Street Player

Street Player is the gold-selling sixth studio album by funk band Rufus (and their fourth album featuring singer Chaka Khan), released on the ABC Records label in 1978. Street Player was the band's third album to top Billboard's R&B Albums chart and also reached #14 on Pop. The album includes the singles "Stay" (US R&B #3, US Pop #38) and "Blue Love" (US R&B #34).

Street Player
Studio album by
Rufus & Chaka Khan
ReleasedJanuary 17, 1978
Recorded1977
StudioDawnbreaker Recording Studios
(San Fernando, California)
Genre
Length40:32
LabelABC
AA 1049
ProducerRufus, Roy Halee
Rufus chronology
Ask Rufus (with Chaka Khan)
(1977)		 Street Player (with Chaka Khan)
(1978)		 Numbers
(1979)
Chaka Khan chronology
Ask Rufus (with Rufus)
(1977)		 Street Player (with Rufus)
(1978)		 Chaka
(1978)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic [1]
Rolling Stone(not rated) [2]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[3]
Record Mirror[4]

History

In 1978, Rufus and Chaka Khan were a top-selling band. Their last four releases had gone platinum and the group continued to sell out in arenas as a headlining act with fiery Khan leading the way. By this point, Khan's stardom outside the group had grown and it led to the group drifting apart. While Khan opted to stay a member of the group, other members were uncomfortable that Khan was now offered solo contracts.

After the release of this record, Khan would sign a solo deal with Warner Bros. Records releasing her debut album, featuring the hit, "I'm Every Woman". While Khan went on to a solo career, Rufus cut Numbers, in 1979, without her. Khan, however, didn't leave the group, returning for their Quincy Jones-produced Masterjam later that same year.

Also after the departure of original drummer Andre Fischer, Richard "Moon" Calhoun took over on this album on drums. This would be his only album with the group. Additionally, the jazz/rock band Chicago featured a version of the title track on their 1979 album Chicago 13, with Peter Cetera on lead vocals. The song was co-written by Chicago's drummer at that time, Danny Seraphine. The track "Stay" was later covered by Erykah Badu on her 1997 album Live as well as performing on the Fox crime drama New York Undercover episode "Vendetta", first aired on April 24, 1997.

Track listing
Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Street Player"David Wolinski, Danny Seraphine4:54
2."Stay"Richard Calhoun, Chaka Khan5:41
3."Turn"Bobby Watson, Wolinski4:43
4."Best of Your Heart"Watson, Wolinski3:45
5."Finale" (Instrumental)Watson, Wolinski2:10
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
6."Blue Love"Calhoun, Wolinski3:18
7."Stranger to Love"Wolinski3:33
8."Take Time" (Instrumental)Tony Maiden4:16
9."Destiny"David Batteau, Richard Holland4:25
10."Change Your Ways"Maiden, Traude Sapik3:27

The listing of tracks on the back of the album as distributed in Canada (GRT of Canada Ltd.) is in the following order:

  • Destiny
  • Stranger To Love
  • Street Player
  • Stay
  • Best Of Your Heart
  • Finale
  • Take Time
  • Blue Love
  • Turn
  • Change Your Ways

The listing on the album labels (sides 1 & 2) is as on the main listing.[5]

Personnel
  • Chaka Khan – lead vocals, background vocals
  • Tony Maiden – guitar, percussion, lead vocals, background vocals
  • Kevin Murphy – keyboards
  • Bobby Watson – bass, percussion
  • David "Hawk" Wolinski – keyboards, background vocals
  • Richard "Moon" Calhoun – drums, percussion, background vocals
  • Seawind – horns
  • Jerry Hey – trumpet, flugelhorn
  • Kim Hutchcroft – saxophone, flute
  • Bill Reichenbach Jr. – trombone
  • Larry Williams – saxophone, flute, piccolo
  • Helen Lowe – additional background vocals
  • Everett Bryson, Jr. – percussion

Production
  • Rufus, Roy Halee – producers
  • Roy Halee, George Belle – engineers
  • Clare Fischer – string arrangements & conductor
  • Seawind, Rufus – horn arrangements
  • Brian Gardner – audio mastering

Charts

Album

Chart (1978) Peak
[6]
U.S. Billboard Top LPs 14
U.S. Billboard Top Soul LPs 1

Singles

Year Single Peak chart positions
US
[6]		 US
R&B
[6]
1978 "Stay" 38 3
"Blue Love" 105 34

See also
  • List of number-one R&B albums of 1978 (U.S.)

References
  1. Lytle, Craig. "Street Player review". Allmusic. Retrieved 2011-10-11.
  2. McEwen, Joe. "Street Player review". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on October 13, 2008. Retrieved 2011-10-16.CS1 maint: unfit url (link)
  3. Gersten, Russell (1983). "Rufus". In Marsh, Dave; Swenson, John (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Record Guide. Random House/Rolling Stone Press. p. 438. ISBN 0394721071.
  4. Travis, Geoff (March 4, 1978). Rufus: Street Player. Record Mirror. p. 14.
  5. Physical copy
  6. "US Charts > Rufus". Allmusic. Retrieved 2011-10-19.
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