Detroit Emeralds
Encyclopedia
The Detroit Emeralds were an American
R&B
vocal group, best known in the early 1970s. They are best remembered for their 1973 transatlantic hit single
, "Feel The Need In Me".
, Arkansas
, and originally composed of four brothers
, Ivory (born September 14, 1941), Abrim (January 12, 1945 - July 6, 1982), Cleophus and Raymond Tilmon. After Cleophus and Raymond left, the remaining Tilmon brothers were joined by childhood friend James Mitchell. Moving to Detroit
, Michigan
and expanding their name to the Detroit Emeralds, the then trio
had their first R&B chart
success on Ric-Tic Records, with "Show Time" in 1968.
In 1970, they joined the Westbound
record label
. When touring in Memphis
, Tennessee
, they recorded
some demo
tracks
at the Hi
recording studio
s, run by producer
Willie Mitchell, to which they then added vocals
and strings
back in Detroit. This approach worked and brought them another hit
, "If I Lose Your Love", which was followed by a run of successes, including "Do Me Right", "You Want It, You Got It" and "Baby Let Me Take You (In My Arms)" which all made the US
R&B
Top 10 while the latter also reached #24 on the US Billboard Hot 100
pop
chart
in 1972.
The song
for which they are now best remembered, "Feel The Need In Me", reached #22 US R&B in 1973 and a new longer version four years later also charted. The original track made the top five in the UK Singles Chart
in 1973 and the later production also made the UK chart in 1977 (#12). "You Want It You Got It" was re-released in the UK as a follow-up to the initial "Feel The Need In Me", also reaching the UK Top 20 in 1973. Abrim Tilmon wrote
all of their hits, while also arranging
and producing the tracks.
By 1974, the group was falling apart, and at one point there were two outfits using the name. Abe Tilmon formed one new group with the Detroit Emeralds' name, while James Mitchell along with Marvin Willis wrote for another group, The Floaters
- Charles of the Floaters being James's brother. James Mitchell, Ivory Tilmon and Marvin Willis continued touring with the Detroit Emeralds and their band (Dave Dean on keyboards, Simon Gardner on guitar, Andy Avent on bass and Martin Kautz on drums). They stayed active on the oldies and cabaret circuit for some years.
Abrim Tilmon died on July 6, 1982, at the age of 37, in his Southfield
, Michigan
home of a heart attack
. It was said a reunion of the group was being planned at the time. He was survived by his wife Janyce, son Steve, and daughter Cathy.
, including Nas
, Raekwon
, Limp Bizkit
, Main Source
, Pete Rock & CL Smooth
, DJ Krush
, Common
, Monica
and Chill Rob G
. "Feel the Need In Me" was sampled in Andrea T. Mendoza's 2005 club
hit, "Can't Fake It". Equally, "I Don't Just Know About This Girl" was sampled by Method Man
on his 2004 album, Tical 0: The Prequel
. "Watcha Gonna Wear Now" was sampled by J Dilla
for his 2006 album Donuts
. Whereas, somewhat earlier, "Feel The Need In Me" was covered
in 1974 by Graham Central Station
, and in 1983 by Forrest
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
R&B
Rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues, often abbreviated to R&B, is a genre of popular African American music that originated in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly to urban African Americans, at a time when "urbane, rocking, jazz based music with a...
vocal group, best known in the early 1970s. They are best remembered for their 1973 transatlantic hit single
Hit single
A hit single is a recorded song or instrumental released as a single that has become very popular. Although it is sometimes used to describe any widely-played or big-selling song, the term "hit" is usually reserved for a single that has appeared in an official music chart through repeated radio...
, "Feel The Need In Me".
Career
"The Emeralds" formed as a vocal harmony group in Little RockLittle Rock, Arkansas
Little Rock is the capital and the largest city of the U.S. state of Arkansas. The Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 699,757 people in the 2010 census...
, Arkansas
Arkansas
Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
, and originally composed of four brothers
Sibling
Siblings are people who share at least one parent. A male sibling is called a brother; and a female sibling is called a sister. In most societies throughout the world, siblings usually grow up together and spend a good deal of their childhood socializing with one another...
, Ivory (born September 14, 1941), Abrim (January 12, 1945 - July 6, 1982), Cleophus and Raymond Tilmon. After Cleophus and Raymond left, the remaining Tilmon brothers were joined by childhood friend James Mitchell. Moving to Detroit
Detroit, Michigan
Detroit is the major city among the primary cultural, financial, and transportation centers in the Metro Detroit area, a region of 5.2 million people. As the seat of Wayne County, the city of Detroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and serves as a major port on the Detroit River...
, Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
and expanding their name to the Detroit Emeralds, the then trio
Trio (music)
Trio is generally used in any of the following ways:* A group of three musicians playing the same or different musical instrument.* The performance of a piece of music by three people.* The contrasting section of a piece in ternary form...
had their first R&B 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....
success on Ric-Tic Records, with "Show Time" in 1968.
In 1970, they joined the Westbound
Westbound Records
Westbound Records is a Detroit-based record label founded by Armen Boladian in 1970. It had a distribution deal with Janus Records from 1970 to 1975, but then it switched distribution to 20th Century Records during 1975 and 1976, but again switched distribution to Atlantic Records from 1976 to...
record label
Record label
In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...
. When touring in Memphis
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
, Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
, they recorded
Sound recording and reproduction
Sound recording and reproduction is an electrical or mechanical inscription and re-creation of sound waves, such as spoken voice, singing, instrumental music, or sound effects. The two main classes of sound recording technology are analog recording and digital recording...
some demo
Demo (music)
A demo version or demo of a song is one recorded for reference rather than for release. A demo is a way for a musician to approximate their ideas on tape or disc, and provide an example of those ideas to record labels, producers or other artists...
tracks
Song
In music, a song is a composition for voice or voices, performed by singing.A song may be accompanied by musical instruments, or it may be unaccompanied, as in the case of a cappella songs...
at the Hi
Hi Records
Hi Records was a Memphis soul and rockabilly label started in 1957 by singer Ray Harris, record store owner Joe Cuoghi, Bill Cantrell and Quinton Claunch , and three silent partners, including Cuoghi's lawyer, Nick Pesce....
recording 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...
s, run by producer
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
Willie Mitchell, to which they then added vocals
Human voice
The human voice consists of sound made by a human being using the vocal folds for talking, singing, laughing, crying, screaming, etc. Its frequency ranges from about 60 to 7000 Hz. The human voice is specifically that part of human sound production in which the vocal folds are the primary...
and strings
String instrument
A string instrument is a musical instrument that produces sound by means of vibrating strings. In the Hornbostel-Sachs scheme of musical instrument classification, used in organology, they are called chordophones...
back in Detroit. This approach worked and brought them another hit
Hit single
A hit single is a recorded song or instrumental released as a single that has become very popular. Although it is sometimes used to describe any widely-played or big-selling song, the term "hit" is usually reserved for a single that has appeared in an official music chart through repeated radio...
, "If I Lose Your Love", which was followed by a run of successes, including "Do Me Right", "You Want It, You Got It" and "Baby Let Me Take You (In My Arms)" which all made the US
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
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,...
Top 10 while the latter also reached #24 on the US 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...
pop
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
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 1972.
The song
Song
In music, a song is a composition for voice or voices, performed by singing.A song may be accompanied by musical instruments, or it may be unaccompanied, as in the case of a cappella songs...
for which they are now best remembered, "Feel The Need In Me", reached #22 US R&B in 1973 and a new longer version four years later also charted. The original track made the top five in the UK Singles Chart
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 ...
in 1973 and the later production also made the UK chart in 1977 (#12). "You Want It You Got It" was re-released in the UK as a follow-up to the initial "Feel The Need In Me", also reaching the UK Top 20 in 1973. Abrim Tilmon wrote
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
all of their hits, while also arranging
Arrangement
The American Federation of Musicians defines arranging as "the art of preparing and adapting an already written composition for presentation in other than its original form. An arrangement may include reharmonization, paraphrasing, and/or development of a composition, so that it fully represents...
and producing the tracks.
By 1974, the group was falling apart, and at one point there were two outfits using the name. Abe Tilmon formed one new group with the Detroit Emeralds' name, while James Mitchell along with Marvin Willis wrote for another group, The Floaters
The Floaters
The Floaters were an African American, R&B vocal group, from the Sojourner Truth housing projects in Detroit, Michigan, that formed in 1976.-Career:...
- Charles of the Floaters being James's brother. James Mitchell, Ivory Tilmon and Marvin Willis continued touring with the Detroit Emeralds and their band (Dave Dean on keyboards, Simon Gardner on guitar, Andy Avent on bass and Martin Kautz on drums). They stayed active on the oldies and cabaret circuit for some years.
Abrim Tilmon died on July 6, 1982, at the age of 37, in his Southfield
Southfield, Michigan
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which 0.04% is water. The main branch of the River Rouge runs through Southfield. The city is bounded to the south by Eight Mile Road, its western border is Inkster Road, and to the east it is bounded by Greenfield Road...
, Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
home of a heart attack
Myocardial infarction
Myocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...
. It was said a reunion of the group was being planned at the time. He was survived by his wife Janyce, son Steve, and daughter Cathy.
Chart singles
| Year | Single | Chart Positions | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US 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... |
US 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,... |
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 ... |
||
| 1968 | "Show Time" | 89 | 22 | - |
| 1970 | "If I Lose Your Love" | - | 32 | - |
| "I Can't See Myself Doing Without You" | - | 41 | - | |
| 1971 | "Do Me Right" | 43 | 7 | - |
| "Wear This Ring (With Love)" | 91 | 18 | - | |
| 1972 | "You Want It, You Got It" | 36 | 5 | - |
| "Baby Let Me Take You (In My Arms)" | 24 | 4 | - | |
| "Feel The Need In Me" | 110 | 22 | 4 | |
| 1973 | "You're Gettin' A Little Too Smart" | - | 10 | - |
| "You Want It, You Got It" (reissue) | - | - | 12 | |
| "I Think Of You" | - | - | 27 | |
| "Lee" | - | 79 | - | |
| 1977 | "Feel The Need" (re-recording) | 90 | 73 | 12 |
Albums
- Do Me Right - 1971 - Billboard 200Billboard 200The 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...
#151 - You Want It, You Got It - 1972 - Billboard 200 #78
- Abe, James and Ivory - 1973 (UK release)
- I'm in Love with YouI'm in Love with You (The Detroit Emeralds album)-Track listing:#Shake Your Head 3:01 #So Long 6:03 #You're Getting A Little Too Smart 3:39 #I Think Of You 4:25 #You Control Me 3:28 #Whatcha Gonna Wear Tomorrow 4:14 #Heaven Couldn't Be Like That 2:22 #Without You Baby 1:34...
- 1973 - Billboard 200 #81 - Feel the Need - 1977
- Let's Get Together - 1978
Legacy
Their track "You're Getting A Little Too Smart" was sampled by a number of contemporary artistsMusician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
, including Nas
Nas
Nasir bin Olu Dara Jones, who performs under the name Nas , formerly Nasty Nas, is an American rapper and actor. He is regarded as one of the most important figures in hip hop and one of the most skilled and influential rappers of all-time...
, Raekwon
Raekwon
Corey Woods , better known by the stage name Raekwon, is an American rapper and a member of the Wu-Tang Clan. He released his solo debut, Only Built 4 Cuban Linx... in 1995, and has since recorded four solo albums, as well as work with Wu-Tang and an extensive amount of guest contributions with...
, Limp Bizkit
Limp Bizkit
Limp Bizkit is an American rock band from Jacksonville, Florida. Formed in 1995, the group's lineup consists of Fred Durst , Wes Borland , Sam Rivers , John Otto and DJ Lethal . The band achieved mainstream success with their second studio album Significant Other, released in 1999...
, Main Source
Main Source
Main Source was an innovative, acclaimed Toronto and New York-based hip hop group comprising Toronto natives Sir Scratch, K-Cut, and Queens native Large Professor...
, Pete Rock & CL Smooth
Pete Rock & CL Smooth
Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth are a hip-hop duo from Mount Vernon, New York. They made their debut with their 1991 EP, All Souled Out and followed with 1992's Mecca and the Soul Brother LP.-The Golden Age :...
, DJ Krush
DJ Krush
, better known as DJ Krush, is a producer and DJ. He is known for his atmospheric instrumental production which incorporates sound elements from nature and extensive use of jazz and soul samples.-Biography:...
, Common
Common (rapper)
Lonnie Rashid Lynn, Jr. , better known by his stage name Common , is an American hip-hop artist and actor....
, Monica
Monica (singer)
Monica Denise Brown , and professionally known as Monica, is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and actress. Born and raised in College Park, Georgia, Monica began performing as a child and became part of a traveling gospel choir, by the time she was ten...
and Chill Rob G
Chill Rob G
Chill Rob G on May 15th, is a hip hop artist from Jersey City, New Jersey.-Career:Chill's first hip hop collaboration was being part of the original version of the Flavor Unit collective, which included Lakim Shabazz, DJ Mark the 45 King, and Queen Latifah, among others...
. "Feel the Need In Me" was sampled in Andrea T. Mendoza's 2005 club
Nightclub
A nightclub is an entertainment venue which usually operates late into the night...
hit, "Can't Fake It". Equally, "I Don't Just Know About This Girl" was sampled by Method Man
Method Man
Clifford Smith , better known by his stage name Method Man is an American hip hop artist, record producer, actor and member of the hip hop collective Wu-Tang Clan. He took his stage name from the 1979 film The Fearless Young Boxer, also known as Method Man. He is one half of the rap duo Method Man...
on his 2004 album, Tical 0: The Prequel
Tical 0: The Prequel
Tical 0: The Prequel is the third studio album released May 18, 2004 by Hip-hop artist Method Man on Def Jam Recordings. The Album features production from Sean "Puffy" Combs and Rockwilder, among others, as well as guest appearances from Missy Elliott, Snoop Dogg, and Ludacris...
. "Watcha Gonna Wear Now" was sampled by J Dilla
J Dilla
James Dewitt Yancey , better known by the stage names J Dilla and Jay Dee, was an American record producer who emerged from the mid-1990s underground hip hop scene in Detroit, Michigan...
for his 2006 album Donuts
Donuts (album)
Donuts is an instrumental hip hop album by producer J Dilla. Donuts was released on February 7, 2006, his 32nd birthday, and only three days before his death...
. Whereas, somewhat earlier, "Feel The Need In Me" was covered
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
in 1974 by Graham Central Station
Graham Central Station
Graham Central Station is a funk band named after founder Larry Graham . The name is a pun on New York City's Grand Central Terminal, often incorrectly called Grand Central Station....
, and in 1983 by Forrest
Forrest (singer)
Forrest is an American singer, based out of the Netherlands.He was born in Galveston, Texas, where he sang as a boy in church. He moved to Los Angeles, California as a teen and won several contests there as a singer...
.
See also
- List of soul musicians
- List of disco artists
- List of Soul Train episodes
- Music of MichiganMusic of MichiganThe music of Michigan is composed of many different types. The city of Detroit has been one of the most musically influential and innovative cities for the past 50 years, whether in Michigan or anywhere else in the United States. Impressively, for 48 straight years a greater Michigan area artist...