California Soul

About California Soul

"California Soul" is a funk-soul tune written by Ashford & Simpson, issued originally as the B-side of the Messengers' single "Window Shopping" in 1967 under the Motown group of labels. Nick Ashford then released his own version in June 1968 on Verve 10599. It was then issued as a single by American pop quintet the 5th Dimension in late 1968, and also covered by Motown vocal duo Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell, and by Marlena Shaw the following year. It was Gaye's and Terrell's last single together when released in early 1970. Both the 5th Dimension's version and the Gaye-Terrell version were modest charted hits. The 5th Dimension's performed better, reaching number twenty-five on the pop singles chart. Marvin and Tammi's cover was the B-side of "The Onion Song". The duo's version of "California Soul" reached number fifty pop but never charted on the US R&B chart. The duet was released after Terrell's death from a brain tumor in March 1970. In 1969, Marlena Shaw covered the song on the album The Spice of Life. This version has appeared in commercials for Dockers, KFC and Dodge Ram trucks. A Diplo remix appears on Volume 4 of the Verve Remixed compilation series; this version was used in a late summer 2011 commercial for Target and was featured in the 2011 video game Driver: San Francisco. The original version of Shaw's cover also appears in the 2013 video game Grand Theft Auto V, played by the in-game radio station The Lowdown 91.1. The song also appears on the 1970 LP War & Peace by Edwin Starr. The following year, the experimental vocal band the Undisputed Truth released this song on their debut album The Undisputed Truth, produced and arranged by Norman Whitfield. more »

Year:

1986

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Like a sound you hear
That lingers in your ear
But you can't forget 
From sundown to sunset
It's all in the air
You hear it everywhere
No matter what you do 
It's gonna get a hold on your
It's California soul, California soul

They say the sun comes up every morning
And if you listen carefully 
The winds that ride on the high time
Whistle in melody 
And so the people started to sing
And that's how the surf gave birth untold
It's California soul  California soul

When you hear the beat
You want to pat your feet
And you've got to move cause 
It's really such a groove
Puts a brand new thing in your mind
And you can't go wrong 
Cause you're happy all day long
It's California soul, California soul

They had the melody and the beat 
But it still doesn't seem complete
Until they saw two lovers kissin'
They knew just what was missin'
So happy they were rockin' and reelin'
Because that added that lovin' feeling 
To California soul, California soul
Like a sound you hear
That lingers in your ear

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The 5th Dimension

The 5th Dimension is an American popular music vocal group, whose repertoire also includes pop, R&B, soul, and jazz. more »

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