A House on Fire: The Rise and Fall of Philadelphia Soul

As a musician, I've researched black music pretty heavily over the years. I dig jazz biographies and I've moved into understanding some of the major black music "machines" like Motown and Stax. Philadelphia International has been slow to grow on me because I wrongly associated it with later disco developments. I've been heavy into the O'Jays as of late, though, and this book seemed like a good way to get deeper into the innerworkings of the men and the company that fueled the growth of Philly's unique sound. I wasn't disappointed. This book is skillfully researched and is filled with the recollections of many who participated in the sessions. The author has one of the more balanced viewpoints on the nature of running a big label. Yes, the founders Leon Huff and Kenny Gamble eventually exploited those they employed to some degree. But the author realizes that this was common practice to some extent. He tries to show understanding for all of the people involved and criticizes when power begins to hurt the effectiveness of the organization. This book emphasizes the musicians as well. Perhaps projects like "Standing In the Shadows of Motown" have focused more emphasis on understanding the musicians' role in producing stellar music. He profiles all of the core musicians and the key studio singers. He strives to show how tracks like "For the Love of Money" were really grooved into compositions by musicians. There were a lot of key revelations to me in this book that will inform my practice as a musician. Chief among them was the skill and business savvy of Thom Bell. Thom Bell seems to be a rare kind of cat, an amazing musican arranger in the pop music field who is able to preserve his artistic integrity and stay independent. Thom Bell did not sign any exclusive contracts and that gave him the freedom to have a great deal of control over groups like the Delfonics and eventually the Spinners. As a big fan of the Spinners, I was surprised to see just how big a role Thom Bell played in their development and how he was instrumental in rescuing them from the Motown scrap heap. While I realize that Thom Bell may have been so favorably portrayed because he was open [unlike Kenny Gamble] and alive [unlike Leon Huff, I think] to being interviewed at length, I do take him at his word that he was really in it for the music and that he was true enough to himself to abandon groups once he could no longer "hear" their next projects. You probably have an interest in black music if you've wandered into this review. "House of Fire" is one of the best written and best researched pop music histories I've read, and I recommend it without qualification. 5 stars --SD

This has to be one of the very best music industry books that I have ever read. I have read over 20 books on Motown alone and I have waited for years for someone to write a book on one of my all time favorite record companies which is of course Philadelphia International Records. John Jackson as a writer captured this very important story and I am so thankful for it. Both Motown and Philly International to me are 2 of the most important record companies that have contributed to the black music market and just music in general. I love the fact that John Jackson really stuck to the facts and the story of the company and didn't get into a lot of tabloid trash. After understanding what Kenny Gamble, Leon Huff and Thom Bell all went through over the years with that company I have an even greater love for the Philly company. Whoever is a music fan and in particular the 70's soul music, you must read this book!!!!! John Jackson you nailed it with this one. Great Job!!!!

In 1975, Tony Cummings wrote a book titled 'The Sound Of Philadelphia.' The book has been long out of print and was written well before the demise of TSOP. Ever since I read it, I wondered why no one else had thought to do a follow up book, perhaps one with a new slant. With so many hit records and albums produced it was difficult to understand why only one book had been written on the subject. For years, I was completely baffled and could not understand how in the music business a company could be so big yet fly under the radar. Finally, John Jackson answered the bell. There was so much I didn't know about the whole picture. I had never heard any of the negative stuff nor was I aware that some of the people responsible for the music had passed away. For me, it started with two singing groups The Intruders ("Cowboys To Girls") and Archie Bell & The Drells ("I Can't Stop Dancing"). The albums put out on both groups were the first I ever purchased as a teenager. They had a totally different sound than what I was hearing on the radio from other groups. I was pleasantly surprised while reading the back of the albums that both groups shared the same writers, producers, arrangers, musicians and recording studio. This was my introduction to the Philly Sound. Jackson's book is the better of the two because it's focus on the subject is tighter. Cummings book takes in the whole Philadelphia music scene pre and leading up to TSOP. Because the Cummings book was written while the show was still in progress, it adds little insights and information that you won't find in the Jackson book. I caught a mistake in the Cummings book when he says that when Bobby Starr takes over the lead singer role from the Intruders "Little Sonny," that he does one record and then departs to parts unknown. The truth is that Bobby did an entire album titled, "When We Get Married," plus a handful of singles. Jackson's book is a fasinating look at the behind the scene workings that I felt privileged to watch unfold but Jackson doesn't go into details about events such as the death of Little Sonny. I wanted to know the mindset and circumstances that led to him taking his own life. There is still room to do another book on the "Philly Sound." I would like to hear more from the singers and musicians who were mentioned but not interviewed for one reason or another. I want to hear more from arranger Bobby Martin whom I thought was just as important as the big three. I would like to get his insight on his style of arranging songs. I would also like to know (if it can be explained) how he and Thom Bell came up with those (inner ear) sounds that were common with the Philly sound. The genius of Gamble & Huff was that they had a different sound on each group or individual. Archie Bell didn't sound like the Ojays and the Ojays didn't sound like Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes. Billy Paul had a sound and Lou Rawls had his own sound. That was one of the big

John A. Jackson's book is thoroughly researched and a story compellingly told. It is a book with no heroes, so it's hard to develop an abiding interest in it. Gamble and Huff on the one hand, and Thom Bell on the other, all exhibit--in John Jackson's retelling of this mythic story--delusions of grandeur that come to destroy their empire. It may be that all three are "really" sterling human beings, but Jackson makes out each man out to be a megalomaniac whose success first went to his head, then turned around and bit him in the ass. Nevertheless the records produced and written by these three guys will stand the test of time as well as any pop music made in the 20th Century. The Stylistics, The Spinners, the Delfonics, The Three Degrees, Jackson has spoken to them all. A curious deficiency of the book is that none of the individual musicians or singers really comes to life, they all become a blur, their personalities rubbed out in the service of keeping the narrative movements. As you read further it becomes apparent that a case could clearly be made out that this hit factory was the dominant music force of its time and place. And the tragedy is that human error caused its collapse. The book's later chapters are studies in the pathetic that have rarely been equalled. It is not really an inspiring book; but it is one that will get your pulses moving and your toe tapping, as all the magic tunes come back to life, one by one. And what happened to Linda Creed? Far as I'm concerned, she had just as much talent as the big three. Jackson seems unwilling or unable to take a stand on this issue. Was she just a jumped-up backup singer? Or was she Philly's answer to Carole King or Lucinda Williams?

I believe the soul music coming out of Philly in the 1970's is the best music ever made, and this book gets on the inside on how it all came together. Jackson's exhaustive research is impressive. He has documented everything in detail, talked to 100's of people, read many documents, and just plain got his reserach down perfectly. Jackson tells how the music was made with interesting anecdotes throughout the book. Mostly it's about the business side of music and how Kenny Gamble, Leon Huff, and Thom Bell not only created and produced, but also assembled teams of amazing musicians, writers, and singers to develop this amazing music. It doesn't always paint a rosy picture, remember this is not only the rise, but also the fall of Philly soul. And if you're a Kenny Gamble fan, this book doesn't portray him in the most positive light, though much of it is earned by Mr. Gamble himself. One can put the blame on his big, fat ego for the downfall of the world's most incredible music company, Philadelphia International. All kinds of musicians are interviewed. I would've preferred to have heard more words from The O'Jays and Spinners, and other big groups, but clearly Jackson's intent was to focus on Gamble, Huff, and Bell, and the backing musicians who labored hard without much glory. (But what's a music book without whiney studio musicians?) Philadelphia soul hit its peak in the early and mid-70's led by The O'Jays, Spinners, Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes, and The Stylistics just to name a few .. then the decline set in caused by -- no surprise here -- too much ego. The author, Jackson, puts it all together in this fantastic read.