Active until 1985 Genre R&B/soul | ||
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Albums Brass Construction II Members Randy Muller, Larry Payton, Wade Williamston Similar B T Express, Skyy, Manu Dibango, Dennis Coffey, Djinji Brown | ||
Brass construction music makes you feel like dancing
Brass Construction was an American funk group formed in Brooklyn, New York in 1968. They were originally known as Dynamic Soul, and went on to record a string of hit singles and albums through to 1985.
Contents
- Brass construction music makes you feel like dancing
- Brass construction changin
- Career
- Legacy
- Compilation albums
- Songs
- References
Brass construction changin
Career
Signed in 1975 by Sid Maurer, and former Epic Records promotion man Fred Frank, they scored two US Billboard Hot 100 entries in 1976 - the most successful being "Movin'," which hit #14. They had much more success on the US Hot Dance Club Play chart, with nine chart entries, including "Movin'", which reached #1. Singer, pianist, flautist and arranger Randy Muller went on to score a number of R&B hits with Skyy.
Over the years, Brass Construction members have included Wade Williamston (bass), Sandy Billups (percussion), Morris Price (trumpet), Larry Payton (drums), Jesse Ward Jr. (saxophone), Michael "Micky" Grudge (saxophone), Wayne Parris (trumpet), Alvin Haskin (original Trombone player on Movin), Duane Cahill (trombone), Joseph Arthur-Wong (guitar), and Randy Muller (lead vocals), later joined by Lee Evans on keyboards. Joseph Arthur-Wong died in 1998. Larry Payton and Jesse Ward Jr. died in March 2016.
Brass Construction reunited for a concert on November 28, 2005 at the Bataclan Arena in Paris, France. Drummer Larry Payton's death was reported in March 2016.
Legacy
1975's "Changin'" was sampled in 1989 by Gang Starr on "Positivity", and on "Gimme" by Jill Scott (2001). Brass Construction's song "Movin'" was used on "Got Myself Together" by The Bucketheads (1995). ("Movin'" also played in the background on the episode of Good Times during the Evans' farewell party when they received the tragic news about James' passing via telegram.) "Message (Inspiration)" was sampled in 1988 on "I Ain't Tha 1" by N.W.A; while "What's on Your Mind (Expression)" was sampled in 1988 on "Cool V's Tribute to Scratching" by Biz Markie. "Sambo" was sampled in 1998 on "Vision of Paradise" by Bob Sinclar, and "One to One" was sampled in "Ain`t No Stoppin'" by Most Wanted featuring Pras and The Product G&B in 1998. Also, "Get Up to Get Down" was sampled in "Bass" by King Tee (1988) and on "Tanqueray" by DJ Quik (1995). 1977's "Happy People" was sampled in 1997 by Cheek in "Sunshine People".
Compilation albums
Songs
Movin'Brass Construction I · 1975
Get Up to Get DownBrass Construction 5 · 1979
Changin'Brass Construction I · 1975