The Four Seasons of R&B – From America’s Premier R&B Historian Tyrone DuBose

TV One’s UNSUNG / Sheryl Underwood Podcast

Greetings and Salutations! I’m honored to have an opportunity to write a column for one of the premier African American Magazines. So, I think the best way to introduce myself is to answer the question, what is an R&B Historian? Well, while there are many historians, and good ones I might add, I made up my mind to become an R&B Historian who focused on the preservation and the legacy, charts, and history of R&B music. The results of the many years of my research allow people to get a better understanding of the music they’re hearing, and allows music lovers to immerse themselves in the hidden details of the music, artist, and charts. There is a story behind every artist, the way in which they grew up, the times that they have spent in perfecting their craft, the importance of spending every waking minute, hour, and day in a studio to provide a sound of perfection, hoping that you will hear what they hear. And as a historian, it allows me to not just give a perspective, but the truth about an artist who is long overdue in their time of being given the accolades for their positions not just in music, but the world.

I want to introduce you all to what I call the four seasons of R&B which are the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s. These are the four seasons of R&B because the evolution of R&B truly began in the 1960s. Groups such as The Temptations, The Supremes, or artists like Sam Cooke and Bobby Blue Bland gave us an identity as African-Americans Including music that was also a part of the civil rights movement.

Let’s get into the first season as we go back to the 1960s.

I spoke about the four seasons of R&B music, starting from the 1960s through the 1990s. Many people would say however, that true R&B music started in the1950s. And, they’d be correct. But did R&B music belong just to African-Americans? According to the national R&B charts, by far and wide, based on the point system, Fats Domino was far and away the biggest artist in the 1950s. In fact, of his first 26 singles in the decade, 25 reached the top 10, including its Grammy and Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Fame song, Blueberry Hill, that spent 11 weeks at the number one position on the R&B chart. And while you may guess artist such as Nat King Cole, The Coasters, and even the drifters in the 50s should be at the top, they’re all great guesses, but you wouldn’t come close. The second biggest artist in the 1950s on the R&B charts was none other than Elvis Presley, meaning, African-Americans bought his music just as much as they brought Muddy Waters, and even Sam Cooke in that decade.

So, I am of the belief that the 1960s became the evolution of R&B music, and what a decade it was. From one hit wonders such as the Capital’s “Cool Jerk”, “Just One Look” by Doris Troy, and let’s not forget the all-time favorite “Grazing In The Grass” by Hugh Maskela. The decade blew the door open for artists to who today are staples in African-American music, and culture. I found it hard to find anyone who I couldn’t agree with and some of the top 50 artists of the 1960’s. But this decade was also important because it truly was the symbol of the civil rights movement. Songs from Curtis Mayfield and the Impressions, Sam Cooke, and James Brown were some of many artists who sang anthems that were a part of Black history. However, here’s another trivia. While the “British invasion” was destroying the US pop charts, they had a nemesis on the R&B chart that knocked him out of the number one position in America 4 times. It took just four weeks for the Beatles to reach the top of the charts with “I feel fine”, in January 1965, but the Supremes took them right out of the position with the song “Come See About Me”. Two months later, on their song “Eight Days A Week”, the Supremes were there to knock them off again with the song “Stop! In The Name Of Love” in March 1965. Then, the Rolling Stones in 1965 had the number one song on the pop charts in just five weeks with “Get Off Of My Cloud”. However, once again, the Supremes snatched the number one position again with “I Hear A Symphony” in just four weeks. The song “Sunshine Superman” roared up the charts from British singer Donovan in September 1966, but, you guessed it, The Supremes knocked him off with the song “You Can’t Hurry Love”. Black History? Yes indeed. And the 1960s, were just the beginning of the evolution of R&B music.