Rockin' Roll Baby

Rockin' Roll Baby is the third studio album recorded by American R&B group The Stylistics, released in November 1973 on the Avco label. It was produced by Thom Bell and recorded at Sigma Sound Studio North in Philadelphia. This would be the group's last album to be produced by Bell.

Rockin' Roll Baby
Studio album by The Stylistics
Released	November 1973
Recorded	Sigma Sound Studio North (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)
Genre	R&B, Soul
Length	42:36
Label	Avco
Producer	Thom Bell
The Stylistics chronology
Round 2 (1972) Rockin' Roll Baby (1973) Let's Put It All Together (1974)
Singles from Rockin' Roll Baby
"Rockin' Roll Baby" Released: 1973

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[1]
Christgau's Record Guide	C+[2]

Background

While on Avco, they began working with producer/songwriter Thom Bell, and along with songwriter Linda Creed created a bunch of hit singles that used lavish production backing the lead vocals of Russell Thompkins, Jr.. Every single that Bell produced was a hit.[3]

History

The album reached #66 on the Billboard 200 and #5 on the R&B albums chart. The title track was a successful single, reaching #14 on the Billboard Hot 100, #3 on the R&B singles chart, and #6 on the UK Singles Chart. The album also includes the original full version of the song, "You Make Me Feel Brand New".

Track listing

All tracks are written by Thom Bell and Linda Creed, except where noted.

Side one

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Only for the Children"	4:38
2.	"Could This Be the End?" (Joseph B. Jefferson, Bruce Hawes, Charles Simmons)	4:09
3.	"Let Them Work It Out"	3:58
4.	"Make It Last"	2:59
5.	"Pay Back Is a Dog" (Thom Bell, Kenneth Gamble)	4:31

Side two

No.	Title	Length
6.	"Love Comes Easy"	4:58
7.	"There's No Reason" (Joseph B. Jefferson, Bruce Hawes)	3:58
8.	"Rockin' Roll Baby"	4:27
9.	"You Make Me Feel Brand New" (long version, not the 1974 hit single version)	5:30
10.	"I Won't Give You Up" (Charles Simmons, Bruce Hawes, Joseph B. Jefferson)	3:38

Personnel

• Russell Thompkins, Jr. – lead vocals, background vocals
• Airrion Love – background vocals, lead vocals on "You Make Me Feel Brand New"
• James Smith, Herb Murrell, James Dunn – background vocals
• Linda Creed, Barbara Ingram, Evette Benton, Carla Benson – additional background vocals
• Norman Harris, Bobby Eli – guitar
• Ronnie Baker – bass
• Earl Young – drums
• Larry Washington – timbales, congas, bongos
• Vince Montana – percussion
• Thom Bell – keyboards
• Joseph DeAngelis, Milton Fipps – French horn
• Jack Faith – alto saxophone, flute
• John Davis – tenor saxophone, baritone saxophone
• Bobby Hartzell, Rocco Bene – trumpet, flugelhorn, piccolo trumpet
• Freddy Joiner, Bobby Moore – tenor trombone
• Richard Genevese – bass trombone
• Walter File – harp
• Don Renaldo & His Swinging Strings – strings

Charts

Chart (1973)	Peak [4][5]
U.S. Billboard Top LPs	66
U.S. Billboard Top Soul LPs	5
UK Albums Chart	42

Singles

Year	Single	Peak chart positions
		US [4]	US R&B [4]	US A/C [4]	UK [5]
1973	"Rockin' Roll Baby"	14	3	44	6

References

1. Hamilton, Andrew. Rockin' Roll Baby review at AllMusic. Retrieved 2011-10-16.
2. Christgau, Robert (1981). "Consumer Guide '70s: S". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor & Fields. ISBN 089919026X. Retrieved March 13, 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
3. "Stylists All Music Bio". AllMusic. Retrieved 5 August 2016.
4. "US Charts > The Stylistics". Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-11-21.
5. "UK Charts > The Stylistics". The Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2011-09-29.

External links

• Rockin' Roll Baby at Discogs (list of releases)