(Pictured: Leon Huff and Kenneth Gamble )

Gamble and Huff: Hitmakers To Be Inducted Into Rock & Roll Hall of Fame

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2/25/08


Legendary songwriting and music producing team Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff separately and together have written and produced over 170 gold and platinum records.

The legends were pioneers of Philly soul, creating hits that helped make legends such as Jerry Butler, Wilson Pickett, Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes, The Jacksons, Teddy Pendergrass, McFadden & Whitehead, The Ojays and Lou Rawls just to name a few. So it’s no surprise that the duo is in line to be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

“That’s a great honor for us,” Gamble told EUR's Lee Bailey. “We’re really glad about that. We’re in the Songwriters Hall of Fame; we’re in the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Hall of Fame and the Dance Music Hall of Fame. But this is the big one. The next one we want to get is an Oscar.”

But while the two bounce around the idea of writing something new for the movies, they are busy preparing their massive catalog of tracks for the digital age.

In 1971, Gamble and Huff formed Philadelphia International Records (PIR) and cut a major deal with the largest label at that time, CBS Records and its then president Clive Davis. Now, more than three decades later, the duo has scored a major agreement with mega label and CBS Records' successor Sony/BMG.

“It was effective last July, but we’re just really starting to get into it now,” Gamble said. “It’s big. It’s all over the world, people everywhere respond to our music. Just like here in America, they’re playing it like it’s 1970. They did a survey that every 13 minutes someone somewhere is playing a record from the Sound of Philadelphia from Gamble and Huff.”

That longevity didn’t come easy, according to the pair. They spent hours, even days, in the studio before completing work on a hit record. The two describe the process as one of blood, sweat, and tears – something contemporary producers don’t have to use so much of.

“Me and Huff, when we’d go in the studio, we’d go in with a rhythm section and there’s sweat and energy and mistakes,” Gamble recalled. “With machines, there’ll be no mistakes. The thing that happened with our music was, I call them mistakes, but it was something unusual happened that you could never do again. Where you say, ‘That wasn’t supposed to go there, but let’s keep it.’ You’re dealing with humans rather than dealing with machines.”

Gamble recalled that the earliest they saw of ‘the machines’ was one called a ‘clicker’ – an early form of drum machine that would work to keep the tempo in recording.

“The drummers hated it, and we didn’t like it. The best part about our music was that it was human. Sometimes it (the drummer's beat) might speed up just a little bit because it felt good like that – to speed it up a little bit and then drop it down.”

Huff offered the perfect example of manipulating the rhythm in the O’Jays’ song “Living for the Weekend.”

“I don’t think you could ever cut that with a drum machine,” Gamble dared. “It had all kinds of tempo changes, and all that.”

The producers agreed that the music they made probably would not have translated smoothly in this technological age.

“It [had] too much human energy and sweat that went into it. But I applaud these young brothers because they appreciate that music, and they’re still using it. They recognize that those songs and those records had something special to them,” Gamble said. “We had a long run and we’re thankful. You’re lucky in this business if you get one record. In fact, you’re lucky to get in the studio at all, to record a (song) even without the hit. But we had a string of records.”

The production team will be inducted in the Rock & Roll Hall of fame on March 10th, in the midst of their work and design for their catalog being converted to the digital realm.

“One of the things that we’re looking forward to is our catalog being exploited on the digital side,” Gamble said. “That’s part of what we’re working on with Sony/BMG. We’re starting to put out some unreleased product. We have a live album coming out on Patti LaBelle, the O’Jays, Lou Rawls … we’ve got all that product to put out there.”

Soul music lovers have a lot to be thankful for and a lot to look forward to from Gamble and Huff, thanks to the soon-to-be released un-released projects. And maybe, just maybe, the two will return to the studio once again, at least for the Academy and Oscar, for one of their signature sweat sessions.

I like what Clive Davis said when he signed us to CBS. After he signed us, he said we went on a ‘creative rampage.’”

That's putting it mildly. For more on Gamble & Huff, visit: www.gamble-huffmusic.com.

'Bout time.

Copycat said:

It's Longover Due For The Sound Of Philly To Be Recognized.

Bring back the Philly Sound!!!

In the last few years,I've been collecting every album that Gamble and Huff produced.I never get enough of the 70s Philly Sound.Those guys are genuises!

What about Thom Bell?

Hey,I didn't know these guys had their own cool website

www.gamble-huffmusic.com


Some cool merchandise there!! T-shirts!! I'm getting ready to order.

FuNkeNsteiN said:

He should definitely be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (as a songwriter/producer) if he isn't already.


I wish a modern-day artist like Mariah Carey would go into the studio with Gamble,Huff and Bell,and make a good ol' fashioned R&B album....no hip-hop,no samples,just alot of melody and solid songwriting! I'd buy an album like that.

Yes!

Cool u go guys!

Copycat said:

Who cares? Sh!t, give me the old Philly Sound any day.

Like SoulAlive said, some of today's "artists" need to go back to melody & songwriting.

Adisa said:

Fixed.™

Patti LaBelle is gonna perform at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame,representing the Philly Sound