Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes - To Be True (Expanded Edition) (feat. Teddy Pendergrass) (2016)

Starting their career as the Charlemagnes in 1954, Philadelphian Harold Melvin and his Blue Notes notched up nine hit singles in the UK and many more in the US. Signing with Kenny Gamble & Leon Huff's Philadelphia International Records in 1972 they quickly became household names, producing classic soul and pop hits such as If You Don't Know Me By Now, The Love I Lost, Wake Up Everybody and Don't Leave Me This Way. All those great recordings exhibited the lush, highly orchestrated Philly Soul sound and incredible vocal talents of lead singer Teddy Pendergrass, helping the group become Soul royalty along the way. The groups third LP on PIR was TO BE TRUE. Released in 1975, and following on from I Miss You (1972) and Black and Blue (1973), this album built on the group's previous successes by topping the R&B album charts and cracking the Pop top 30 while also producing three top ten R&B singles. Ranging from sweeping, proto-disco tracks to smouldering ballads all the elements of Gamble and Huff's prized song-writing and production talents are to the fore on TO BE TRUE.