Shalamar began as a monstrosity of shallow record executives in 1977 and ended that way in 1991.
In between, however, there was a glorious run of pop/soul/disco thanks to the “classic” lineup of Jody Watley, Jeffrey Daniel, and Howard Hewett that lasted from 1979-1983.
Shalamar’s origins were in 1977 as a studio group. A bunch of faceless session singers led by Gary Mumford and assembled by Dick Griffey of Soul Train Records (soon to be SOLAR Records).
After the shocking and undeserved success of the single “Uptown Festival”, Griffey had the bright idea of having two popular Soul Train dancers (Watley and Daniel) join Mumford giving an actual body to the name “Shalamar.” Daniel and Watley were capable singers (and Watley over time would actually become a very good singer), but they were clearly chosen for their looks and dancing ability not vocal chops. I suppose that was gonna be mainly for Mumford, who was an okay vocalist.
Well, Mumford quit before recording of the next album began.
Fortunately, Gerald Brown was brought in as his replacement in 1978. And Brown could sing. That lineup of Brown, Watley, and Daniel was damn good and actually kicked off the run of success with Shalamar Disco Gardens that only escalated when Hewett, who was an outstanding singer, replaced Brown in ‘79.
(Brown had a dispute over money with the record label).
Lucky for SOLAR (short for “Sounds of Los Angeles Records”) Watley, Daniel, and Hewett grew as songwriters and performers with each album and they had one of the best producers in the business, Leon Sylvers, helming most of the music.
The combination created five consecutive sterling albums: Big Fun, Three For Love, Go For It, Friends, and The Look.
And the backing vocal arrangements are some of the best you’ll ever hear from late 70s and early 80s music no matter the genre.
Sadly, the revolving door of membership got started again in 1983 when Watley and Daniel both left following the release of The Look. They were replaced by Delisa Davis and Mikki Free. Not to besmirch those two, but they were no Watley or Daniel… or even Brown.
This new Shalamar only got by (barely) on the charisma of Hewett, so when he left in 1985 for a solo career, Shalamar was practically dead… except in the eyes of the execs who had a brand to still sell. So, Sydney Justin joined the group and two more really pitiful albums were put out before the plug was finally pulled.
PLAYLIST on Tidal
The top 30 Shalamar songs, in my opinion. All their individual albums from Shalamar Disco Gardens through The Look are worth listening to, though.
LP REVIEWS
Uptown Festival: F
Shalamar Disco Gardens: C+
Big Fun: B
Three For Love: A-
Go For It: B
Friends: B+
The Look: B+
Heart Break: C-
Circumstantial Evidence: D
Wake Up: F