Bridge – Hailing from Oakland/Berkeley, California.. in 1981 they spent four weeks in Boulder, Colorado cutting an album for the Bang label that never saw the light of day.
This Double LP is a collection of the demos that helped the group land the Bang deal. Never released until 2000 on First Experience Records, it became an instant Modern Soul classic and highly sought after. 16 beautiful tracks featuring incredible vocal performances from Debravon Lewis & Derick Hughes. Produced by Paul Tillman Smith & Jon Bendich for Drawbridge Productions.
-Tracklist:
01. Crying For Love
02. Stella
03. From The Darkness To The Light
04. Fire Burning
05. Waiting Patiently
06. He Say, She Say Game
07. Sweet & Wonderful
08. Out There In Space
09. No Where Love Affair
10. Rivers Of Love
11. Turn To Love
12. Next To Me
13. Reach Out
14. Listen
15. Summer Sky (LP Bonus Track)
16. Loves In Your Corner (LP Bonus Track)
Considering the quality of the vocalists, instrumentalists, and songwriters who comprised Bridge, the Oakland/Berkeley, California septet should have been big. Dissension within the group and conflicts with producers doomed the band, which spent four weeks in Boulder, Colorado in 1981 cutting an album for Ilene Berns’ CBS distributed Bang label that never saw the light of day. Now, after nearly 20 years in mothballs, comes a collection of the demos that helped the group land the Bang deal. These selections reveal a sophisticated fusion of soul, jazz, rock, and latin elements that placed Bridge well ahead of its time.
Bridge evolved from Vitamin E, a short-lived band that cut a terrific album for Buddha in 1977 titled Sharing. Produced by Norman Connors, the disc featured the male/female vocal frontline of David Gardner and Lady Bianca, with Oakland soul veteran Freddie Hughes (best known for his 1968 hit “Send My Baby Back ») contributing his multi octave pipes to the title track.
Leader and drummer Paul Tillman Smith supplied the songs. Born in Oakland in 1947, Smith has an impressive list of sideman credits, including work with Jimmy McCracklin, Lightnin’ Hopkins, Sonny Simmons, and Michael White.
