The Real Thing

The Real Thing is a British soul group formed in the 1970s. In addition to a string of British hits, the band charted internationally with their song "You to Me Are Everything", which reached #1 on the UK Singles Chart, #28 on Billboard's R&B Singles chart and #64 on the Billboard Hot 100. By number of sales, they were the most successful black rock/soul act in England during the 1970s.[3]  The journalist, author and founder of Mojo, Paul Du Noyercredits them alongside Deaf School with restoring "Liverpool's musical reputation in the 1970s" with their success.[4]



Contents
[hide]  *1 History  ==History[ edit] == Begun in 1970 by Chris Amoo, Dave Smith, Kenny Davis and Ray Lake, The Real Thing's live, progressive soul-influenced covers of American hits attracted enough attention for them to secure a recording deal with EMI.[5]  The singles they released through EMI in 1972 and 1973 such as "Vicious Circle" were, despite their high quality, not successful sellers (and have not so far been included on any of band's compilation albums). But the band persisted, even after the departure of Kenny Davis. They did appear on Opportuniy Knocks (the TV talent show). The turn-around for their career began with their collaboration with David Essex and Pye Records. They toured internationally with Essex, recording with him a number of popular songs, though none were big charters. After Chris Amoo's brother Eddie joined the band, The Real Thing finally found chart success with the catchy pop soul single "You to Me Are Everything", which reached #1 on the UK Singles Chart, #28 on Billboard's "R&B Singles" and #64 on Billboard's "Hot 100".[5] [6]  Their follow-up, "Can't Get By Without You", did not chart in the U.S. but was still a success in the United Kingdom, where it reached number 2.
 * 2 Group personnel
 * 3 Discography
 * 3.1 Albums
 * 3.2 Singles
 * 4 See also
 * 5 References
 * 6 External links

In 1976, they released their first album, Real Thing,[7]  which included both of their hit singles as well as a third UK hit, "You'll Never Know What You're Missing",[8]  which peaked at #16.[9]  They continued recording prolifically, releasing a steady stream of subsequent albums: 1977's Four from Eight<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-10" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;font-size:10.9090909957886px;">[10]  (originally to have been called Liverpool 8 in honor of the racially mixed, economically depressed neighborhood in which they grew up, before Pye rejected the title), 1978's Step Into our World, (reissued in 1979 as Can You Feel the Force)<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-11" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;font-size:10.9090909957886px;">[11]  and 1982's compilation 100 Minutes.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-AMG_5-2" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;font-size:10.9090909957886px;">[5] During the time period, they accumulated eight more British hits. "Love's Such a Wonderful Thing" peaked at #33 in 1977.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-g_9-1" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;font-size:10.9090909957886px;">[9]  1978 saw "Whenever You Want My Love" at #18, "Let's Go Disco" at #39 and "Rainin' Through My Sunshine" at #40. "Can You Feel the Force?" climbed to #5 in 1979, the same year that "Boogie Down (Get Funky Now)" hit #33. 1980's "She's a Groovy Freak" capped a successful run, at #52, coming just a few months too late to be included in the band's first compilation, a K-tel collection of their Greatest Hits released in May 1980.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-g_9-2" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;font-size:10.9090909957886px;">[9] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-12" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;font-size:10.9090909957886px;">[12]  In 1982 they returned to working with David Essex, performing as backing vocalists on his tour and they also performed backing vocalists on Essex's 1982 top 20 hit 'Me And my Girl (Nightclubbing)' appearing with him on Top Of The Pops.

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:20.3636360168457px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13.63636302948px;">In 1986, the band enjoyed a chart resurgence with the remixing of several of their hits. "You to Me Are Everything (the Decade Remix)" charted twice in the U.K., peaking at #5 during a 12-week run in spring and returning in June for additional week at #72.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-g_9-3" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;font-size:10.9090909957886px;">[9]  "Can't Get By Without You (the Second Decade Remix)" rose almost as high to #6, remaining a consecutive 13 weeks. "Can You Feel the Forces ('86 Remix)" climbed to #24, but the band's final U.K. charter for the year, "Straight to the Heart", peaked at #71, remaining for only two weeks. ==Group personnel<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;font-family:sans-serif;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] == ==Discography<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;font-family:sans-serif;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] == ===Albums<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] === ===Singles<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] ===
 * Current
 * Eddie Amoo - born Edward Robert Amoo, 5 May 1950, Liverpool - vocalist and guitarist.
 * Chris Amoo - born Christopher Charles Amoo, 14 October 1952, Liverpool - vocalist.
 * Dave Smith - born David Smith, 6 July 1952 - vocalist.
 * Former
 * Ray Lake - born Raymond Lake, 11 February 1954, Liverpool - falsetto backing vocalist (now deceased).
 * Kenny Davis - vocalist.
 * Studio albums
 * Real Thing (1976) - UK #34
 * 4 from 8 (1977)
 * Step Into Our World (1978), retitled Can You Feel the Force (1979) - UK #73
 * ....Saints Or Sinners? (1980)
 * Live albums
 * The Real Thing Live (1998)
 * Compilation albums
 * 20 Greatest Hits (1980) - UK #56
 * 100 Minutes (1982)
 * The Best of The Real Thing (1986) - UK #24