to The O'Jays, paying tribute to Cleveland radio disc jockey Eddie O'Jay who had been mentoring them. They had minor R&B hits throughout the 60s, but never broke through. In 1972, original members Isles and Massey left the group.

The remaining trio of Levert, Williams, and Powell were signed by Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff to their new label Philadelphia International Records (PIR). Their first PIR single, “Back Stabbers” (1972) was produced by Gamble and Huff, arranged by Thom Bell, and co-written by Huff and the songwriting partners Gene McFadden and John Whitehead. It went to #1 R&B and #3 on the Billboard Hot 100, and sold over a million copies. Another Gamble and Huff-penned and produced single from the Back Stabbers LP, “Love Train,” hit #1 on both the R&B and pop charts in early 1973. “Love Train” was arranged by legendary producer/songwriter and arranger Bobby Martin.

The O’Jays became Gamble and Huff’s primary vehicle for the many message songs they wrote during the early to mid-70s. For their next album, Ship Ahoy (1973), they co-wrote and produced the powerful unity anthem “Put Your Hands Together” for the group, which was again arranged by Bobby Martin.

Released as a single, it peaked at #2 R&B and #10 on the Hot 100. Its B-side was the emotional love song “You Got Your Hooks In Me,” written by Bunny Sigler and arranged by Martin.

Ship Ahoy was arguably the group’s finest overall album, anchored by the epic nearly ten-minute title track that told the story of slavery's Middle Passage in one of the most powerful message songs ever recorded. Gamble and Huff co-wrote this masterpiece, which was arranged by Martin.

It also contained their massive hit “For The Love Of Money,” co-written by Gamble and Huff with bassist Anthony Jackson, who came up with the iconic bass line the track was structured around.

The song’s lyrics made a strong statement against materialism and greed, which was why it was such a crime when Mark Burnett and the producers of The Apprentice edited a toothless version in 2004 to serve as the reality show’s theme song. With all its socially conscious lyrics removed, the song was introduced to a new generation as merely a celebration of money grubbing. If they hadn’t been allowed to whitewash the funk, our country might not be in quite as big of a mess as we are today. Instead, they used it to sell a bullshit repackaging of fraudster, con man, and perpetually insolvent Donald Trump as a business-savvy billionaire, an image he rode all the way to the White House.

However, the O’Jays did their part to speak out against Trump and the extreme right wing that has taken over the modern day GOP with their powerful 2018 anthem “Above The Law.” Co-written by the legendary singer/songwriter Betty Wright and her bandleader Angelo Morris, it appeared on what the group stated would be their final album, The Last Word. Wright also co-produced the album, which was released in 2019, one year before her death in 2020.

Happy Birthday to the great Eddie Levert Sr.

Further info:

“The History of the O’Jays,” by Trinity Royal, Black Music Scholar, October 2, 2022.

#soul #funk #PIR #OJays #EddieLevert