[Edited 7/28/17 2:57am]

it's funny how a band with so many classics to their name are still not being taken too serious. Falls almost in 'guilty pleasures' category. They will never be named in the same breath as the traditional respected big names, while K&TG is often better than those. I love them!

TheFman said:

it's funny how a band with so many classics to their name are still not being taken too serious. Falls almost in 'guilty pleasures' category. They will never be named in the same breath as the traditional respected big names, while K&TG is often better than those. I love them!iT

Its such a pity isn't it? They are VERY underrated. They are one of my favorite all time bands. One of the greatest funk bands for sure!

mjscarousal said:

EmmaMcG said:

mjscarousal said:

Its such a pity isn't it? They are VERY underrated. They are one of my favorite all time bands. One of the greatest funk bands for sure!

Up until not long ago I only knew them from their bigger hits and because I had heard them so often, I wasn't really interested in delving deeper into their back catalogue. But after mentioning to a friend of mine that I've been listening to a lot of disco recently, he gave me their entire discography to listen to. I have to say, I'm very impressed and I'm glad I decided to give them a chance. I'm not sure if they're underrated, I think it's more of a case of people just being unfamiliar with their best work. Most people only know them for 3 or 4 songs. Actually, that could be the very definition of underrated... I don't know, I'm too tired and sick to think clearly but the point I'm trying to make is that I think they're really good.

I hope you feel better! I think its a case of the industry not recognizing their classics and contributions to funk/disco music. Therefore, many may not be familiar with their unrecognizable songs or songs in general.

purplethunder3121 said:

Gurl this is another banger I love!! I can throw a DJ party all night long full of Kool N the Gang and be happy!

mjscarousal said:

purplethunder3121 said:

Gurl this is another banger I love!! I can throw a DJ party all night long full of Kool N the Gang and be happy!

Had this on 45 as a kid... It's the one we wanted to "get down" to. (Tarzan yell!)

purplethunder3121 said:

mjscarousal said:

Gurl this is another banger I love!! I can throw a DJ party all night long full of Kool N the Gang and be happy!

Had this on 45 as a kid... It's the one we wanted to "get down" to. (Tarzan yell!)

LOL thats the best part!!

great band with some SERIOUS early 70s soul/funk.

amazing to think they went from "hollywood swinging" to..

"stone love".. from that, uh, album "forever"..

.

(look at that album cover.. just.. look.. at.. it..)

.

the last hit they made that I really like was "you can have it (if you want it)"..

I continue to be perplexed as to why James "JT" Taylor was so adamant to

separate himself from K&tG..

when he was such an integral part of the group - at the peak of their

commercial success..

mltijchr said:

great band with some SERIOUS early 70s soul/funk.

amazing to think they went from "hollywood swinging" to..

"stone love".. from that, uh, album "forever"..

.

(look at that album cover.. just.. look.. at.. it..)

.

the last hit they made that I really like was "you can have it (if you want it)"..

I continue to be perplexed as to why James "JT" Taylor was so adamant to

separate himself from K&tG..

when he was such an integral part of the group - at the peak of their

commercial success..

Did he ever give a reason for it?

LittleBLUECorvette said:

Why are they not in the Rock Hall.

Its a disgrace they are not in there! This further proves why RHOF is a joke

I dig Kool & The Gang before JT during their jazz period and when JT came aboard.

Some old K &TG fans prefer their 70's jazz period. I think they don't get enough credit

for being a funky band even with JT although they picked up the Universal band baton

where EWF left off in the early 80's. K &TG get a bad rap from old fans for the Universal hits

Celebration, Joanna, and Cherish but overlook jams like Take It To The Top, Street Kids, Misled,

Steppin Out, Get Down On It, Be My Lady, Victory(lyrics may be borderline corny but has a stanking

ass bassline), and one of my forgotten favorites Take My Heart.

I cannot list songs by name besides the obvious from K &TG jazz period but if you haven't

taken a listen you would be in for a treat.

Their biggest counterparts from the 70s' and 80s' was most definitely Earth, Wind & Fire. And I think they outdid EWF in the charts department or it’s damn near close..

Kool & The Gang
25 top ten R&B songs
21 top 40 Pop songs

Earth, Wind & Fire
20 top ten R&B Songs
16 top 40 Pop Songs

EWF outsold them in albums
Kool had only one top ten Pop album, EWF had six (with that coveted number 1 spot.) On the R&B Charts, EWF had five #1 albums and Kool had two. Kool had a total of 11 top ten releases on the R&B side, EWF had 14.

K&TG
5 Gold Albums, 3 Platinum and 1 multi Platinum

EWF
3 Gold, 3 Platinum, 4 multi Platinum

"Get Down On It" is My FAVE JT Era Kool & The Gang track!!!

woogiebear said:

"Get Down On It" is My FAVE JT Era Kool & The Gang track!!!

Heard a band cover this at the Farmer's Market today! They sounded pretty good--nice surpise! They played some Funkadelic, Sly and The Family Stone, and other classics, too.

mltijchr said:

LittleBLUECorvette said:

Their biggest counterparts from the 70s' and 80s' was most definitely Earth, Wind & Fire. And I think they outdid EWF in the charts department or it’s damn near close..

Kool & The Gang
25 top ten R&B songs
21 top 40 Pop songs

Earth, Wind & Fire
20 top ten R&B Songs
16 top 40 Pop Songs

EWF outsold them in albums
Kool had only one top ten Pop album, EWF had six (with that coveted number 1 spot.) On the R&B Charts, EWF had five #1 albums and Kool had two. Kool had a total of 11 top ten releases on the R&B side, EWF had 14.

K&TG
5 Gold Albums, 3 Platinum and 1 multi Platinum

EWF
3 Gold, 3 Platinum, 4 multi Platinum

I agree

Its such a shame they don't get as much recognition for their influence and impact when they both were neck and neck with hits and popularity. They both popularized the funk/disco sound.

woogiebear said:

"Get Down On It" is My FAVE JT Era Kool & The Gang track!!!

8-

Its my fave too! I cut loose on the dance floor when this banger comes on!

Wow thanks for posting, I also love them for songs other than Celebration

Hi Di Hi Hi Di Ho is my favourite of theirs!

phunkdaddy said:

mltijchr said:

great band with some SERIOUS early 70s soul/funk.

amazing to think they went from "hollywood swinging" to..

"stone love".. from that, uh, album "forever"..

.

(look at that album cover.. just.. look.. at.. it..)

.

the last hit they made that I really like was "you can have it (if you want it)"..

I continue to be perplexed as to why James "JT" Taylor was so adamant to

separate himself from K&tG..

when he was such an integral part of the group - at the peak of their

commercial success..

Yeah the Forever album was very disappointing. The best songs were Victory and IBMC by far. I made myself like Stone Love back in the day thanks to the video but ironically I listened to some of their catalog 2 weeks ago and gave Stone Love a listen but couldn't stomach it. There was a show called Radioscope back in the day for black radio listeners. JT gave his reasoning for leaving as he fell ill during a tour and the band was forced to cancel a gig and a few guys in the band were upset about it and he also said they were starting to grow weary of everything revolving around JT. He did come back and join them for the State of Affairs album in the mid 90's and even toured with them but he is a solo artist now and as far as I know still married to Starleana Young of Slave/Aurra/Deja fame. [Edited 7/29/17 20:02pm]

.

I appreciate the feedback phunkdaddy. I really got the impression that JT really just wanted no further part or association with the group.

.

having said that - if JT ever got back with the group & did a "reunion tour" I just might put down some cash to see them live. I never saw K&tG live before..

So many great songs, I have been a fan since I was a kid in the early eighties. Definately underrated as a band.

funkaholic1972 said:

So many great songs, I have been a fan since I was a kid in the early eighties. Definately underrated as a band.

Boy were you lucky, wish I had a time machine! They are sooo underrated.

TheFman said:

NorthC said:

LittleBLUECorvette said:

NorthC said:

That's because they went from being a funk band that James Brown called "the second baddest out there" to a disco act that was closer to KC and the Sunshine Band. They're # 1 in The Sellout Hall of Shame.

Celebration is their only cheesy hit. A lot of stuff they did with JT is really good. Too Hot, Steppin Out, Tonight, Fresh, etc.

I agree.There's nothing wrong with the stuff they did with JT....."Ladies Night","Take My Heart (You Can Have It If You Want It)","Jones Vs.Jones","Misled",""Tonight","Joanna",etc.....I love all those songs.

I don't consider them a sellout band at all.They simply made a few necessary changes in order to survive into the 80s.If they had not made those changes,they would have been 'over' by the late 70s.

SoulAlive said:

LittleBLUECorvette said:

NorthC said:

Celebration is their only cheesy hit. A lot of stuff they did with JT is really good. Too Hot, Steppin Out, Tonight, Fresh, etc.

I agree.There's nothing wrong with the stuff they did with JT....."Ladies Night","Take My Heart (You Can Have It If You Want It)","Jones Vs.Jones","Misled",""Tonight","Joanna",etc.....I love all those songs.

I don't consider them a sellout band at all.They simply made a few necessary changes in order to survive into the 80s.If they had not made those changes,they would have been 'over' by the late 70s.

It was certainly an interesting combination of Kool and the Gang/Van Halen featuring David Lee Roth I went to a few years ago... I'd like to see more line-ups like that in concert.