NORTHERN SOUL - FREDA PAYNE - 'ON EASY STREET'

FREDA PAYNE (born 1942, Detroit, Michigan) is an American singer and actress best known for her million selling, 1970 hit single, "Band of Gold".
Freda Payne grew up listening to different jazz singers, such as Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday. As a teenager, she attended the Institute of Musical Arts; she soon began singing radio commercial jingles, and took part in (and won many of) local TV and radio talent shows.
In 1963, she moved to New York and worked with many different entertainers, including Quincy Jones, Pearl Bailey, and Bill Cosby. The following year, her debut album, a jazz recording entitled After the Lights Go Down Low and Much More!!!, was released on the Impulse! label.
In 1966, she released her second album "How Do You Say I Don't Love You Anymore", for MGM Records. Although it is regarded primarily as a jazz album, there are also several covers of pop songs featured, including the Beatles' hit "Yesterday," "Let It Be Me," the Righteous Brothers' "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'," "Feeling Good," and "If You Love Me (Really Love Me)." Produced by legendary Tom Wilson (Bob Dylan, Frank Zappa and Simon and Garfunkel), the album garnered belated respect as several cuts from this LP picked up spins from several Northern Soul DJ's ( "Sad Sad September" and "Too Late") the most notable being the uptempo syncopated, version "On Easy Street" (Larry Weiss and Fred Anisfield) which was a monster for DJ/dancer Keb Darge at Stafford's Top Of The World allnighter in 1985. Also, arranged and conducted by Benny Golson, jazz tenor saxophonist. "Easy Street" is popular with the dancers, with parts of the arrangement being similar to the breaks in Smokey Robinson's "Going to a Go-Go" and, the big city theme of Tony Hatch's "Downtown".
Payne also made occasional guest appearances on different television shows including The Merv Griffin Show and The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson.
Freda even added theatrical credits to her repertoire; she understudied Leslie Uggams for the Broadway show "Hallelujah Baby" in 1967, and appeared with the Equity Theatre in a production of "Lost in the Stars".
In 1969, Brian Holland, Lamont Dozier, and Edward Holland, Jr., persuaded her to sign with their newly-formed record label Invictus. During that same year, her first Invictus single, "Unhooked Generation" (a minor R&B hit), was released. Shortly thereafter, songwriters Holland/Dozier/Holland, under the pen name 'Edith Wayne and Ron Dunbar' offered her a song entitled "Band of Gold". In early 1970, the song became an instant pop smash reaching #3 in the U.S. and #1 in the UK; it also gave Payne her first gold record. Global sales were estimated at two million. An album of the same name proved to be fairly successful as well.
Other Invictus singles included "Deeper and Deeper", "You Brought the Joy", and the Vietnam War protest song "Bring the Boys Home" (U.S. Billboard Hot 100 #12, 1971; her second gold record). Her other Invictus albums were Contact (1971), The Best of Freda Payne (1972, a compilation which included four new, unissued songs), and her last Invictus album Reaching Out (1973).
In 1973 she left Invictus and recorded albums for ABC/Dunhill and Capitol, but she never found the commercial success that she had enjoyed with Invictus. She recorded a duet "I Wanna See You Soon" with Capitol stablemates Tavares, which was a radio airplay hit in the UK in 1977.

On April 22, 2009 Freda appeared on American Idol and sang "Band of Gold".

Thanks to Micky Nold, Mick Patrick, Dave Timperley and Soul Source website for some of the source material.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Northern-Soul
• Motown
• Detroit
• Tom-Wilson
• Benny-Golson
• Band-of-Gold
• Keb-Darge
• Top-of-the-World

[tigerpaint1964]

k.t.f......!

[ROBSBIGSCITYSOUL]

Thanks TP!

[keepthefaith63]

hi mate just got the album on vinyl wot else from the states they got all the best stuff KTF

[ROBSBIGSCITYSOUL]

Thanks for the comment keepthefaith63.

There's more good tracks on there.

If I remember correctly, the album came out over here, however with some missing end tracks.

[keepthefaith63]

dont think heard b4 even if i have its great

[ROBSBIGSCITYSOUL]

Album only, and more recently, available on a CD.

Saw some action in the mid 80's.

Great midtempo version also by O C Smith.

Thanks for visiting and commenting.

[zerokomma]

Looove this vid bud. Very inspired montage full of brio and 70's vibe. I'm impressed!

Song = 10+ Vid = 12++

[tomovox]

You should have a contract with a major studio to do titles or mini-movies! Your video is so inspired and so incredibly well done, it's the kind of thing you have to watch several times to take it all in. Great song too- hadn't ever heard this one before, but now it's added to my list of songs I'll be listening to again and again.

Do you work in the entertainment field by any chance?

[tigerpaint1964]

nice

[TOBERT001]

What a cracking track and great vid. Thanks for posting this.

[47yesican]

love the vintage shots and ms. payne, showing her singing off and on!

Very Nice......anyting with freda payne in it is ten stars!

[Tony64walkin]

Great song & class video Rob. break out the talc ! ktf

[Ilvcamusic]

Interesting work!

[soulhoney56]

Nice one x

[fishcakekev]

And I thought Freda Payne only did 'Band of Gold'! How ignorant I was! Fantastic stuff!