Robert 'Big Sonny' Edwards, 77, original member of soul/R&B group the Intruders
In his mind's eye, Jerry Blavat can see the members of the 1960s and '70s soul and R&B quartet the Intruders. They are still passing time in Philly arcades, using their last bits of pocket change listening to jukeboxes and playing pinball and learning to harmonize for the first time.
In his mind's eye, Jerry Blavat can see the members of the 1960s and '70s soul and R&B quartet the Intruders. They are still passing time in Philly arcades, using their last bits of pocket change listening to jukeboxes and playing pinball and learning to harmonize for the first time.
For many people, the longtime DJ said, the Intruders' music still represents growing up in the city.
"It's music that people never forget, and it's music with the lyrics that they relate to," said Blavat, host of the WXPN-FM show The Geator's Rock & Roll, Rhythm & Blues Express. "The real sound of the Intruders was Big Sonny."
Robert "Big Sonny" Edwards, 77, an original member of the vocal group, died Saturday, Oct. 15, after suffering a heart attack at his Philadelphia home, according to a news release from Gamble-Huff Music, the group's producers.
The group's hits included "Together" (1967) and "I'll Always Love My Mama" (1973), which represented "the height of the disco era," Blavat said.
But the Intruders are most famous for their 1968 single "Cowboys to Girls," which topped Billboard's R&B chart and reached No. 6 on the pop chart. The Intruders were the first group to release national hit songs under the Philadelphia International Records label cofounded by Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff.
In fact, Blavat said Wednesday, the Intruders "put [Gamble and Huff] on the map."
Mr. Edwards' death leaves Phil Terry as the only surviving member of the original group. Also deceased are Sam "Little Sonny" Brown and Eugene "Bird" Daughtry.
"Music was their enjoyment, their happiness, their life," Blavat said. "They came from poor neighborhoods. Music was an extension of them to express themselves to the world, and that is what they did."
Blavat first hosted the group in 1966 on his WCAU-TV show Discophonic Scene. He said he remembered Mr. Edwards as "humble" and "grateful" to be on the air.
Fifty years later, Blavat still plays the Intruders on his radio show.
Terry, the surviving member of the group, said in a statement that Mr. Edwards "was not only my longtime friend for over 59 years, he was like a brother to me."
"Big Sonny was clearly the heartbeat of the group and had a positive impact on all of us," Terry added. "I will greatly miss Big Sonny, my dear brother."
Gamble and Huff said in a joint statement that "we are very saddened to learn of the death of our good friend, 'Big Sonny.' The Intruders, featuring Big Sonny and the rest of the original members, were near and dear to our hearts, and helped start our musical career as a team. . . . We will truly miss Big Sonny. We send our sincere condolences to his family."
In 1996, the Intruders were honored with a bronze plaque on the Philadelphia Music Walk of Fame on South Broad Street. In 2010 the group received the Phillies Gamble and Huff Community Partnership Award from Philadelphia International Records at Citizens Bank Park.
"With the passing of Big Sonny, and groups like the Intruders . . . they get smaller and smaller as far as the real sound of Philadelphia is concerned, and they represent the real sound of Philadelphia," Blavat said.
Mr. Edwards is survived by his wife, Deborah; a son, Nijer; and two grandchildren.
Memorial services will be held at 1 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 29, in Kingdom Hall of Jehovah's Witnesses, 19th and Somerset Streets.
215-854-5915 @mwinberg_