Celebrate!
Celebrate! is the twelfth studio album by American band Kool & the Gang. Released on September 29, 1980, the album reached No. 1 on the US R&B chart and #10 on the Billboard 200.[1] The album produced perhaps Kool & the Gang's most recognizable hit song, the #1 chart-topper, "Celebration", which still receives heavy play today over four decades later.[2]
Celebrate! | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | September 29, 1980 | |||
Recorded | November 1979 – March 1980 | |||
Genre | Post-disco, funk | |||
Length | 35:18 | |||
Label | De-Lite | |||
Producer | Kool and the Gang, Eumir Deodato | |||
Kool & the Gang chronology | ||||
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Singles from Celebrate! | ||||
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Critical reception
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
Allmusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Record Mirror | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Village Voice | (C-)[5] |
Los Angeles Times | (favourable)[6] |
Dennis Hunt of the Los Angeles Times called Celebration "the band's mostly excellent new album."[6] Robert Christgau of the Village Voice gave a C- grade saying "It says something for these funk pioneers that unlike James Brown, George Clinton, and the Ohio Players they've adapted painlessly, nay profitably, to disco: a number-one single leads their Deodato-produced album into the top ten. What it says is that their funk was as bland as you suspected."[5] With a 3 out of 5 stars review Amy Hanson of Allmusic found that "Celebrate itself marked the end of an era for Kool & the Gang, as the band would slip even farther from their funk roots and adopted dance grooves into the realms of smooth soul. But what a way to go!"[3]
Track listing
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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1. | "Celebration" | Ronald Bell, Kool & the Gang | 4:58 |
2. | "Jones vs. Jones" | George Brown, Kool & the Gang | 4:18 |
3. | "Take It to the Top" | Bell, Kool & the Gang | 4:19 |
4. | "Morning Star" | Robert Mickens, Kool & the Gang | 3:46 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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1. | "Love Festival" | Charles Smith, Kool & the Gang | 5:16 |
2. | "Just Friends" | Bell, Kool & the Gang | 4:23 |
3. | "Night People" | Bell, Kool & the Gang | 3:47 |
4. | "Love Affair" | Brown, Kool & the Gang | 4:21 |
Personnel
- Bass – Robert "Kool" Bell
- Lead guitar – Charles Smith
- Keyboards, saxophone, backing vocals – Ronald Bell
- Drums, percussion, backing vocals – George Brown
- Lead and backing vocals – James "J.T." Taylor
- Alto saxophone – Dennis Thomas
- Trumpet, backing vocals – Robert Mickens
- Keyboards, backing vocals – Earl Toon, Jr.
- Keyboards – Kevin Bell
- Additional keyboards – Adam Epolito
- Backing vocals – Cedric Toon, Meekaeel Muhammad, Robert Bell, Coffee, Something Sweet
- Orchestra arranged and conducted by – Eumir Deodato
- Production
- Recording engineer – Jim Bonnefond
- Assistant engineers – Bobby Cohen, Clif Hodsdon, Jeff Kawalex, Joe DeAngelis, Jullian Robertson, Kenny Robb
- Mixed by – Eumir Deodato, Jim Bonnefond, Gabe Vigorito
- Mastered by – Tom Coyne
- Producer – Eumir Deodato
- Associate producer – Kool & The Gang
- CD Mastering - Joe Gastwirt
- CD Remastering - Joe Gastwirt
Certifications
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
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United States (RIAA)[7] | Platinum | 1,000,000^ |
^shipments figures based on certification alone |
References
- "Celebrate! > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums" at AllMusic. Retrieved 29 October 2011.
- "Celebrate! > Charts & Awards > Billboard Singles" at AllMusic. Retrieved 29 October 2011.
- Hanson, Amy. "Kool & the Gang: Celebrate! > Review" at AllMusic. Retrieved 29 October 2011.
- Hall, Phillip (November 15, 1980). "Kool & The Gang: Celebrate!" (PDF). Record Mirror. p. 20. Cite magazine requires
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(help) - Christgau, Robert. "Consumer Guide Album Kool and the Gang: Celebrate". robertchristgau.com. Village Voice.
- Hunt, Dennis (November 16, 1980). "Kool's Gang Celebrates". proquest.com. Los Angeles Times. p. 424. ProQuest 162961076.
- "American album certifications – Kool & The Gang – Celebrate". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH.