Philly Soul

Layering symphonic strings and jazzy horns over a street tough rhythm section and gospel drenched vocals, Philly soul mixed go-for-baroque ballads ("Me and Mrs. Jones") with social commentary ("Only the Strong Survive") and turned "T.S.O.P" ("The Sound of Philadelphia") into the theme for TV's legendary Soul Train. Great Philly Soul tracks often featured artists who were not Philly natives… as we'll discover in Next Steps.

Many of Philly Soul's brightest moments came when its producers and songwriters lent their talents to artists who weren't from the City of Brotherly Love: Dusty Springfield's foot-tappin' "Silly Silly Fool," the Jacksons' percolating "Enjoy Yourself," and Archie Bell & the Drells' irresistible "I Can't Stop Dancing," for openers. Philly Soul leads you from dancefloor to bedroom, in Deep Cuts.

Beyond the biggest hits and cult jams lies a world of jaw-dropping performances from stars and lesser lights alike, all picture-perfect soundtracks for sweat-soaked dance floors (house music starts here) or smoothed-out, late-night, two-glasses-of-wine, you-and-that-very-special-someone action. Might we suggest heating it up with "Storm Warning" and cooling it down with "It's Forever"?

With a left-right combination of street-funk rhythms and super-sophisticated orchestration, Philly Soul spawned house music, disco, and fistfuls of hits from plush boudoir ballads ("If You Don't Know Me By Now") to biting social commentary ("Back Stabbers") that never took a back seat to the melodies . . . or the matchless vocal performances of Jerry Butler, the Intruders, the Spinners, the Delfonics, the O'Jays, and Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes. Sweet as love, timeless as forever.