Tightening Up The Appreciation For Archie Bell & The Drells
Formed in 1966, Archie Bell & The Drells were one of the first R&B Vocal groups to incorporate Funk. Topping the charts in 1968 with their breakout hit, ‘Tighten Up.’
For their first few years, Archie Bell & The Drells were like a lot of their contemporaries, pumping out occasional singles that failed to launch and trying to hit on that one song that would help them break out.
What helped Archie Bell & The Drells get noticed was their sublime mix of up-tempo R&B vocal group bonafides and their ability to incorporate and play so effortlessly off their backing band, the T.S.U. Toronadoes.
Natives of the Houston, Texas area; Bell started the song ‘Tighten Up’ by proclaiming they were from Houston as a reaction to the recent Kennedy assassination and a negative sentiment that nothing good was coming out of Texas. He knew his group was hot and wanted the world to know what was up.
After getting picked up by regional radio stations and then hitting the national scene, ‘Tighten Up’ allowed the group the opportunity to both reach a worldwide audience through their label Atlantic Records, and also work with producers Kenneth Gamble & Leon Huff. The production duo who would go on to found Philadelphia International Records and work with Archie Bell & The Drells for the next decade.
Off the success of ‘Tighten Up,’ Atlantic and the band cobbled together two albums in 1968: the album Tighten Up and its follow up, I Can’t Stop Dancing.
While both albums have their share of original gems, it’s clear as daylight that these were rushed to capitalize on the band’s newfound popularity. Together, there are cover versions of existing hits by Wilson Pickett, Otis Redding, and Curtis Mayfield. The titular ‘I Can’t Stop Dancing’ is just a riff on the ‘Tighten Up’ blueprint. There’s even a ‘Tighten Up (Part 2)’ on the first album, just to keep the party going.
It would be the following year’s There’s Gonna Be A Showdown LP that deserves the lion’s share of the post-Tighten Up attention.
The group’s last album for Atlantic would also be their best. A true showcase for what the group could be at the peak of their powers. Guided by the deft songwriting & production hands of Gamble & Huff, ..Showdown highlights a vocal group effortlessly in tune with the music behind them. Able to shake off a lingering love interest on ‘Houston Texas’ and seamlessly get everyone hot & amped up on the title track.
Their easy sense of command and playfulness shine through on a track like ‘Girl You’re Too Young.’ A song that is both earnest and hilarious in how it plays with the, frankly, creepy-in-retrospect teenage love lyrics of the time with a chorus of, “Girl, you’re too young (come back later).”
Even the backing music is working overtime. Songs slickly shift in tone constantly. Right when you think you’re about to get your heart ripped out, the guitars kick in, the vocals perk up and you’ve got an unexpected good time blasting in your ears on a rainy day.
There would be a full six year gap between ..Showdown and the band’s next album, Dance Your Troubles Away. By that point, the group was far from Texas and fully entrenched in the Philly Soul scene under Gamble & Huff. They had one final minor hit in 1976 with ‘Let’s Groove.’ A fine enough song. But this latter period lacked the raw energy of their earlier songs. Traded in for production and song cues that perfectly fit the times they were recorded.
Nothing wrong with it. But when they were really cooking in those early years it was genuine lightning in a bottle.
Most people out there only know Archie Bell & The Drells from ‘Tighten Up,’ if at all. If you enjoy them from just that one song, you owe it to yourself to track down either a Greatest Hits collection or, better yet, jump right to checking out ..Showdown and letting the entire album dance around for a while. After all, the man himself did say that they dance just as good as they walk.
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