Artist:Billy Paul
Song: Me And Mrs. Jones
Album:The Very Best Of Billy Paul
The 1972 classic Me And Mrs. Jones was Billy Paul's only number one hit. But he's been around since the 50s. Maybe the fact that he was older made the song better. He was born Paul Williams Dec. 1, 1934 in Philadelphia. He started performing at age 11 and took formal vocal training at Temple University. He performed locally in Philly and recorded for Jubilee Records but really didn't have much success until getting together with legendary producers Kenny Gamble & Leon Huff. His first album on their Philadelphia International label was 1971's Going East. Paul's singing style was more jazz than soul so Gamble & Huff had to find the right material for him. Me And Mrs. Jones was perfect. It's a song about infidelity and likely wouldn't have been as effective if done by a younger singer. Paul was 37 at the time. Me And Mrs. Jones was a #1 pop hit in Jan. 1972. Paul won a Grammy for Best R & B Vocal Performance. It's still a very popular bedroom song today. You can certainly get it on this comp and it's on many various artists comps such as the recently released The Sound Of Philadelphia:Gamble & Huff's Greatest Hits. Paul had a top ten R & B hit in 1974 with Thanks For Saving My Life. He recorded for Philadelphia International through the mid-80 and retired from the music business in 1989. He still performs occasionally including this 2002 performance of Me And Mrs. Jones.
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