The Real Thing

The Real Thing was an English soul-funk quartet from Liverpool that released seven singles between 1972 and 1975 on Bell, EMI, and Pye. In 1976, they scored back-to-back chart-toppers with “You to Me Are Everything” and “Can’t Get By Without You,” both included on their debut album. They followed with the 1977–79 Pye albums 4 from 8 and Can You Feel the Force, the former noted for its three-part “Liverpool 8” medley. 

Members: Eddie Amoo (vocals, guitar), Chris Amoo (vocals), Ray Lake (bass), Dave Smith (vocals)

Background

The Real Thing formed in January 1972 in Liverpool when manager Tony Hall renamed Vocal Perfection, a vocal quartet of singers Chris Amoo, Dave Smith, Kenny Davis, and Ray Lake.

Chris Amoo grew up in Liverpool 8 and met Smith while still at school. His older brother Eddie Amoo sang with The Chants, a Liverpool vocal group formed in 1962 with Joe and Edmund Ankrah, Nat Smeda, and Alan Harding. The Beatles backed The Chants at the Cavern in November 1962, and Brian Epstein briefly represented the group. Tony Hatch signed The Chants to Pye, which issued the Eddie Amoo composition “I Don’t Care” in September 1963. Eddie taught Chris his first notes on guitar and piano and encouraged him to write songs.

In 1970, Chris formed the Sophisticated Soul Brothers with Smith, Davis, and Lake. Edward Ankrah, younger brother of Chants singer Joe Ankrah, briefly joined the lineup. The singers rehearsed nightly and developed harmony arrangements from records. They tested their repertoire at school dances. An agent secured local work for the group, which subsequently adopted the name Vocal Perfection.

Tony Hall travelled from London to Liverpool to hear Vocal Perfection and became their manager. He took the singers to a Temptations concert in Manchester, where they studied the group’s use of individual microphones and alternating lead parts. Hall adopted The Real Thing name after seeing a Coca-Cola slogan at Piccadilly Circus. The renamed quartet appeared on ITV talent series Opportunity Knocks with “Grazin’ in the Grass” and won the episode.

Early Singles

The Real Thing debuted with the April 1972 Bell single “Vicious Circle,” a two-part Eddie Amoo composition produced by Hall. They moved to EMI for their next four singles, starting with the January 1973 release “Plastic Man” (b/w “Check It Out”), which prompted their first Top of the Pops, where they appeared alongside ELO and Sweet for the February 15 broadcast,

In May 1973, the Real Thing reappeared with  single “Listen, Joe McGintoo” (b/w “Girl, I Don’t Mind (Losin’)”), followed in November with “Check It Out” (b/w “Humpty Dumpty”). EMI reissued “Vicious Circle” in February 1974, followed in May with “Daddy Dear,” their final single for the label (b/w “Sun Gold”). Kenny Davis left the lineup; the remaining trio worked with a touring band that included guitarist Vic Lynton and drummer Nigel Martinez.

In 1975, The Chants dissolved and Eddie Amoo joined The Real Thing. The restored quartet signed with Pye and released the Ron Roker–Gerry Shury composition “Stone Cold Love Affair” in May (b/w “A Love That’s Real”). Producer Jeff Wayne, who employed members of the group on advertising sessions, introduced The Real Thing to David Essex. The quartet sang backing parts on the Essex album All the Fun of the Fair, while Essex wrote and produced their September 1975 single “Watch Out, Carolina” (b/ “I Want You Back”). The group joined Essex for British and American dates and sang on his early-1976 single “City Lights.”

In 1976, Songwriters Ken Gold and Michael Denne approached Hall with “You to Me Are Everything.” The Real Thing recorded the song at Roundhouse Studios in Camden with arranger Lynton Naiff. Pye issued the single in May, and the group reached No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart for three weeks. The Gold–Denne follow-up “Can’t Get By Without You” reached No. 2 after its August release. The quartet then completed the self-titled debut album with producer Jerome Rimson.

Discography:

• The Real Thing (1976)
• 4 from 8 (1977)
• Step into Our World [aka Can You Feel the Force] (1978)
• …Saints Or Sinners? (1979)

Sources:

• Discogs: The Real Thing
• RYM: The Real Thing
• 45cat: The Real Thing
• MusicBrainz: The Real Thing