Peace
1972 · Astroscope AS-110 · USA
- Artist
- The O'jays
- Title
- Peace
- Release
- Don't You Know a True Love / Peace
- Year
- 1972
- Label
- Astroscope # AS-110
- Format
- 7" · Single
- Language
- English
- Country
- USA
- Songwriter
- Bradford Craig, H.B. Barnum
- Genre
- Soul, Gospel & Funk · Soul
- Primary theme
- Peace, Protest & Anti-War
Annotation
From Canton, Ohio, the group formed in 1958, with all the original members still teenagers at school, under the age of seventeen. The core of the group featured Eddie Levert (vocals - born Bessemer, Alabama) and Walter Williams (vocals - born in Canton, OH). Also in the group at various times: Bill Isles (vocals, 1958-65), Bobby Massey (vocals, 1958-71), William Powell (vocals, 1958-76), Sam Strain (vocals, 1977-93), Nathaniel Best (vocals, 1993-97), and Eric Nolan Grant (vocals, 1997-present). They developed a Philly soul sound - string and horn instrumental arrangements, and funk influences. The spent much of their career on the Cleveland, OH soul scene. (1) The song "Peace" (Astroscope # AS-110) from 1972 took a general anti-war perspective, rather than specifically targeting Vietnam. The narrator commented that "I hear the people asking when will it end?" - probably a reference to the early 70s protest movement. It then made several religious / biblical references: "there was no evil in the garden" - the narrator suggested that the world needed to turn to love and peace. It featured on their 1971 album Super Bad (Trip Records # TLP-9510). Note that the group also released the…
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
About the artist
American soul vocal group formed 1958 in Canton, Ohio. [Source: Wikipedia]
Themes
In collections
Peace, Protest, & Anti-War Songs · Soul, Gospel, & Funk Songs