The Sylvers - Mahogany

[henrica7]

Was Edmund singing the lead or was it Foster?

[TubeGuest5178]

This kid in our neighborhood used to wear his afro as big as them (lol) once we all went swimming his hair did the exact same thing....long and stringy....hours later it was back to that big puffy afro.

[sylversfan11]

Happy Birthday Ricky and Olympia!

[Nanadsyl]

Oops wore one lol!

[Nanadsyl]

I really dont think The Sylvers wore wig. But Jermaine Jackson wore won when he came out with his solo album lol!! I loved the J5 and The Sylvers and still do!!!

[Belburg]

@Nanadsyl That looked like Jermaine's hair.He had his own little tight fro back then.

[Nanadsyl]

@Belburg Yeah I agree mostly it was his but then one time he had an outrageously huge fake fro. lol. Fake real or whatever I loved all those guys lol.

[goodgyrl8]

i love the lyrics

[1domsdad]

Regarding the afro controversy...lol!....I grew up in the 60's and 70's, and it is true that some performers wore wigs onstage back in the day, but not because they didn't have real afros - as anyone who has had a 'fro knows, perspiration is the mortal enemy of the afro! Lol! So to prevent "shrinkage" onstage, some performers did wigs to keep the hair looking good. I honestly don't think the Sylvers did. Just my opinion.

[ladyvee7110]

@1domsdad My mom had an afro wig back in the day but her natural hair had a relaxer in it...lol. :-D

[leniebabe44]

@1domsdad...so true!!!! was a victim of a sweaty fro...lol

[TubeGuest5178]

@1domsdad nope I got the pic of them all in their pool in Memphis. Their hair went from afro to stringy and long. Our question back then was how do they get their hair back to puffy afros.

[VenetianSymbol]

Olympia was viciously fine!!! LMAO

[sevenwade]

Like this one better than Ms. Ross' version...no disrespect. Just saying.

[SyrenniaLestrange]

@sevenwade : As do I! 

[tsujoy]

If I was a teen (or alive at all) in the 70's I would strive for an afro like Olympia's. I have naturally wavy fine hair, but if I prayed every night maybe it would be that full!

[Meela234]

This is a nice version.

[15711mansel]

Man This really takes me back. Then I saw the Unsung production. Loved that too. Silvers were a pure sounding group. Definately one of the all time greats.

[Bluzey30]

Nice.............

[abiynery]

love it 

[hughesjr]

This sounds like ON THE RADIO

[fortgreene31]

didn't know they made this song hot peace

[bkrillin]

Their hair was all their own...every last one of them....

[mdlsmith]

angie i am a big fan of your family's music. i had a huge crush on ricky back in the day. you are my favorite group.

[EmpressElizabeth1920]

where can I download this song...legally so The Sylvers receive royalties.

Alot of people had afros this big in the 70's. Thanks for posting

[garnetjewel]

As for afros....There are quite a few family reunion pictures with a bunch of my cousins with afros JUST AS BIG as the Sylvers. It was common back then. There was a local NY kids show in the early 70's called Wonderama and the host asked the Sylvers how they got their hair that way. Rumor has it that one of them replied that they stuck their fingers in electric sockets to imply how stupid the question was to the middle-aged white host. Don't know if it's true. Anyone know if they said that?

[PetePeterkin]

So here's the deal. I'm a huge fan of the EARLY Sylvers (As seen in your picture.). The picture posted here is very misleading. This song was done by the "later " version of the group. (Disco version) Unfortunately Foster's voice changed but not for the better.

(Foster is not even in the picture!)

[ladyvee7110]

@PetePeterkin....Ok here's the deal, this is the only picture of the Sylvers that I have and it was scanned from an old magazine my cousin had. I'm aware this photo was an older one. I'm sorry you're disappointed with the pic and you felt mislead. It was either this photo or a black screen. I preferred to use this photo. By the way, you'll rarely find every member of the Sylvers family in one given publicity photo or even at one live performance. There's almost always one or two members missing.

[theemotions]

@PetePeterkin Edmund is singing lead in this song :-). This is late 70s Foster didn't take over singing male lead until the early 80s.

[afrosensuous]

ATTENTION: Assomeone stated, we used to braid our hair, then when wer're ready, we take them out and it actually makesour hair huge and easier to comb. I know people (some people) won't believe our hair can get that huge, but that's a fact.

[frogca]

I see a lot of debate about the afros. I saw a lot of afros growing up but the Sylvers by far had the best. I went through gallons of Ultra Sheen and never could get my afro to look like the Sylvers. The blowout worked sometimes but that did not last long. Jermain Jackson's afro was pretty tight. I thought Foster and Edmund's afro beat everybody hands down.

[johrons]

here she is who is the woman all the way over to the right let me know plz

[jww312]

they are my first cousins. i know that they were not wigs.

[gustea2008]

Just a little note Foster is not in this picture, but I think this has to be one of the most under rated groups of all time

[jesusneverexisted300]

Man thier singing was beginning to suffer by this time.

[macksterful]

is it true that one of these guys did the voice of marlon on the jackson 5 cartoon

[jayamaw]

@macksterful yes it's true...da one u r talking about is edmund...

[jesusneverexisted300]

@macksterful: yes

Edmund Theodore Sylvers (b. January 25, 1957, d. March 11, 2004) - Vocals, Percussion

[soulchildsacomin]

Olympia was no longer part of the group by the time this was released (she left in 1976 to start a family, and this was released in 1979). Angie is the one that starts singing at 1:08.

[1980Triumph]

just to let you know, I am going back in time to marry either Charmaine or Olympia.....

[johrons]

@1980Triumph wait a minute man if u goin for the one on the far right of this picture then thats mine the other two are sexy take one of them lol

[shannonD68]

They had THE baddest fros out of anybody I have ever seen, besides Jermaine Jackson.

[harlembreaker131]

shannonD68....You say Jermaine Jackson had the baddest afro? Hmm! Well he did have one of the most unique afros in his day. But did you actually take a well look at his older bro Jackie Jackson's afro? At times Jackie actually sported a perfect circular afro, and it also had sufficient height & width to fit his face. And as opposed to other perm fros, Jackie did keep his fully woolly real. Fairness should count for something. lol. Was Ricky Silver's bouncy fro for real?

[willjarmon]

@harlembreaker131 To answer the Rickey Sylvers question watch them on Soul Train from 72

[SoPhreshhOfficial]

R.I.P Edmund !

[gittahfiend]

Edmund looks like a light skinned chris rock .anybody agree ?

[jody808]

no, i don't see it

[carmeldipped1]

nope Mario is who he looks like.

[1980Triumph]

that has to be a wig foster is wearing

[ladyvee7110]

Why would it be a wig? Hard to believe but people did have afros that huge. All it was was long hair.

[1980Triumph]

I may be wrong but to me it looks like a wig. Some people, entertainers wore afro wigs in the 70's this i know for sure

[ladyvee7110]

LOL...you know for sure yet you were born in like 1980. So I guess the whole family had on wigs or was it just him?

[1980Triumph]

There are videos with the Jackson Five where Michael had an afro wig on, only time I ever saw it but he had one, and there are some other soul train episodes where i see people with afro wigs, I really do believe Foster had one, later on it looked natural but not during this time

[Khultan]

@ladyvee7110 LOL Got 'em.

[Khultan]

@1980Triumph  You're wrong.

[BlaqPanthress]

@1980Triumph ......very true.....but, I have a close friend that grew up next door to them, and I had the pleasure of meeting Edmund and Ricky and it's their 'REAL" hair....

plus, I have two brothers who had fro's as big as their.....oh, how those were the days!...

[EmpressElizabeth1920]

@1980Triumph My cousins had huge fros back in the day. People took better care of their hair then.

[almondy1963]

@1980Triumph MY oldest brother had a fro that big. So people in those days really (really!) had afros that huge, lol!

[bassistdc]

That's Ricky. Foster's not in that pic.

[afrosensuous]

@1980Triumph...Foster isn't in this pic....and that's their real hair. they lived a block from me back in the day, so it's their hair.

[JEEminn3000]

@1980Triumph im sorry that's not foster its ricky when he was little

[1980Triumph]

@JEEminn3000

Gotcha

[MIMI88998899]

@1980Triumph

NONE OF THEM ARE WEARING WIGS. THAT IS NOT FOSTER IN THE PICTURE, THAT IS RICKY.

[mellierson]

@1980Triumph That's Ricky.

[mellierson]

@1980Triumph That's Ricky.

[KPizzle1000]

Holy Wow!

That's a lot of hair!

[uranazidar]

i have heard some of their songs before but from this picture i had no idea the girls in this family were this beautiful . forgive me i was born in 1972 . go sylvers .

[icon200]

black folks!!!

we gave the world the debarges,the jacksons and the sylvers...lol

oh i forgot the ingrams

[Amalatyri]

They had bigger afros than the Jacksons.....and better harmony, too!

[alphaql]

well, duh! it's a hundred of'em

[kachoo2135]

Good song, but not as good as Diana Ross' version.

[Urology707]

Ima jump on the band wagon, Hello Angie... If you never respond to this, I am just glad that you hit the fans back... Your family is so talented and the music is still so pertinent today... I was born in the 80's and I listen to your music still today... The musical arrangements, vocal harmonies and so much more have made your music awesome and timeless... Truly in a class all by yourselves... Much love and respect... DJ SC

[jfann1065]

She tries to log on to You Tube to find The Sylvers. When she doesn't succeed, she comes to get Mommy to do it for her. She's a true Sylvers Fan.

[jfann1065]

When I'm in the other room listening to The Sylvers, she'll come running from her room and jump on my lap and starts dancing. She loves Boogie Fever, HotLine, Cotton Candy, Free Style, Aint Nothing But A Party and Burning Love. Hey she got it honest.

[jfann1065]

My two year old loves The Sylvers. My Husband taught her how to use the computer, and she knows how to turn it off and on. She can maximize,she knows how to minimize,and she knows how to escape to make the picture smaller.

[Onemom2bit]

ricky was a handsome child, what he's about 12/13 y/o here. looks the same in older pics. what a hunk. smile

[courageux28]

Yep. Ricky always had that same vibe. Sylvers are classic!

[destineenedd]

Hi Angie. Let me start by saying your family can never be forgotten. I had the biggest crush on Ricky:) WE cannot forget what a hell of a producer Leon turned out to be. Most of the Solar hits were manifested by Leon. Dynasty is still one of my favs. What is everybody doin now???

Love to you

[UTuberSandwich]

OMG look at Ricky...a foster look-a-like...or should i say that Foster is a Ricky look-a-like??

[chriscortez56]

Where is Sweet Olympia? I miss her so much! Its been 27 years last I saw her. Tiava was just a wee baby girl on Angelino. When you speak to her, please tell her that we " me,CC Callaway", William, Karl(Mallory) but mostly I 'we' treasure her for the beautiful spirit that she is. Olympia, Dear Olympia you were the "Jewel" of Alpha, and I 'we" will always love you. Sure would like to talk 2 U. CC

[Onemom2bit]

hello arron. it was good to from a child of angie's. i kinda smiled when you typed in a comment, help mom, she tries to keep in touch with fans, but there are too many of us. she has a life too, i thank you for your time. it would be fantastic for other members of sylvers group to join in. we need a sylvers forum. afterall, we are all family. in spirit anyway. love one.

[SylversAngel]

Hello Onemom2bit:

You emailed with my son? How sweet. I truly appreciate all the love people still have for my family and I. On occassion I read the comments and respond when I can. I will continue to do so. I love you all and I will keep you in my prayers.

Angelia Sylvers-Polk

[lmcglown1]

@SylversAngel I am a hugh fan of your family. I was in like 2nd or 3rd grade when Hotline came out and I'm 44 now so I was floored when I saw a Sylvers video on facebook . What are you all doing now? you all are one of the best vocal family groups ever. You guys and the Osmonds. Love you guys!

[biminibleu]

dear angie:

your family can easily get a production deal on "bet" or another major network. perhaps a bio-pic on "the sylvers" extraordinary career.

much love,

a fan

[SylversAngel]

Sounds like a plan. :)

Angelia Sylvers-Polk

[PhsycoFear]

hi angie, this is onemom2bit. i have been hesitating to make a comment because i do not believe you are really taking time out of your personal life to talk to fans, even thou we are all 30-40 years old now. something tells me we are all still teens when we first heard your families music, i go back in time when i listen, smile. how tall is ricky, he's my favorite? waiting for a response.

[masculine31]

RIP Edmund...miss u much bro!!!!

[BLAKPEARL69]

May Tv1 will have a show about the Sylvers. That would be cool since they had shows about DeBarge, Donny Hathaway and Phyllis Hyman.

[eshonne21]

Hello again Angie...I grew up near your older siblings that were born in Memphis and have been a huge fan all my life...graduated from high school in 1972, huge crush on Olympia, have all your vinyl(origiginal LPs), some 45s, all your CDs including greatest hits compilations, and never put a mix on my mp3 that does not include a Sylvers medley. Have a digital turntable that I used to transfer the vinyl to wav and a digital cassette player to do the same. Hope you all can do at least 1 more cd.

[pchelloo]

Angie Sylvers, I'm a forever Sylvers follower. Can you please let myself & others that love you & your family know if there are books, movies, concerts etc..in the works??

A note on the afros....I wore mine proudly too, my first boyfriend name was Kelvin...his afro was perfect & huge...we both took alot of pride in our hair & clothes.

Please respond when you can Angie; I'd love to hear from you, dear Lady!

Hugs,

Charlene

[jody808]

they had some powerful afros back then, when they danced they shook back and forth

[NoirEtoile1]

Actually Wikipeia does have a good summary of the group. But it would be great if the family members would put up some photos. Again, a talented group.

[NoirEtoile1]

It would be great if someone in the Sylvers family went and posted a whole update of accurate information and pictures on Wikipedia. A lot of people would love to see you all do tour..hint,hint, hint.

[NoirEtoile1]

When I was growing up in the 70's, I was constantly compared to Micheal Jackson and the boys in the Sylvers cause I had that huge, huge fro. It was really great to see the Sylvers on all these posted videos. We loved them, my sister, me, and everybody I knew. And we didn't waste time comparing them to the Jackson 5 because they were really different. The Sylvers could dance their asses off! And they had girls in the group dancing too.

[Whammo1963]

Damn, those are some huge 'fros!

[jfann1065]

I'm not big on responding to e-mails, but I thought it was really nice of Angie to take the time and respond.I also would like to say HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY to Angie as well.

[Belburg]

Tight version of the original.

[SylversAngel]

Hello Belburg:

Thank you for all your comments and love for my family.

Love Angie Sylvers.

[Belburg]

You're very welcome.You were and still are one of the greatest groups ever.

[KassanovaBrowne]

It's always kewl to hear from an original artist! Very honored to have U comment. It seems so empty to type words in and wonder if anyone, such as yourself, will ever see the words. Of course we all love and cherish the Sylvers and music U put out. I understand that U are in the legal field now and U have a family...Love it....Life goes on does'nt it... I have a question...Is that Edmund on the lead vocals of "Forever Yours"? I will "forever" be impressed with the harmony and lead vocals on it..

[SylversAngel]

Yes I have been in the legal field for over 20 years. I have four children, Aaron 26, Kyle 25, Nicole 20 and Chris 8 and one grandchild, Ky Jae 1.

Yes that is Edmund on Forever Yours. That is one of my favorite songs.

Angie Sylvers-Polk

[ladyvee7110]

I'm honored to have a member of this extraordinary family post a comment on my video. It's a real pleasure. Thank you. What a great group you all were. I have to admit I wasn't familiar with you all until a few years ago but since then I've been listening to your music and watching your performances and now I'm a fan. :o)

[SylversAngel]

Hello ladyvee7110:

See that is amazing to me.

Thank you for the love. Angie.

[KassanovaBrowne]

Thank U Angie, and as always, best wishes....

[housequake43]

hi angie been a big fan with u and ur family since i was n the 6th grade n 76. cross path with ur family thru the years in 77 your charmain and husband moved near us n south centrail near 88th n hooper and i graduated a year b4 chris ,just wanted 2 say hi and do u think they will release any of ur whole album on cd?

[WayneInSF]

Angie, your voice on this track is absolutely stunning. With Pat providing that underlying harmony, I think Giorgio Moroder nailed the production of this song. It was my "song of the summer" in 1979.

And after seeing you and the group perform it on "Bandstand" that year, my mom wore out my copy of the album 'cause she played this song over and over and over again!

[frogca]

@SylversAngel ,

Your family was light of my life growing up. I love every song you guys performed. A lot of us have been writing TVONE asking them to do an unsung story of your family.

[dh1173]

@SylversAngel I just have to have say THANK YOU and your beautiful, talented family for all of the timeless music The Sylvers family have given us. Thank god for UNSUNG for tuning us in to all of the well-deserving talent that never get recognized in our music culture. Now maybe our youth can see what REAL MUSIC & TALENT really are! =-D

[VenetianSymbol]

@SylversAngel Thank God for Unsung... you guys were way underrated.  Music business is really something else. Thank you.

[PhsycoFear]

hello angie. this is onemom2bit. i have hesitated to make a comments because i do not believe your are who you say and- taking time out to talk to fans via internet? r u for real?

[SylversAngel]

Hello:

Yes I am who I say I am. Ricky is about 6'2". I take time out to respond to the comments on the internet because I am amazed at the amount of love that is still out there for my family and our music, some 30 years later.

It was actually by accident that I even began reading the comments about my family on youtube. When I saw the love I felt the least I could do is respond to some of the comments.

Angelia Sylvers-Polk

[PhsycoFear]

hi angie, this is onemom2bit, thank you for responding so quickly, boy your really on top of it. somehow i believe you, I am just speechless. wow!!

[pollystool]

Hi Angie

big hello from a big fan down here in "New Zealand"

i came to your concert at the "Auckland Townhall" back in the 70's

i was dressed like a sylver as part of competition (afro ,bell bottoms & platform shoes) & boy you guys rocked those memories etched in memory forever .

may

God continue to bless you & your family.

Im just chuffed even sending you this message .

ive lost all my cassettes of your music but thanks to you tube ive got some back.

cheers anyway from a fan down under.,

[ruthcbutler]

GREAT!

[KassanovaBrowne]

I admire the Sylvers for doing as well as they did. They were very popular back in the day, but it's a mystery to me why the Jacksons made it and they pulled back. Just seems like it may be true that there is more to show biz than "lights, cameras, and actions". I suspect there is alot of wheelin' and dealin in the background and they never sold out. They stayed true and now the excellent music they made is part of music history. I send my "Thank you" to them. I bet they had fun and sad days too

[michaeljfreak]

J5 were great too. And Michael WAS a cute kid. Do you really think that they had to do any "wheelin and deelin"?

People loved them because they were talented.

And from what I know, J5 existed before Sylvers.

[KassanovaBrowne]

Background wheelin and dealin, not that they were aware of, but those that controlled/influenced their musical destinies. Joe Jackson was an examole of one in the background who most likely paid into a "club" to assure the success of the J5. Granted J5 was awesome and MJ, in particular, turned out to be their secret seapon of success (excellent, even amasing vocal talents and unmatched dancing skills), Popa may have "assured" their rise "quietly". Things like that happen and still do............

[KassanovaBrowne]

.....(2nd part)....The Sylvers may have been out thereBEFORE, the J5, because they had a name change (The Little Angels), where there had been touring as openning act for Ray Charles and Johnny Mathis. That first group did not include Foster and the others newer members that most of us are more familar with. The J5, may be start in the mid-60's....correct me.....(Thanx)

[michaeljfreak]

They started when mj was 6 and became famous when he was 11, in 1969.

[michaeljfreak]

So when did the Sylvers/ the Little Angels have their breakthrough?

[MsTexas73]

Well...the first SYLVERS lp came out in 72 if that helps...but I think Angie could better answer this question.

[diamepiece]

this sounds really nice at the beginning

[paul51]

Better than I thought it would be. Thanks.

[WayneInSF]

Super track from this talented family!