This Is Where the Happy People Go: The Best of the Trammps

The Trammps: Harold Wade (vocals, guitar); John Hart (vocals, organ); Stanley Wade (vocals, bass); Earl Young (vocals, drums); Jimmy Ellis, Robert Upchurch (vocals).
Additional personnel includes: Dennis Harris, Bobby Eli, T.J. Tindall (guitar); John Davis (saxophone); Reubin Henderson, Harold Watkins, Artie Williams (horns); Roger Stevens (trumpet); Fred Jointer (trombone); Stevie Wonder (harmonica); Ron Kersey (piano, keyboards, background vocals); T.G. Conway, Cotton Kent (keyboards); Ron Baker, Michael "Sugar Bear" Foreman, Jimmy Williams (bass); Michael Thompson, Keith Benson (drums); Larry Washington, Robert Cupit (congas); Allan Felder, Mikki Farrow (tambourine); James Walker (percussion); Barbara Ingram, Evette Benton, Carla Benson (background vocals).
Producers include: Ron Baker, Norman Harris, Earl Young, Ron "Have Mercy" Kersey, Bruce Gary.
Compilation producer: David McLees.
Recorded at Sigma Sound Studios, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and Total Experience Studio, Los Angeles, California. Includes liner notes by Janine McAdams.
Personnel: Harold Wade (vocals, tenor, guitar, acoustic guitar); Stanley Wade (vocals, tenor); Robert Upchurch (vocals, baritone); Earl Young (vocals, bass voice, drums); Ron Kersey (vocals, piano, keyboards); John Hart (vocals, organ); Jimmy Ellis (vocals); Dennis Harris , T.J. Tindall, Norman Harris (guitar, acoustic guitar); Bobby Eli (acoustic guitar); Don Renaldo (strings, horns); Paul Schorr (strings); Stevie Wonder (harmonica); John Davis (saxophone, alto saxophone); Roger Stevens (trumpet); Fred Jointer (trombone); Arthur Williams , Reubin Henderson, Harold Watkins, Maurice Spears (horns); Bruce Gray, Bruce Gary (piano, keyboards); T.G. Conway (keyboards, synthesizer, keyboard bass); Eugene Lambchops Curry, Cotton Kent, Carlton "Cotton" Kent (keyboards); Keith Benson, Michael Thompson , Keith Errol Benson (drums); Robert Cupit, Larry Washington (congas); Mikki Farrow, Allan Felder, Ron Tyson (tambourine); James Walker (percussion); Evette Benton, Barbara Ingram, Carla Benson (background vocals).
Audio Mixer: Bob Hughes.
Liner Note Author: Janine Coveney McAdams.
Unknown Contributor Role: Charles Ellerbee.
Arrangers: T.G. Conway; Norman Harris; Ron Baker.
Due to all the great funk, R&B, and soul bands of the '70s, it's easy to overlook many of the lesser-known (but just as great) bands. Such is the case with the Trammps. Best known for their smash hit from the Saturday Night Fever Soundtrack, "Disco Inferno" (their only Top 20 appearance on the pop charts), the group had many other hits on the R&B charts, which were just as deserving of crossover success. Just about any track from the excellent This Is Where All the Happy People Go: The Best of the Trammps compilation is a solid example of '70s R&B at its finest and most expertly crafted. Many overlooked and forgotten gems reside here, such as "Hold Back the Night," "Trammps Disco Theme," "That's Where the Happy People Go," and "Zing Went the Strings of My Heart." Admittedly, the Trammps did seem to jump on the disco bandwagon, like so many other bands from this era, but the quality of the music never suffered. For a representation of some of the '70s most underrated dance music, The Best of the Trammps simply can't be beat. ~ Greg Prato