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Chameleon (Labelle album)

From Wikipedia - Reading time: 6 min

Chameleon
Studio album by
Labelle
ReleasedJune 17, 1976
RecordedWally Heider Studios, San Francisco, California
Genre
Length50:12
LabelEpic
ProducerDavid Rubinson & Friends Inc., in association with Vicki Wickham
Labelle chronology
Phoenix
(1975) 		Chameleon
(1976) 		Back To Now
(2008)
Singles from Chameleon
  1. "Isn't It a Shame"
    Released: June 17, 1976

Chameleon is the sixth album by the American singing trio Labelle. Though Patti LaBelle's autobiography Don't Block The Blessings revealed that LaBelle planned a follow-up to Chameleon entitled Shaman, the album never materialized. The trio would not release another new recording until 2008's Back to Now. The final album was moderately successful peaking at #94 at the Pop charts and #21 on the R&B charts. Only two singles made the charts which were "Get You Somebody New" which peaked at #50 on the Pop charts and their memorable song "Isn't It A Shame" which peaked at #18 on the R&B charts. "Isn't It A Shame" was later sampled by Nelly on his 2004 hit, "My Place", which featured Jaheim.

Critical reception

[edit]
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[4]
Christgau's Record GuideB−[1]
Rolling Stone(favorable)[3]

Christian John Wikane of PopMatters exclaimed, "With a new producer in tow — David Rubinson — Chameleon arrived in 1976. Like its namesake, the album emphasized the group’s mutability in a range of styles — doo wop, funk, Latin, hard rock — further confounding those who wanted to label Labelle. In just the wingspan of eight songs, Chameleon covered even more territory than its predecessors."[2]

Craig Lytle of Allmusic, in a 3/5 star review remarked, "While Patti LaBelle was the vocal force behind the group bearing her name, Nona Hendryx was providing the material that Patti would use to deliver her energetic sound. Of the eight numbers presented, Hendryx is credited with six...On every level of creativity, LaBelle, the group, are as diverse as these selections."[4]

Track listing

[edit]

All tracks composed by Nona Hendryx; except where indicated

  1. "Get You Somebody New" (Joe Crane) (6:10)
  2. "Come into My Life" (6:44)
  3. "Isn't It a Shame" (Randy Edelman) (7:58)
  4. "Who's Watching the Watcher?" (4:15)
  5. "Chameleon" (5:15)
  6. "Gypsy Moths" (5:00)
  7. "A Man in a Trenchcoat (Voodoo)" (7:49)
  8. "Going Down Makes Me Shiver" (7:07)

Personnel

[edit]

Basic song arrangements for Nona Hendryx material were: LaBelle, James "Budd" Ellison, Eddie Martinez and Rev. Batts

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b Christgau, Robert (1981). "Consumer Guide '70s: L". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor & Fields. ISBN 089919026X. Retrieved March 1, 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
  2. ^ a b c d e John Wikane, Christian (February 25, 2010). "Labelle: Nightbirds / Phoenix / Chameleon". popmatters.com. Popmatters.
  3. ^ a b Rose, Frank (October 7, 1976). "Chameleon". rollingstone.com. Rolling Stone.
  4. ^ a b Lytle, Craig. "Labelle: Chameleon". allmusic.com. Allmusic.
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