Ep. 37 - Philly Soul and the Sound of the 70s

Ep. 37 - Philly Soul and the Sound of the 70s

Author: Amy Lively February 28, 2022 Duration: 45:56

There is no single sound that defines the 70s but there is no doubt that Philly Soul, or the Sound of Philadelphia, is an essential element. The O'Jays, The Spinners, Three Degrees, Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes, and Billy Paul are just some of the artists that created silky, lush soul records under the direction of "The Mighty Three": Thom Bell, Kenny Gamble, and Leon Huff. With a distribution deal from Clive Davis at CBS Records, Gamble and Huff were not only the McCartney and Lennon of the 70s, they created Philadelphia's Motown. Their brand of soul, or "funk dressed in a tuxedo" was not just dressed up R&B, but also told stories and spoke to social issues that were part of the fabric of the 70s.

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Hosted by Amy Lively, For the Record: The 70s is more than a nostalgic trip through the decade's greatest hits. It's an audio documentary that digs into how the music actually happened, tracing the direct lines between the era's upheavals and the sounds that defined it. Each episode takes a specific moment-a political scandal, a social movement, an economic shift-and listens to how it resonated across studios and radio stations. You'll hear how the anxieties of the time fueled the raw energy of punk, how the quest for liberation built the four-on-the-floor beat of disco, and how personal stories found new expression in the evolving strains of country-pop and soul. This podcast carefully unpacks the complex dialogue between culture and history, showing how the pop charts, rock anthems, and protest songs didn't just soundtrack the seventies but were active participants in shaping its legacy. By weaving together archival material, musical analysis, and clear narrative, the series reveals why these tracks still feel urgent decades later. It’s for anyone who has ever wondered about the story behind the record, offering a deeper appreciation for how the tumultuous events of those ten years left an indelible mark on our modern world, all through the lens of the artists and genres that dared to respond.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 50

For the Record: The 70s
Podcast Episodes
Ep. 6 - The 70s Roots of Hip Hop [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 33:48
Mainstream hip hop burst onto the scene with "Rapper's Delight" by the Sugarhill Gang in 1979, but hip hop's roots go deeper than that into 70s music. Hip hop godfathers Gil Scott-Heron and James Brown helped pave the wa…
Ep. 7 - Women Who Rocked the 70s [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 35:57
Rock and roll was a man's world in the 1970s. Would that have been any different if Janis Joplin had not died just as the 70s were beginning? The world will never know but what is known is that women in the music industr…
Ep. 31 - The Spirit of '76: Pop Music on America's Bicentennial [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 43:55
Suffice to say that America's spirit in 1976 was a bit...mixed. The first half of the 70s carried the weight of war, social discord, and assorted political drama that began in the 60s. Even the very question of whether o…
Ep. 33 - Zaire '74, Muhammad Ali, and "The Rumble in the Jungle" [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 46:36
"The Rumble in the Jungle" featured heavyweight boxing legends, Muhammad Ali and George Foreman, but they were not the only legends who gathered in Zaire in the fall of 1974. The music festival known as Zaire '74 brought…
Ep. 38 - The Influence of Jazz on 70s Popular Music [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 37:10
Jazz is America's music. It is America's sole original form of art, yet it had declined in popularity by the 1970s to the point that some musicians resisted even being associated with it. Still, jazz's influence was felt…
Ep. 32 - Take Me to Church: Religion in 70s Popular Music [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 35:18
Tom Wolfe said the 70s was witness to the Third Great Awakening, as many Americans turned to religion on their quest for self-enlightenment or simply to find a way to make sense out of the social and political chaos. Thi…
Ep. 34 - A 70s Pop Manifesto: Finding Meaning in 70s Pop [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 53:48
Who knew that Barry Manilow wanted "Could it Be Magic" to be a "musical orgasm?" That song was part of the wide menu of 70s pop, which has been often derided by critics, yet found an audience with millions of music fans…
Ep. 36 - Na Na Na Na, Hey Hey Hey! 70s Music and Sports [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 55:34
The relationship between music and sports in the 70s was multidimensional. There were songs about individual athletes, there were songs that enhanced the game for the fans, and there were songs that created an identity f…
Ep. 35 - Cosmic American Music: 70s Country Rock [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 53:46
Gram Parsons called country rock Cosmic American Music; it was a little of this and a little of that, combined into a musical stew that today we call Americana. In the 70s, though, the marriage of rock and country, compl…
Ep. 5 - Anti-Nixon Songs of the 70s [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 36:30
Songwriters of the 70s took on Richard Nixon the best way they knew how: with their music. Blaming music for drug use, the Kent State shootings, Watergate, and getting a pardon for "any crimes he may have committed" were…