SoulJam

CHAIFETZ ARENA IS COOKING WITH MAIN INGREDIENT, STYLISTICS AND EMOTIONS AS THEY SIZZLE DURING THE 70’S SOUL JAM AT CHAIFETZ ARENA ON SATURDAY, MARCH 13

TICKETS WILL BE SERVED HOT AS THEY GO ON-SALE SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 14 AT METROTIX.COM

(St. Louis, MO – November 11, 2009) Main Ingredient, the Stylistics and the Emotions headline the 70’s Soul Jam at Chaifetz (SHAY-fetz) Arena at Saint Louis University on Saturday, March 13 at 8 p.m.  Ray, Goodman & Brown and New Birth are also on the line-up.

Tickets are $44.50, $49.50 and $77 and go on sale on Saturday, November 14 at 10 a.m. at MetroTix.com, MetroTix outlets at select Schnucks and Macy’s stores, charge by phone at 314-534-1111 and the Chaifetz Arena Box Office.

Paced by the impassioned lead vocals of Cuba Gooding, Sr. during their prime hitmaking years, the Main Ingredient is best remembered for their 1972 classic "Everybody Plays the Fool" but released a number of other singles, mostly during the first half of the 70’s.  They reached the Billboard R&B Top 30 for the first time in 1970 with "You've Been My Inspiration," and things grew steadily from there; a cover of the Impressions' "I'm So Proud" broke the R&B Top 20, and "Spinning Around (I Must Be Falling in Love)" went Top 10.  The Main Ingredient also scored in the R&B Top 10 with “Just Don’t Want to Be Lonely” in 1974 and “Rolling Down a Mountainside” in 1975.

Hailing from Philadelphia, the Stylistics had 12 straight Top 10 R&B hits in the early 70’s including "You Are Everything," "Betcha By Golly, Wow," "I'm Stone in Love With You," "Break Up to Make Up" and "You Make Me Feel Brand New." The Stylistics were one of the smoothest and sweetest soul groups of their era. All of their hits were ballads, graced by the soaring falsetto of Russell Thompkins, Jr. and the lush, yet graceful productions of Thom Bell, which helped make the Stylistics one of the most successful soul groups of the first half of the 70’s.

A trio of sisters with a strong gospel base, the Emotions, were one of the leading female R&B acts of the '70s. Lead singer Sheila Hutchinson and her sisters Wanda and Jeanette were only teenagers when they crashed the soul charts in 1969 with the engaging "So I Can Love You.”  The Emotions achieved their greatest success with their association with Earth, Wind & Fire which led to their chart-topping hit “Best of My Love” in 1977 and “Boogie Wonderland” in 1979.

The "sweet" soul trio of Ray, Goodman & Brown originated as the Moments and were formed in the late 1960’s.   Three of their singles topped the R&B chart – “Love on a Two-Way Street” in 1970, “Look at Me (I’m in Love) in 1975 and “Special Lady” in 1979.  Ray, Goodman & Brown reached the R&B Top 10 five other times with “I Do,” “If I Didn’t Care,” “All I Have,” “Sexy Mama” and “Take it to the Limit.”

The first release by the American funk and R&B group New Birth was the R&B Top 10 single "I Can Understand It." Led by Leslie Wilson's intense vocals and reminiscent of Bobby Womack, the single zoomed up the charts, peaking at number four after only 12 weeks. In January of 1974 they released "It's Been a Long Time," one of their celebrated hits and another Top Ten entry. That single was followed by the classic, soulful ballad "Wildflower."  In mid-1975 they signed with Buddah Records and immediately recorded their first and only R&B number one, "Dream Merchant."