Song:Right Back Where We Started From
Album:Disco Fever: Get Up and Boogie
The 1976 song Right Back Where We Started From was one of two top ten hits for British singer Maxine Nightingale. It frequently gets lumped in with the disco of that era though I think the song is obviously influenced by Motown. Maxine's background was jazz and musical theater. She was a very reluctant pop singer and returned to her roots in the early 80s. She was born Nov. 2, 1952 in London, England the daughter of comedian Benny Nightingale. She sang in clubs as a teen and at age 17 joined the London production of Hair. She also recorded a couple of singles for Pye Records as Nighttime Flyer. It didn't go well and she returned to Hair. She moved to Germany in the early 70s and in 1973 she married the director of the German production of Hair and gave birth to their daughter. She appeared in the German productions of Hair, Jesus Christ Superstar and Godspell. In 1975, she returned to London for the production of the play Savages. She also recorded backup vocals for Fool by US actor Al Matthews. Producer Pierre Tubbs liked Maxine and wanted to record her. Tubbs is best known for co-writing the JJ Jackson hit But It's Alright. He hired J. Vincent Edwards to write a song for her. He knew Maxine from Hair. Edwards was a big Holland-Dozier-Holland fan. Maxine recorded a demo and agreed to release a record as long as it was released under a pseudonym. Tubbs worked for United Artists Records and got them to release it under her real name. UA also released it in the US and it reached #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1976. Maxine recorded two more albums for UA. But the US label turned down the third album and it was picked up by John Denver's Windsong label with RCA distribution. Lead Me On reached #5 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1979. After getting a top 20 R & B hit in 1982 with a duet with Jimmy Ruffin called Turn To Me, she quit recording and has performed in jazz clubs for many years. Normally I would recommend a comp that has both of Maxine's hits. But the songs are owned by different companies so they're not available together. So this budget 2CD comp from Time Life will have to do. Here's Maxine Nightingale performing Right Back Where We Started From on TF1 in France May 1976. This video is not on Youtube. And unlike the clip I saw on Youtube, Maxine is using backing tracks but singing live.
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