Review Text
One of the common remarks regarding the first single, "Tell Love Hello," by the Philly soul vocal group The Mellow Moods, originally released in 1971 on Gamble & Huff's Gamble label is "why wasn't this a huge national hit?." It has all the hallmarks of a great Philly soul recording but somehow managed to slip through the cracks. The Mellow Moods was a female vocal trio featuring lead singer Pat Cummings who first formed the group in 1968. The group played local gigs around the Philadelphia area and were discovered by the famed Philly soul producers Gamble & Huff in 1969. The group was offered a record contract and promptly went in to the studio to record some material. It wasn't until 1971 that their first single, "Tell Love Hello" b/w "If You See Him" was released, to great critical and local acclaim. By that time the group had already disbanded, but were hired by Billy Paul as his back-up vocal group, and the group did a few tours with him. Lead singer Pat Cummings also was hired as a singer for rocker Myron Lefevre's Holy Smoke Doo Dah Band which was signed to Columbia Records in 1970. Nearly 45 years after the fact, legendary Philly soul producer Butch Ingram contacted original lead singer Pat Cummings to see if she had any interest in reforming the group for an album. Pat replied that she'd like to participate but instead suggested that her daughter, Linda Lee, be recruited as lead singer of the group with vocalists Shellie Daniels and Sandra Brown to round out the trio. The group convened at the legendary Sigma Sound studios in October of 2015 to begin recording with the Ingram Family band and The Society Hill Orchestra to recreate the unique sound of the original group. The sessions were a big success and Pat joined in on background vocals along with her granddaughter Quinn Cummings (Lee's daughter) who sang backups as well. The group recorded updated versions of the early Mellow Moods singles "Tell Love Hello" and "Stop Taking My Love For Granted" along with other soul classics such as Stevie Wonders "Hey Love," Smokey Robinson's "The One Who Really Loves You" and other soul classics. The album was completed on the day before Christmas eve, 2015 and sounds remarkably like the original group. Nearly 45 years on, The Mellow Moods finally get their just due.
