Labelle

Originally formed as a quartet in the early 1960s, girl group Labelle found their biggest success as a trio (that included Patti Labelle and Nona Hendryx) on this album. Produced in New Orleans by the legendary Allen Toussaint, 1974's Nightbirds spawned a No. 1 hit with the classic disco anthem "Lady Marmalade."

"Space children, are there any others?" On their fourth album, Nightbirds, Labelle looked
the future in the face and put out a call - who's coming along for the ride? With Patti
LaBelle's strident, nasal bellow in the lead, the band had always dealt in sassy, loose-limbed
structures; the three women's voices rolled over one another in waves. On Nightbirds,
producer Allen Toussaint modernized this ferocious free-for-all with an almost m... More >

Not all pretentious records are even difficult and many fewer are worth the trouble. This is both. In the past I've found myself unmoved by Patti LaBelle's high-nosed histrionics, but Allen Toussaint grounds her (and Nona and Sarah) in a funk that's just right, more modernistic and mechanical than he usually favors. And for once there are songs. Three of Nona Hendryx's four could be called tunes, Bob Crewe and Kenny Nolan's "Lady Marmalade" is great synthetic French-quarter raunch, and Toussaint's own "All Girl Band" is unautobiographical and more charming for it. (Grade - A-)