Fifty Years On, Liverpool's Overlooked 1970s Black Music Scene Gets Renewed Attention
As the Real Thing mark the anniversary of their No 1 hit 'You to Me Are Everything,' attention turns to the broader Black funk and R&B scene that flourished in 1970s Liverpool despite deprivation and racism.
Months before the Real Thing's 'You to Me Are Everything' became a UK number one hit in 1976, lead singer Chris Amoo brought the then-unreleased song to the Timepiece, a nightclub devoted to Black music on Liverpool's Fleet Street, according to the Guardian.
Amoo recalled that his DJ friend Les Spaine played the track and the empty dancefloor "just filled up, and nobody, not one person in that place, had heard the song before," he told the Guardian. "That's when me and Les looked at each other and thought: you've got something there, brother."
The song, described by the Guardian as having "symphonic majesty and romantic vocals," reached the top of the charts during the summer heatwave of 1976. Fifty years later, Amoo is touring with bandmate Dave Smith to mark the anniversary, the report said.
According to the Guardian, the Real Thing were the most high-profile act to emerge from a wider underground funk and R&B scene in 1970s Liverpool. That scene was upheld largely by a generation from the Toxteth area south of the city centre, who embraced Black American culture despite the backdrop of deprivation and racism in the city, the source noted.
The Guardian's report examines how vibrant nightclubs and artists thrived in this environment, and raises questions about why the broader scene has received comparatively little recognition even after the Real Thing's chart-topping success.
Sources
- Even better than the Real Thing? The overlooked Black music scene of 1970s Liverpool — The Guardian — Culture
EGazette summarizes reporting from multiple sources; follow the links for the originals.
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