This is Not the Post - This is Philly Soul

So I wasn't sure if the Universe was trying to tell me somethin' or if it was nothin', but dig on this.

In the last five days, I have heard the same song eleven times (odd note - did you know all odd numbers have an 'e' in them)...at the supermarket, in my friend's car, walking down the street last night, coming out of the open window of (a.) a near-by house & (b.) a car in the lane beside me...well, you get the idea.

& it's not a new song. It's from 1969. So what is really going on? I put no value on coincidence & very little on synchronicity, so what's really really going on here.

So "Hey There Lonely Girl" was a one hit wonder…but it turns out that the tune by vocalist extraordinaire Eddie Holman is among the most listened-to songs in the fields of popular & classic R&B music.  His unforgettable falsetto voice & the great tune that he took all the way to #2 on the charts is perhaps the most recognizable urban love song in the English language.  "Hey There Lonely Girl" is the beautiful tune that seems to touch everyone's soul as it emanates from the airwaves or churns from the players of fans.

Eddie's smooth style is reflected by the primary musical influences in his life: Jackie Wilson & Nat King Cole.  These two giants were the key creative muses of Holman's with their endless ability to exude class & style.

However, the biggest stumbling block in the path of Eddie's success was his producer Peter DeAngelis. The two worked together during the early & mid 60s. In 1969 Holman renewed his collaboration with the Philadelphia-based producer DeAngelis.  DeAngelis had built his reputation on his work with 1950s era teen idols such as Frankie Avalon & Fabian. The two turned Eddie's 1970 debut album I Love You into an impressive set of Philly Soul containing not only "Lonely Girl", but other first-rate material such as the title track co-written by Eddie's wife Sheila Holman, "It's All in the Game", & the self-penned "Am I a Loser".

The entire set would have benefited from a couple of more up-tempo numbers but the real drawback stemmed from DeAngelis' heavy handed arrangements & over-the-top orchestration. At least Holman was able to present himself well against the walls of strings & off-putting backing vocalists.

Well, here's to play number twelve

Eddie Holman - Hey There Lonely Girl 7", ABC Records 45-11240, 1969.

Hey There Lonely Girl b/w It's All in the Game

Are ya lonely, girl?
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