Pearly Gates - Days In New York

This utterly fabulous, romantic, and sentimental throwback to a stylised dream of yesterday's Manhattan, is the third song for our brand new album "Disco 2008" to have a finished video. We have now finished recording all of the twenty four songs going on it, plus three more songs just for the DVD version. As for the videos, and there is a video for each and every track, we still have a lot more to make over the next five weeks, to meet our December deadline. So we're all going to be busy at Centre City Records.
Pearly Gates, real name Vi Billups, was one of the three original members of The Flirtations. They started out as the Gypsies, a group from New York, with the early sixties girl group classics, "Jerk It", and the Northern Soul legendary classic "It's A Woman's World", before becoming The Flirtations, and emigrating to England. They had many hits in the 1970s, including "Nothing But A Heartache", and another Northern Soul classic, "Need Your Love", on the Deram label. In the late seventies they disbanded, and I got to produce a whole album on Pearly, called "No Two Ways About It", during the classic disco era, an album for Music Business legend, Artie Mogul ,once he had left United Artists in 1979. But he reneged on the deal, and I never got paid, and the album never came out, till years later, when I started using the tracks on my Nightmare Gold series in 1986, and then eventually the tracks were all used on Hot Records 1995 CD release, "The Best Of Pearly Gates". In the meantime, the Flirtations, without Pearly, had reformed for Proto Records, for Barry Evangeli, with the high energy anthem, "Earthquake", which Ian Anthony Stephens produced. This lineup of The Flirtations then went to Passion Records, under Anne Plaxton, and I got to produce them on "Read All About It". And at the same time, Pearly herself did a solo track for a label called Funkin Marvellous, called "Action", which George Hargreaves produced, and this was a huge floorfilling classic, and one of the most popular High Energy records of the 1980s. Next, I myself produced her next single for that label, called "Third Time Lucky". Then Pearly rejoined the Flirtations, and all three original girls, Earnestine, Shirley, and Pearly, were back together once again. We then did a Flirtations single for Nightmare Records, called "Back On My Feet Again", and also a solo track with Pearly called "One Less Bell To Answer" . Finally we had so many tracks with Pearly that we completed the "Best Of Pearly Gates" album for Hot Productions. I have now known Pearly for thirty years, and yet she still looks thirty years old.
Well anyway, the exciting news is that "Disco 2008" is nearly here. 24 brand new Disco tracks in time for Christmas. All of them recorded since August 2007. 24 fabulous retro disco delights, with a DVD also, of the performances of all 24 songs that are on the CD plus three bonus tracks. I love it. PLEASE buy "Disco 2008" in December, available through Vital, and marketed by GoldSoul Records.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Disco-2008
• Disco
• Soul
• Motorcity
• Centre-City
• High-Energy
• Diva
• Girl-Groups
• Northern-Soul
• Female-Singers
• Female-Soul
• Dance

[IanLevine]

I am staggered by how utterly beautiful this video looks, all thanks to the hard work of Paul Martin, who has edited it to perfection.

[heebieandjeebie]

lovvvvvvvvve it!!!

[matelot95]

Wow I remember Pearly in the 70's!

[elliotodle]

Wow, Pearly Superb Video, Lyrics and Vocals, Probably your best work to date, that I have seen so far!!!

Why don't see this on television more often, This is fabulous. Pearly looks great very, very classy...

[filmstudy2]

Excellent song & performance.

[RogerImhada]

I'm speechless.. this is utterly utterly fantastic. I love the song, but the video has really blown me away. Well done Ian and the boys.

[ukdh]

Have played this about 10 times now and the tune certainly grows on you. But I think the video makes it, very atmospheric and really conjures up the feel of NYC at this time of year. Well done.

[civilservant]

What a great video and dear Pearly still looks great and can still belt out a tune to get you dancing. Well done Ian.

[ExpansionRecords]

Wow Ian, this video is amazing. It has to be best you have done with all those brilliant effects. Love the snow falling on Manhattan and the flames out of Pearly's hand

[nimbelugen]

great sweet and romantic...

[ianhow2478]

Anybody who happens across this page wondering to themselves "Whatever became of good music?" Do yourself a huge favour and check this out!!! Beautiful!!