There have been many accounts of classic 60s and 70s soul, funk and R&B as well as books on the birth of hip-hop and house music, but what about that somewhat neglected period of commercial R&B from the early Eighties, a time when synthesizers were embraced across the popular music spectrum?
The records may not always be as credible and collectable but the artists involved – from pioneers like Stevie Wonder and Prince to producers Giorgio Moroder and Jam & Lewis to chart fixtures such as Madonna, Kool & the Gang and The Pointer Sisters – were committed craftsfolk and the songs from this period deserve a reappraisal.
Enter Glasgow-based writer and reviewer Steven Vass, a fan and an advocate for these exquisitely produced records. Let the Music Play traces the roots of the synthesizer in black music from early adopters Sun Ra and George Clinton through disco titans Donna Summer and Sylvester to classic one hit wonders by Patrice Rushen and Shannon. Along the way, you will be firing up your streaming platform of choice to reconnect or discover these tunes – every chapter opens with a playlist but there are also deeper dives throughout the text.
The book’s parameters are wide yet distinct – Vass concentrates mainly on developments in the US, but dedicates a couple of chapters to UK artists. Any music of black origin involving a synthesizer is fair game. There is a nostalgic appeal here for anyone brought up on Eighties radio though, as Vass points out, many of these artists scored club hits without achieving the crossover exposure they deserved.
He ends his odyssey in 1986 just as prevailing production techniques started to lose the organic warmth but not before highlighting and recognising the music which would point the way to 21st century R&B superstars such as Drake, The Weeknd, and Janelle Monae.
