Greetings...! This Is The Uplifters is the debut studio album by the American group The Uplifters, released May 19, 1970, through Soul.
Background[]
Ricky Vandella and Frank Davis started singing together in church as children. As in their teenage years, Ricky and Frank started to communicate with each other as friends and moved to Corpus Christi until 1967, and then progressively, formed a group. They went back to Albuquerque and got a contract from Taylor Price to sign to Sunbow. After receiving a contract from Price, they accepted it and Ricky befriended Price.
As Mentin Benz and James Trevor got into Sunbow, they started to hold out auditions from April 1969 to May 1969. On May 13, 1969, they formed together as The Uplifters. They were rumors and speculations about who thought of the name of the group. Rumors say it was either Ricky or Frank, the founder of the group. As they formed, they decided to perform in clubs like Albuquerque’s The Sarasota Club, and Detroit’s Roostertail.
The Uplifters insisted on Ricky Vandella, Frank Davis, James Trevor & Mentin Benz; The upcoming success that would follow the group results in what could happen, in later years. In December 1969, their new producer Louis Whitfield requested them a song that he originally wrote, “Cloud Nine” with James Trevor on lead, and next year, they released it as a single that would soon be the Top 40 hit in May.
After the enormous success at the end of the year, they went on to start making more songs written by Whitfield, Vandella and so on. On May 6, 1970, they released their second single, “I Can’t Get Next To You” that reached the Top 40 Roboard hits.
Release & overview[]
The album was official released on May 19, 1970 to heavy critical acclaim, and reached the top of the UV album charts of the week ending May 30, 1970. 1 more single followed it, which was a success on the charts.
Track list[]
SIDE ONE[]
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Cloud Nine" | Benz | Louis Whitfield | 3:31 |
| 2. | "Hey Jude" | Lennon-McCartney | Whitfield | 3:35 |
| 3. | "Yester-me, Yester-you, Yesterday" | Davis, Benz | Whitfield | 3:04 |
| 4. | "Tears of a Clown" | Trevor, Vandella | Whitfield | 3:01 |
| 5. | "Here I Go Again" | Robinson, Moore, Johnson, Cleveland | Whitfield | 2:57 |
SIDE TWO[]
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "At Last" | Warren, Gordon | Whitfield | 2:50 |
| 2. | "I Can't Get Next To You" | Davis, Benz | Whitfield | 2:54 |
| 3. | "I Heard It Through The Grapevine" | Vandella, Whitfield, Strong | Whitfield | 3:04 |
| 4. | "We Can Work It Out" | Lennon-McCartney | Whitfield | 2:54 |
| 5. | "Signed, Sealed, Delivered (I'm Yours)" | Benz | Whitfield | 2:41 |
Personnel[]
- Ricky Vandella - vocals
- Mentin Benz - vocals
- Frank Davis - vocals
- James Trevor - vocals
- Instrumentation: The Sunbow Band
- Composers: Cameron Jackson, Jameson Weir, Deke Benz