Family Reunion (album)

Family Reunion
Studio album by
ReleasedNovember 25, 1975
Recorded1975
StudioSigma Sound, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
GenrePhiladelphia soul, R&B, disco
Length44:06
LabelPhiladelphia International Records
ProducerKenny Gamble, Leon Huff
The O'Jays chronology
Survival
(1975)
Family Reunion
(1975)
Message in the Music
(1976)

Family Reunion is a 1975 album by American R&B group The O'Jays.

Reception

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Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Christgau's Record GuideC[2]

The album was released in late 1975 on the Philadelphia International Records label. Recorded at Sigma Sound Studios in Philadelphia, and produced by Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff, Family Reunion includes the enduring classic "I Love Music" and "Livin' for the Weekend", both of which topped the R&B singles chart, and placed at #5 and #20 respectively on the pop chart. The ballad "Stairway to Heaven", originally issued as the B-side to "Livin' for the Weekend" and unrelated to the Led Zeppelin song of the same name, has also gone on to become a staple of quiet storm radio programming. While the title track did not chart, it still garnered airplay, as the lyrics (as well as the album artwork) focused on the importance of the family structure especially at gatherings.[3]

Family Reunion became the group's third consecutive R&B chart-topping album, and its #7 peak on the pop chart was their highest placing on this chart at the time (1978's So Full of Love would peak one place higher). Family Reunion was awarded a Platinum Album for RIAA Certification of over one million copies sold.[1]

Track listing

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All tracks are written by Gamble and Huff, except where noted [4]

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Unity" 4:59
2."Family Reunion" 6:55
3."You and Me"Bunny Sigler, Louise Bishop5:59
4."She's Only a Woman"John Whitehead, Gene McFadden, Victor Carstarphen5:44
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
5."Livin' for the Weekend"Gamble, Huff, Cary Gilbert6:29
6."Stairway to Heaven" 6:15
7."I Love Music" 6:51

Charts

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Album

Chart (1976) Peak
position
Billboard Pop Albums[5] 7
Billboard Top Soul Albums[5] 1 (1975)

Singles

Year Single Chart positions[6]
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 US
R&B
U.S. Disco Singles
1975 "I Love Music (Part 1)" 5 1 1
"Livin' for the Weekend" 20 1

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Henderson, Alex. The O'Jays: Family Reunion > Review at AllMusic. Retrieved 31 August 2011.
  2. ^ Christgau, Robert (1981). "Consumer Guide '70s: O". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor & Fields. ISBN 089919026X. Retrieved March 10, 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
  3. ^ The O'Jays, Family Reunion, AllMusic.
  4. ^ allmusic ((( Family Reunion > Overview ))). All Media Guide, LLC. Retrieved on 2011-10-13.
  5. ^ a b "US Albums Charts > The O'Jays". Allmusic. Retrieved 2011-08-30.
  6. ^ "US Singles Charts > The O'Jays". Allmusic. Retrieved 2011-08-31.
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