Monday Music "The Brothers Johnson" with "Strawberry Letter 23" and "Stomp"

I have had a busy Week, I went to camp....again but My kindle was loaded with a couple of books..

       Please buy your own copy if you haven't already.   This is the 4th installment of the "gray man" series...I bought the first one because my blogbuddy Jim decided to publish a book and I bought it out of loyalty...I bought the next 3 because of the quality of the writings.  I view the characters as "old Friends" and you see how people of character handle adversity and challenges and the bond that binds them.  Very good writing.   You can buy your own copy either kindle or "dead Tree" from this Site. 
    We also had a memorial service at camp for the 9-11 attacks.   It was somber, but there are kids now that have no memory of the events except as "history".

 

It is up to us to remind the "younger generation" of the events that have transpired and not to forget.

       I heard the "Brothers Johnson" on my 70's on Sirius XM, I always liked the old school R&B, there is a cool groove to the music.  I would jam on it on a long road trip, this music is something to dance to. 

"Strawberry Letter 23" is a song written and composed by Shuggie Otis, and best known by the version recorded by The Brothers Johnson, which Quincy Jones produced. Otis recorded it for his 1971 album Freedom Flight.

George Johnson, of the Brothers Johnson, was dating one of Otis's cousins when he came across the album Freedom Flight. The group recorded "Strawberry Letter 23" for their 1977 album Right on Time, which was produced by Quincy Jones, and the album went platinum. They recorded the song in a funkier, more dance-oriented vein than the original Otis version. Their rendition hit the Billboard Hot 100 and peaked at number five and reached number one on the Soul Singles chart in 1977.^[1] Studio guitar player Lee Ritenour recreated Otis's original guitar solo for the Brothers Johnson cover. The 12" single was pressed on red strawberry-scented vinyl

                                                                     Strawberry Letter 23
Guitarist/vocalist George and bassist/vocalist Louis formed the band Johnson Three Plus One with older brother Tommy and their cousin Alex Weir while attending school in Los Angeles, California.^[1][2] When they became professionals, the band backed such touring R&B acts as Bobby Womack and the Supremes. George and Louis Johnson later joined Billy Preston's band and wrote Music in My Life and The Kids and Me for him before leaving his group in 1973. In 1976, The Brothers covered the Beatles' song, Hey Jude, for the ephemeral musical documentary All This and World War II.
Quincy Jones hired them to play on his LP Mellow Madness, and recorded four of their songs, including Is It Love That We're Missing? and Just a Taste of Me.
After touring with various artists including Bobby Womack and Billy Preston, they were hired by Quincy Jones for a tour in Japan and produced their debut album Look Out For #1, released in March 1976 (#9 US) Their Right on Time album was released in May 1977 and reached number 13 on the Billboard Hot 200. Blam!! came out in August 1978 and reached number 7 on the Billboard 200.
Two of the duo's songs were featured on the soundtrack of the 1976 film Mother, Jugs & Speed. The instrumental track Thunder Thumbs and Lightnin' Licks refers to the brothers' nicknames. Get the Funk Out Ma Face was cowritten with Quincy Jones.
Their popular album Light Up The Night was released in March 1980 and rose to #5 on the Billboard 200. It was number 46 on the "Top 100 LPs of 1980" list in Rolling Stone Magazine. The brothers self-produced the subsequent album, Winners; released in July 1981, it only reached #48 on the Billboard 200.

Among their most popular songs are I'll Be Good to You (Billboard Hot 100 #3 in 1976), Strawberry Letter 23 (Hot 100 #5 in 1977, originally recorded by Shuggie Otis), Ain't We Funkin' Now (1978), and Stomp! (Hot 100 #7 and Hot Dance Music/Club Play #1 in 1980). Their styles include funk, and R&B ballads. Each album also included at least one instrumental cut that would either be considered lite jazz (Tomorrow 1976, Q 1977, Smilin' On Ya 1980, Tokyo 1984) or Funk (Thunder Thumbs &Lightning Licks 1976, Brother Man 1976, Mista Cool 1978, Celebrations 1980).