Song:Hope We Can Be Together Soon
Album:The Ultimate Blue Notes
Of course most music fans should be familiar with the great Philly Soul sounds of Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes especially the songs featuring legendary soul singer Teddy Pendergrass. But by the mid-70s, Melvin knew that Pendergrass was going to go solo. So he went looking for a replacement. Hope We Can Be Together Soon features Sharon Paige. It topped the R&B charts. The song appears on the 1975 album To Be True. I don't have any bio info about Sharon so I can only assume that she was probably a backup singer at Philadelphia International. Pendergrass was demanding star billing and more money to stay with The Blue Notes. No doubt Melvin discussed the problem with producers Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff and they decided to try Sharon out on one song. Hope That We Can Be Together Soon topped the R&B Singles chart. Melvin is the main male singer on the record. Pendergrass does appear near the end of the record. On their next album Wake Up Everybody, the title song was a huge hit. But Sharon appeared on two songs on that album. Soon after Pendergrass left to go solo and he was replaced by David Ebo. Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes left Philadelphia International for ABC Records. Not long after MCA purchased ABC. At this point, Sharon became a regular member of the group until their final MCA album in 1980. Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes last recorded in 1984. But they continued to tour. And Sharon was a member of that touring group. It looks like she may have recorded solo once. But mainly she is known for this one hit song. Here's Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes featuring Sharon Paige performing Hope That We Can Ne Together Soon on Soul Train 1975 with guest host Richard Pryor.
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