ALBUM: At the Apollo. (1970s?)
MVC Rating: 4.0/$$$
Patti Labelle — like Diana Ross –first gained notice leading a ‘girl’ group.Diana Ross and the Supremes, Patti Labelle and the Bluebelles.
Both singers became stars and left their respective groups and became even more famous with long productive careers.
In fact, one of the Bluebelles became a “Supreme” — Cindy Birdsong.
But the comparisons end at the music. Diana Ross was a hit making songstress whose soft smoky voice appealed to a broader range of people than Labelle.
Labelle was a soul belter with an amazingly powerful voice, think Aretha Franklin, although higher and more piercing. This album is live and she works it out on songs like ‘I Sold my Heart to the Junkman’ and ‘Go On.’ The interesting thing on these older tracks is that Patti keeps her voice under rein. Later, with some big spots on television and concerts she would tend to let loose with her vocal acrobatics, scaling octaves like Mount Everest. A glass breaking voice that dominated and overshadowed anyone who might be on stage with her.
Perhaps her biggest recording was the multimillion seller ‘Lady Marmalade.’