SONG OF THE DAY
“Whatcha See Is Whatcha Get” by The Dramatics ( [single], Volt/ Stax Records, 1971).
WHERE I HEARD IT
Last week’s episode of ABC’s cop drama-comedy “Detroit 1-8-7”.
INTERESTING FACTS (a la wikipedia)
– The song was a #1 hit on the Billboard R&B charts, and broke into the Top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at #9.
– The Dramatics (formerly The Dynamics) were an American soul music vocal group, formed in Detroit, Michigan in 1967.
– The Dramatics signed to Stax-Volt Records in 1968. However, the group did not break through until their 1971 single, “Whatcha See Is Whatcha Get.”
– Their first million selling disc “Whatcha See Is Whatcha Get” was awarded gold disc status by the R.I.A.A. in December 1971.
– Through the 1970s, the group appeared on Soul Train and continued to have hits, including the #1 R&B hit “In the Rain”, “Toast to the Fool”, “Me and Mrs. Jones” (originally by Billy Paul), “I’m Going By The Stars In Your Eyes” and “Be My Girl.” “In the Rain” also sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc.
– In the meantime, Howard and Wilkins formed a Dramatics splinter group, and came up with a minor R&B hit, “No Rebate on Love.” To distinguish themselves from this group, the core group temporarily dubbed themselves ‘Ron Banks and The Dramatics’. Howard eventually returned to the group for two albums, Somewhere in Time: A Dramatic Reunion and Positive State Of Mind, before departing again.
– The Dramatics also were guests on the Snoop Doggy Dogg song, “Doggy Dogg World”. The song appeared on Snoop’s 1993 debut album, Doggystyle.
– In 2002 The Dramatics appeared on Snoop Dogg’s sixth studio album Paid tha cost to be tha boss on the song “Ballin’ “.
– The Dramatics were also mentioned in the novel The Algiers Motel Incident by John Hersey (ISBN 0-8018-5777-5). They were staying at the Algiers Motel, following a performance at Detroit’s Fox Theatre, during an alleged murder by members of the Detroit Police Department, which was one of the incidents which sparked the Detroit Riots of 1967.
– The Dramatics “Whatcha See Is Whatcha Get” appeared in the 2005 documentary Sunday Driver, as well as the movies Wattstax and Darktown Strutters, and the 2007 Petey Greene biopic, Talk To Me.
– Stax Records is an American record label, originally based in Memphis, Tennessee. Founded in 1957 as Satellite Records, the name Stax Records was adopted in 1961.
– The label was a major factor in the creation of the Southern soul and Memphis soul music styles, also releasing gospel, funk, jazz, and blues recordings.
– Following the death of Stax’s biggest star, Otis Redding, in 1967 and the severance of the label’s distribution deal with Atlantic Records in 1968, Stax continued primarily under the supervision of a new co-owner, Al Bell. Over the next five years, Bell expanded the label’s operations significantly, in order to compete with Stax’s main rival, Motown Records in Detroit.
– During the mid-1970s, a number of factors, including a problematic distribution deal with CBS Records, caused the label to slide into insolvency, resulting in its forced closure in late 1975.
– House band: Through the first few years of Stax, the ‘house band’ varied. By 1962, pianist/multi-instrumentalist Booker T. Jones was also a regular session musician at Stax. From this group of house band musicians the formation of Booker T. & the M.G.’s occurred, an instrumental combo that would record numerous hit singles in their own right, as well as serving as members of the de facto house band for virtually every recording made at Stax from 1962 through about 1970.
– Also auditioning for Stax in 1962 was Isaac Hayes; though he was not successful at the time, by 1964 he would be a vital part of the Stax house band.
– The label’s biggest early star, soul singer Otis Redding, also arrived in 1962. Redding, however, technically wasn’t on Stax, but on their sister label Volt. In that era, many radio stations, anxious to avoid even the hint of payola, often refused to play more than one or two new songs from any single record label at one time, so as to not appear to be offering favoritism to any particular label. To circumvent this, Stax, like many other record companies, created a number of subsidiary labels. Volt was founded in late 1961.
– Although Stax had also lost their most valuable artists, producer and songwriter Isaac Hayes stepped into the spotlight with Hot Buttered Soul, which sold over three million copies in 1969. By 1971, Hayes was established as the label’s biggest star, and was particularly noted for his best-selling soundtrack to the 1971 blaxploitation film Shaft.
– The label also enjoyed great success when it had the Staple Singers shift from Gospel music to mainstream R&B. Even Rufus Thomas, one of the first artists signed to the label, enjoyed a popular resurgence with a string of hits.
– Through a 2004 merger and acquisition, Concord Records announced in December 2006 the reactivation of the Stax label as a forum for newly-recorded music. The first acts signed to the new Stax included Isaac Hayes, Angie Stone, and Soulive.
-Notable artists to appear on the label include:
Atlantic Records era (1957–1968): Rufus Thomas, Carla Thomas (Satellite, Atlantic, then Stax), Booker T. & the MGs (Volt, then Stax), Eddie Floyd, Otis Redding (Volt), Wilson Pickett (signed to Atlantic, recorded at Stax), Sam and Dave (signed to Atlantic, recorded at Stax, recordings issued by Stax by arrangement with Atlantic until 1968), Ruby Johnson (Volt), Isaac Hayes (Enterprise)
Post-Atlantic years (1968–1975): Isaac Hayes (Enterprise), Eddie Floyd, Richard Pryor (Partee), Bill Cosby (Partee), The Staple Singers, The Dramatics (Volt), Jean Knight,
Rev. Jesse Jackson (Respect), Inez Foxx,
Concord years (2006-present): Angie Stone, Nikka Costa, Soulive, Teena Marie