Five
brothers from New Bedford, Massachusetts joined together to create
one of the most memorable soul groups of the 70s and 80s. Many of
their instantly recognizable international hits, such as "Heaven
Must Be Missing An Angel" and "More
Than A Woman" have become classics.
The brothers, – Ralph, Tiny, Chubby, Butch and Pooch Tavares
–originally called themselves "Chubby and the
Turnpikes". Working the clubs in their native New England
beginning in the late 60s, the brothers honed their harmonies,
alternating lead vocals, when Capitol Records’ then-new black
music division signed them. Their debut album, Check It Out,
was issued in early 1974. The title track slow jam single went to
No. 5 R&B on Billboard's charts in summer 1973. The next
single, the ballad "That's the Sound
That Lonely Makes", hit number ten R&B in early
1974.
Capitol teamed the group next with Dennis Lambert and Brian
Potter, hot producers and writers who worked with the Four Tops,
among others. This led to two successful Tavares LPs, Hard Core
Poetry and In The City. A cover of Hall & Oates’ "She’s
Gone" gave the group their first No. 1 on the R&B
charts, and "It Only Takes A
Minute" was their first top 10 pop hit.
"Heaven Must Be Missing An Angel"
and "Don’t Take Away the Music"
were huge hits from their next release, Sky High, (produced
by Motown veteran writer and producer Freddie Perren). Perren
moved the group to a hotter beat and heavy sound just as the disco
boom was about to explode. The group teamed with Perren again for
their Love Storm and Future Bound LPs in 1977 and 1978. The Bee
Gees wrote "More Than A Woman" for
Tavares for the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack, giving the group
its greatest exposure ever, as well as a Grammy award.
In 1979, the brothers released the ballad-drenched Madam
Butterfly LP. Produced by Philly veteran Bobby Martin, this
disc highlighted the group’s Soul foundation, especially on the
hit "Never Had A Love Like This
Before" and three Sam Dees’ ballads (including the
incredible "Let Me Heal The
Bruises"). Tavares then teamed with pop producers
Bobby Colomby and David Foster for Supercharged, a solid
but underappreciated disc that spawned a minor hit with "Bad
Times".
As musical tastes evolved in the 1980s, Capitol Records began to
lessen its promotional focus on Tavares, which found the Tavares
brothers next two releases (Love Uprising and Loveline)
failing to chart. The brothers went in search of a new label, and
in 1982 found a temporary home in RCA’s young black music
division. They released two albums for RCA, New Directions
and Words and Music, which featured the Grammy-nominated "Penny
For Your Thoughts" and their final R&B hit, "Deeper
In Love", but the albums were overall an artistic step
down from the group’s highest moments.
Ralph resigned from the group in 1983 to spend more time with his
wife and their two children. He become a court officer in New
Bedford, a position he still holds today. The remaining four
brothers continued to tour internationally and continued to record
throughout the years. A number of Tavares compilation albums have
been released in recent years, including A Lifetime With
Tavares. Brother Tiny also later left the group to go solo.
Chubby, Butch and Pooch continue to tour as Tavares, also
appearing on occasional television specials. They still enjoy
seeing their many loyal fans around the world and making new fans
wherever they appear singing their timeless hits.
Five
brothers from New Bedford, Massachusetts joined together to create
one of the most memorable soul groups of the 70s and 80s. Many of
their instantly recognizable international hits, such as "Heaven
Must Be Missing An Angel" and "More
Than A Woman" have become classics.
