Rockin' Roll Baby
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2025}}
{{Infobox album
| name = Rockin' Roll Baby
| type = Studio
| artist = The Stylistics
| cover = Rockinrollbabystylistics.jpg
| alt =
| released = November 1973
| recorded =
| studio = Sigma Sound, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| venue =
| length = 42:36
| label = Avco
| producer = Thom Bell
| prev_title = Round 2
| prev_year = 1972
| next_title = Let's Put It All Together
| next_year = 1974
| misc = {{Singles
| name = Rockin' Roll Baby
| type = studio
| single1 = Rockin' Roll Baby
| single1date = 1973
}}
}}
{{Music ratings
| rev1 =AllMusic
| rev1Score = {{Rating|4|5}} {{AllMusic |class=album |id=r50445 |tab=review |label=Rockin' Roll Baby review |first=Andrew |last=Hamilton |accessdate=2011-10-16}}
|rev2 = Christgau's Record Guide
|rev2Score = C+{{cite book|last=Christgau|first=Robert|author-link=Robert Christgau|year=1981|title=Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies|publisher=Ticknor & Fields|isbn=089919026X|chapter=Consumer Guide '70s: S|chapter-url=https://www.robertchristgau.com/get_chap.php?k=S&bk=70|accessdate=March 13, 2019|via=robertchristgau.com}}
}}
Rockin' Roll Baby is the third studio album recorded by American R&B group The Stylistics, released in November 1973 on the Avco label. It was produced by Thom Bell and recorded at Sigma Sound Studio North in Philadelphia. This was the group's last album produced by Bell.
Lead vocals are by Russell Thompkins, Jr.
Background
While on Avco, they began working with producer/songwriter Thom Bell, and along with songwriter Linda Creed created a bunch of hit singles that used lavish production backing the lead vocals of Russell Thompkins, Jr. Every single that Bell produced was a hit.{{cite web |url=http://www.allmusic.com/artist/the-stylistics-mn0000567624/biography |title=Stylists All Music Bio |date= |website=AllMusic |access-date=5 August 2016}} The album includes the original full version of the song, "You Make Me Feel Brand New".
Chart performance
The album reached No. 66 on the Billboard LPs chart and No. 5 on the R&B albums chart. The title track reached No. 14 on the Billboard Hot 100, No. 3 on the R&B singles chart, and No. 6 on the UK Singles Chart.
Track listing
{{Track listing
| headline = Side one
| all_writing = Thom Bell and Linda Creed, except where noted
| title1 = Only for the Children
| length1 = 4:38
| title2 = Could This Be the End?
| writer2 = Joseph B. Jefferson, Bruce Hawes, Charles Simmons
| length2 = 4:09
| title3 = Let Them Work It Out
| length3 = 3:58
| title4 = Make It Last
| length4 = 2:59
| title5 = Pay Back Is a Dog
| writer5 = Thom Bell, Kenneth Gamble
| length5 = 4:31
}}
{{Track listing
| headline = Side two
| title6 = Love Comes Easy
| length6 = 4:58
| title7 = There's No Reason
| writer7 = Joseph B. Jefferson, Bruce Hawes
| length7 = 3:58
| title8 = Rockin' Roll Baby
| length8 = 4:27
| title9 = You Make Me Feel Brand New
| length9 = 5:30
| note9 = long version, not the 1974 hit single version
| title10 = I Won't Give You Up
| writer10 = Charles Simmons, Bruce Hawes, Joseph B. Jefferson
| length10 = 3:38
}}
Personnel
- Russell Thompkins, Jr. – lead vocals, backing vocals
- Airrion Love – backing vocals, lead vocals on "You Make Me Feel Brand New"
- James Smith, Herb Murrell, James Dunn – backing vocals
- Linda Creed, Barbara Ingram, Evette Benton, Carla Benson – additional backing vocals
- Norman Harris, Bobby Eli – guitar
- Ronnie Baker – bass
- Earl Young – drums
- Larry Washington – timbales, congas, bongos
- Vince Montana – percussion
- Thom Bell – keyboards
- Joseph DeAngelis, Milton Fipps – French horn
- Jack Faith – alto saxophone, flute
- John Davis – tenor saxophone, baritone saxophone
- Bobby Hartzell, Rocco Bene – trumpet, flugelhorn, piccolo trumpet
- Freddy Joiner, Bobby Moore – tenor trombone
- Richard Genevese – bass trombone
- Walter File – harp
- Don Renaldo and His Swinging Strings – strings
Charts
;Singles
| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;" |
| rowspan="2"| Year
! rowspan="2"| Single ! colspan="4"| Peak chart positions |
|---|
| style="font-size:smaller;"
! width="40"| US ! width="40"| US ! width="40"| US ! width="40"| UK |
| rowspan="1"|1973
| align="left"| "Rockin' Roll Baby" | 14 | 3 | 44 | 6 |
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{discogs master|124339|Rockin' Roll Baby}}
{{The Stylistics}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rockin Roll Baby}}
Category:The Stylistics albums
Category:Albums produced by Thom Bell
Category:Albums arranged by Thom Bell