The Three Tenors of Soul revive Philadelphia Sound

A trio of silky Philadelphia soul singers sang about romance in separate groups during the 1970s heyday of the Philly Sound.

To hear them sing it, love was a betcha-by-golly-wow-la-la-means-I-love-you-what's-come-over-me kind of feeling.

Their signature was the tenor croon. Their sound helped define the era's music.

Now, decades after topping the music charts, William "Poogie" Hart, Ted Mills and Russell Thompkins Jr. have joined voices.

Their new CD, All the Way From Philadelphia, celebrates the croon and crowns the trio the "Three Tenors of Soul." The disc, released last week, harks back to the days when Hart was the lead singer of the Delfonics; Mills, of Blue Magic, and Thompkins, of the Stylistics.

"We have known about each other for decades and crossed each other's paths, but this was the first time we got to know each other, to work together, and be creative together," said Mills.

The new release features the singers covering songs originally recorded by groups such as Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes, Earth, Wind & Fire, and the Spinners. On the CD, Philly neosoul singer Bilal, the Average White Band, and the Philly-bred duo Daryl Hall and John Oates log cameos, with Hall & Oates contributing the title track, the one new song on the disc.

The project started with Shanachie Records executives who wanted a soul music CD similar to others issued by the label, which specializes in a wide range of world and roots music. They approached Bobby Eli, a veteran producer and musician who played guitar with Philadelphia International Records house band MFSB, and who had worked on an earlier Shanachie project.

Eli, and the Philadelphia singers themselves, had long been juggling the idea of a collaboration in the vein of the Three Tenors and Three Mo' Tenors. When the record company wanted a soul follow-up, the project took off. Each singer picked songs he wanted to perform and the disc was recorded in three months at Eli's Upper Darby recording studio.

"It might not be the most popular music" right now, said Thompkins, 56, who lives in Philadelphia. "But the people of our generation, the ones who love our songs, they've been waiting and waiting and waiting." (The others are less direct about their ages: "I have no birth record," said Hart, of Wyncote. "I'm still doing the math," said Mills, of North Jersey.)

It's been decades since the days when Blue Magic, the Stylistics and the Delfonics battled on the stage of the Uptown Theater, slaying the competition with hit records, precision choreography and pastel suits.

The groups have similar tales. They started singing as youngsters in Philadelphia and eventually caught the ear of the right person. The hits followed.

"Betcha by Golly, Wow" and "You Are Everything" were among those that scored for the Stylistics; "La-La (Means I Love You)" and "Didn't I (Blow Your Mind This Time)" for the Delfonics; "What's Come Over Me" and "Sideshow" for Blue Magic.

Eli offers a vocal snapshot of each lead singer: Thompkins is "the voice that exemplified sweet soul who sings without the gymnastics"; Mills, "the soaring falsetto with unbelievable breath control"; Hart, the "articulate" crooner who "was the template for many singers who followed him."

As the '70s closed, success waned. The three singers split with their former groups, sometimes bitterly. Thompkins, Mills and Hart tour with their own bands, claiming the right, as lead vocalists, to the signature sound that defined each soul group.

For Thompkins and Mills, there's competition. They perform on the same circuit as their former group members, with one group or the other touring as the alternative version of the originals. There's the Stylistics and then there's Russell Thompkins Jr. and the New Stylistics. There's Blue Magic and Ted Mills: The Creator and Voice of Blue Magic.

Mills has been teaching algebra to GED students in addition to doing singing gigs. For a while, he took a break from R&B to do gospel music.

The trio are promoting the record, but whether it leads to a tour depends on sales and finding a promoter who is willing to fund the endeavor. In the meantime, the three tenors will continue their separate careers and national and international gigs.

"Any place in America, in any urban city, all the bootleggers have the Delfonics, the Stylistics and Blue Magic," Mills said. "Generation after generation has heard our music, and this is a chance, with God's blessing, to carry on."

To hear samples of the Three Tenors of Soul's album, and hear excerpts from their interview, go to http://go.philly.com/soultenorsEndText

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