Midnight Star
Encyclopedia
Midnight Star is an R&B and electro-funk group
that had a string of R&B
hits
in the 1980s.
by trumpeter Reggie Calloway, vocalist Belinda Lipscomb, guitarist/vocalist Melvin Gentry, bassist Kenneth Gant, multi-instrumentalist Bill Simmons, keyboard player/vocalist Bo Watson and guitarist/keyboardist Jeff Cooper, as a self-contained group. They would later add non-KSU student trombonist Vincent Calloway (Reginald's younger brother). A 1978 New York City showcase inspired SOLAR Records
chief Dick Griffey
to sign the group. They released their debut album The Beginning (1980) with some guest studio
musicians
. In 1981 their second album, released on Solar Records, Standing Together, reached position #54 on the U.S.
R&B
chart
. In 1982 they released a third album, Victory.
Utiliizing elected band leader Reggie Calloway's production skills, it did not take long for Midnight Star to hit the U.S. R&B
chart with early singles
like "Hot Spot" and "I've Been Watching You." Drummer Bobby Lovelace joined the group in late 1982, freeing Gentry to sing and play guitar exclusively. Their fourth album, No Parking on the Dance Floor
, was released in 1983, and it took them to the top of the charts with the first single, "Freak-A-Zoid," which went to number two. Other singles from the album included "Wet My Whistle," and the title track. These singles, along with the hit album tracks "Slow Jam" (co-written by Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds)and "Electricity" propelled the album to double platinum status. Their next album, Planetary Invasion, was almost as big, selling platinum again and making the pop
Top 20 and the number one spot on the R&B chart with its first single, "Operator
." This song remains the band's only Billboard Hot 100
Top 40 hit to date.
In 1986 they released their fifth album, Headlines, which was their third album to sell at least gold. It was to be their last with the Calloway brothers. Due to irreconcilable differences with the other members, Reggie was out of the group. Shortly thereafter Vincent left. They achieved their biggest success in the UK
with "Midas Touch", which made #8, and "Headlines", a #16 hit earlier the same year. Without the Calloways (who would go on to form the group Calloway
and release an album that spawned the hit single "I Wanna Be Rich
" in 1989), Midnight Star recorded two more albums, the self-titled Midnight Star and Work It Out. These two albums proved not as successful as their previous three release, but did bear fruit with Top Ten R&B singles such as: "Don't Rock The Boat" and "Snake In The Grass". The group went on a long hiatus, though they never officially broke up.
The group reunited in 2000 with many of the original members (including all of the singers) and released the album 15th Avenue two years later. Since then, the group has toured sporadically, most recently with a lineup that includes Belinda Lipscomb, Kenneth Gant, Melvin Gentry, Bo Watson, and Bobby Lovelace, with Bill Simmons sometimes joining as well.
Musical ensemble
A musical ensemble is a group of people who perform instrumental or vocal music. In classical music, trios or quartets either blend the sounds of musical instrument families or group together instruments from the same instrument family, such as string ensembles or wind ensembles...
that had a string of R&B
Contemporary R&B
Contemporary R&B is a music genre that combines elements of hip hop, soul, R&B and funk.Although the abbreviation “R&B” originates from traditional rhythm and blues music, today the term R&B is most often used to describe a style of African American music originating after the demise of disco in...
hits
Hit record
A hit record is a sound recording, usually in the form of a single or album, that sells a large number of copies or otherwise becomes broadly popular or well-known, through airplay, club play, inclusion in a film or stage play soundtrack, causing it to have "hit" one of the popular chart listings...
in the 1980s.
Band history
The group was formed in 1976 at Kentucky State UniversityKentucky State University
Kentucky State University is a four-year institution of higher learning, located in Frankfort, Kentucky, United States, the Commonwealth's capital. The school is an historically black university, which desegregated in 1954...
by trumpeter Reggie Calloway, vocalist Belinda Lipscomb, guitarist/vocalist Melvin Gentry, bassist Kenneth Gant, multi-instrumentalist Bill Simmons, keyboard player/vocalist Bo Watson and guitarist/keyboardist Jeff Cooper, as a self-contained group. They would later add non-KSU student trombonist Vincent Calloway (Reginald's younger brother). A 1978 New York City showcase inspired SOLAR Records
SOLAR Records
S.O.L.A.R. Records was an American record label founded in 1977 by Dick Griffey, reconstituted out of Soul Train Records only two years after it was founded with Soul Train television show host and creator Don Cornelius.-Company history:In 1975, Soul Train Records was founded by Dick Griffey and...
chief Dick Griffey
Dick Griffey
Richard Gilbert "Dick" Griffey was an American record producer and promoter who founded SOLAR Records, an acronym for "Sound of Los Angeles Records", which played a major role in developing a funk-oriented blend of disco, R&B and soul music during the 1970s and 1980s...
to sign the group. They released their debut album The Beginning (1980) with some guest studio
Recording studio
A recording studio is a facility for sound recording and mixing. Ideally both the recording and monitoring spaces are specially designed by an acoustician to achieve optimum acoustic properties...
musicians
Session musician
Session musicians are instrumental and vocal performers, musicians, who are available to work with others at live performances or recording sessions. Usually such musicians are not permanent members of a musical ensemble and often do not achieve fame in their own right as soloists or bandleaders...
. In 1981 their second album, released on Solar Records, Standing Together, reached position #54 on the U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
R&B
Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums
Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a chart published by Billboard magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The name of the chart was changed from Top R&B Albums in 1999...
chart
Record chart
A record chart is a ranking of recorded music according to popularity during a given period of time. Examples of music charts are the Hit parade, Hot 100 or Top 40....
. In 1982 they released a third album, Victory.
Utiliizing elected band leader Reggie Calloway's production skills, it did not take long for Midnight Star to hit the U.S. R&B
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,...
chart with early singles
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
like "Hot Spot" and "I've Been Watching You." Drummer Bobby Lovelace joined the group in late 1982, freeing Gentry to sing and play guitar exclusively. Their fourth album, No Parking on the Dance Floor
No Parking on the Dance Floor
-Reception:Released in 1983 containing the hit singles "Freak-A-Zoid," "Wet My Whistle," "Electricity," and "No Parking ." Also on the album is the classic quiet storm staple, "Slow Jam."-Track listing:...
, was released in 1983, and it took them to the top of the charts with the first single, "Freak-A-Zoid," which went to number two. Other singles from the album included "Wet My Whistle," and the title track. These singles, along with the hit album tracks "Slow Jam" (co-written by Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds)and "Electricity" propelled the album to double platinum status. Their next album, Planetary Invasion, was almost as big, selling platinum again and making the pop
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
Top 20 and the number one spot on the R&B chart with its first single, "Operator
Operator (Midnight Star song)
"Operator" is a 1984 # 1 R&B/dance single by Midnight Star, produced by then-current bandmember Reggie Calloway. At the dawning of 1984, despite having achieved much success on the R&B chart and an extremely successful album, No Parking on the Dance Floor the previous year, Midnight Star had yet to...
." This song remains the band's only Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
Top 40 hit to date.
In 1986 they released their fifth album, Headlines, which was their third album to sell at least gold. It was to be their last with the Calloway brothers. Due to irreconcilable differences with the other members, Reggie was out of the group. Shortly thereafter Vincent left. They achieved their biggest success in the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
with "Midas Touch", which made #8, and "Headlines", a #16 hit earlier the same year. Without the Calloways (who would go on to form the group Calloway
Calloway (band)
Calloway is an R&B duo of Cincinnati, Ohio, natives Reginald and Vincent Calloway. The brothers had a major hit in 1990 with "I Wanna Be Rich"...
and release an album that spawned the hit single "I Wanna Be Rich
I Wanna Be Rich
"I Wanna Be Rich" is a hit song released in 1989 by R&B duo Calloway on their album All the Way. It is the band's first and only Top 10 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, reaching #2 in May 1990 and also hitting #5 on the R&B charts in the United States...
" in 1989), Midnight Star recorded two more albums, the self-titled Midnight Star and Work It Out. These two albums proved not as successful as their previous three release, but did bear fruit with Top Ten R&B singles such as: "Don't Rock The Boat" and "Snake In The Grass". The group went on a long hiatus, though they never officially broke up.
The group reunited in 2000 with many of the original members (including all of the singers) and released the album 15th Avenue two years later. Since then, the group has toured sporadically, most recently with a lineup that includes Belinda Lipscomb, Kenneth Gant, Melvin Gentry, Bo Watson, and Bobby Lovelace, with Bill Simmons sometimes joining as well.
Studio albums
| Year | Album | Chart positions | US certifications |
Record label | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
US R&B Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a chart published by Billboard magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The name of the chart was changed from Top R&B Albums in 1999... |
UK UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... |
||||
| 1980 | The Beginning | — | — | — | — | SOLAR SOLAR Records S.O.L.A.R. Records was an American record label founded in 1977 by Dick Griffey, reconstituted out of Soul Train Records only two years after it was founded with Soul Train television show host and creator Don Cornelius.-Company history:In 1975, Soul Train Records was founded by Dick Griffey and... |
| 1981 | Standing Together Standing Together (Midnight Star album) Standing Together is the second album by Midnight Star, released in 1981 on the SOLAR Records label.-Track listing:#"Standing Together" 5:00 #"Tuff " 5:05 #"Can't Give You Up" 4:13 #"Hold Out" 4:58 #"I've Been Watching You" 6:00... |
— | 54 | — | — | |
| 1982 | Victory | 205 | 58 | — | — | |
| 1983 | No Parking on the Dance Floor No Parking on the Dance Floor -Reception:Released in 1983 containing the hit singles "Freak-A-Zoid," "Wet My Whistle," "Electricity," and "No Parking ." Also on the album is the classic quiet storm staple, "Slow Jam."-Track listing:... |
27 | 2 | — | 2× Platinum | |
| 1984 | Planetary Invasion Planetary Invasion -Reception:Released in 1984, produced by group member Reggie Calloway, this album would chart at number seven on the R&B albums charts lead by number one R&B single Operator.-Track listing:#Body Snatchers - 6:55... |
32 | 7 | 85 | Gold | |
| 1986 | Headlines Headlines (Midnight Star album) -Reception:Released in 1986, this album would chart at number seven on the R&B albums charts. This would to be the last album to feature the Calloway brothers who would leave the group due to irreconcilable differences with the other members.-Track listing:... |
56 | 7 | 42 | Gold | |
| 1988 | Midnight Star | 96 | 14 | — | — | |
| 1990 | Work It Out | — | 41 | — | — | |
| 2002 | 15th Avenue | — | — | — | — | Reel Star |
| "—" denotes the album failed to chart or was not certified | ||||||
Compilation albums
| Year | Album | Chart positions | Record label | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
US R&B Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a chart published by Billboard magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The name of the chart was changed from Top R&B Albums in 1999... |
|||||
| 1987 | Greatest Hits | — | — | SOLAR SOLAR Records S.O.L.A.R. Records was an American record label founded in 1977 by Dick Griffey, reconstituted out of Soul Train Records only two years after it was founded with Soul Train television show host and creator Don Cornelius.-Company history:In 1975, Soul Train Records was founded by Dick Griffey and... |
||
| 1999 | Anniversary Collection | — | — | The Right Stuff The Right Stuff Records The Right Stuff Records is a reissue record label owned by the EMI Group based out of Woodland Hills, California.The label primarily reissues classic soul and vintage R&B material through greatest hits collections, anthologies, boxed sets and compilations... |
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| 2002 | The Best of Midnight Star | — | — | EMI-Capitol EMI-Capitol Special Markets EMI-Capitol Special Markets is an EMI subsidiary. It bought 3C Records in the early nineties.It now operates as EMI Music Marketing in North America.... |
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| 2006 | Ultimate Collection | — | — | Capitol Capitol Records Capitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine... |
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| "—" denotes the album failed to chart | ||||||
Singles
| Year | Single | Chart positions | Album | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
US R&B |
US Dance |
UK UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
|||
| 1980 | "Make It Last" | — | 85 | — | — | The Beginning |
| "You're the Star" | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1981 | "I've Been Watching You" | —– | 36 | — | — | Standing Together |
| "Tuff" | — | 60 | — | — | ||
| 1982 | "Hot Spot" | 108 | 35 | — | — | Victory |
| "Victory" | — | 83 | — | — | ||
| 1983 | "Freak-A-Zoid" | 66 | 2 | 44 | — | No Parking on the Dance Floor No Parking on the Dance Floor -Reception:Released in 1983 containing the hit singles "Freak-A-Zoid," "Wet My Whistle," "Electricity," and "No Parking ." Also on the album is the classic quiet storm staple, "Slow Jam."-Track listing:... |
| "Wet My Whistle" | 61 | 8 | 15 | 60 | ||
| 1984 | "No Parking (On the Dance Floor) No Parking (On The Dance Floor) "No Parking " is the title track from Midnight Star's fourth and most successful album, No Parking on the Dance Floor. In the US, the song reached number 43 on the R&B chart, number 44 on the dance chart, and number 81 on the Billboard Hot 100.The tune has been sampled by several artists since... " |
81 | 43 | 44 | — | |
| "Night Rider" | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Feels So Good" | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Curious" | — | — | — | 92 | Planetary Invasion | |
| "Operator Operator (Midnight Star song) "Operator" is a 1984 # 1 R&B/dance single by Midnight Star, produced by then-current bandmember Reggie Calloway. At the dawning of 1984, despite having achieved much success on the R&B chart and an extremely successful album, No Parking on the Dance Floor the previous year, Midnight Star had yet to... " |
18 | 1 | 15 | 66 | ||
| 1985 | "Scientific Love" | 80 | 16 | 19 | — | |
| "Body Snatchers" | — | 31 | — | — | ||
| 1986 | "Headlines" | 69 | 3 | 34 | 16 | Headlines |
| "Midas Touch" | 42 | 7 | — | 8 | ||
| "Engine No. 9" | — | 11 | — | 64 | ||
| 1987 | "Stay Here by My Side" | — | — | — | — | |
| "Do the Prep" | — | — | — | — | Penitentiary III | |
| 1988 | "Don't Rock the Boat" (feat. Ecstacy of Whodini Whodini Whodini is a hip hop group that was formed in 1981. The Brooklyn, New York-based trio consisted of vocalist and main lyricist Jalil Hutchins; co-vocalist John Fletcher, aka Ecstasy ; and turntable artist DJ Drew Carter, aka Grandmaster Dee.-Early years:Whodini was among the first hip-hop groups to... ) |
— | 3 | — | — | Midnight Star |
| "Snake in the Grass" | — | 10 | — | — | ||
| 1989 | "Love Song" | — | 55 | — | — | |
| "90 Days (Same as Cash)" | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1990 | "Do It (One More Time)" | — | 12 | — | — | Work It Out |
| "Luv-U-Up" | — | 58 | — | — | ||
| "—" denotes the single failed to chart | ||||||
External links
- Official website
- Midnight Star Facebook Page
- Midnight Star at DiscogsDiscogsDiscogs, short for discographies, is a website and database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. The Discogs servers, currently hosted under the domain name discogs.com, are owned by Zink Media, Inc., and are...