Friends is the sixth album by American R&B group Shalamar, released in 1982 on the SOLAR label. The album, which features the 'classic' Shalamar line-up (Jeffrey Daniel, Howard Hewett and Jody Watley), topped the R&B chart and peaked at No. 35 on the Billboard chart. It has been certified Gold in the United States for sales over 500,000. It would eventually go Platinum. In the United Kingdom Friends gained impetus from a demonstration of body-popping by Daniel during a performance of "A Night to Remember" on the BBC programme Top of the Pops. It reached No. 6 on the UK Albums Chart and produced four top 20 singles.
In 2002, Friends was re-released by Sanctuary Records in the United Kingdom in a double-CD package with Shalamar's previous album Go for It.
Reception
In The Boston Phoenix, Mike Freedberg wrote that the album "presents [Howard] Hewitt again and again overmatched by roseate fugues, overmatching lyrics so glib they vanish. He doesn't know whether to drive ahead or scat back--but neither would a Shalamar fan. Hewitt's stabs at sincerity fit into the I-can't-manage atmosphere that has all but replaced the buoyant bravado of soul, funk, and disco from today's black-teen music."
Track listing
Personnel Shalamar Jeffrey Daniel - lead & backing vocals Howard Hewett - lead & backing vocals Jody Watley - lead & backing vocals
Musical personnel Leon Sylvers III - bass, percussion, keyboards Wardell Potts, Jr. - drums Foster Sylvers - bass Joey Gallo - keyboards Kevin Spencer - keyboards James Ingram - bass, keyboards Ricky Sylvers - guitar Ed Green - drums Ernest "Pepper" Reed - guitar Richard Randolph - guitar Michael Nash - keyboards William Shelby - keyboards Wayne Milstein - percussion
Charts
Weekly charts Chart (1982) Peak position US Billboard 200 35 US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard) 1
Year-end charts Chart (1982) Position Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) 96UK Albums (OCC) 26 US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard) 10
Chart (1983) PositionUK Albums (OCC) 64
Singles Year Single Chart positions UKPop USPop USR&B USDance1982 "I Can Make You Feel Good" 7 102 33 - "A Night To Remember" 5 44 8 15 "There It Is" 5 - - - "Friends" 12 - - -
Certifications
See also List of number-one R&B albums of 1982 (U.S.)
References
External links Shalamar-Friends at Discogs