The S.O.S. Band, which stands for "The Sounds Of Success", first
formed in Atlanta, GA, in 1977. The members of the group were Mary Davis,
Jason Bryant, Bruno Speight, Abdul Ra'oof, Billy Ellis, Willie "Sonny"
Killebrew, John Alexander Simpson, and James Earl Jones, III. In 1980, The
S.O.S. Band signed with Tabu Records and met with songwriter and producer
Sigidi Abdullah. Their first debut LP entitled "S.O.S." featured the
smash
two million selling hit "Take Your Time (Do It Right)". Other singles that
charted well were "S.O.S." and "What's Wrong With Our Love Affair". The LP
went gold selling over 800,000 copies and holding on to the number two spot
on the R&B charts for three weeks. In 1981, Their Second album entitled
"Too" went to number 30 in the summer of 1981. In 1982 "S.O.S. III" was
released in the fall and charted to number 27 with the help of new
producers Leon F. Sylvers III, Terry Lewis, and The Time's Jimmy Jam. They
had a hit single entitled "High Hopes". In 1983 "On The Rise" charted at
number 7 with hits like "Just Be Good To Me" and "Tell Me If You Still
Care". One Year Later in 1984 "Just The Way You Like It" charted to Number
6
in R&B with the hits "No One's Gonna Love You", "Just The Way You Like It",
and "Weekend Girl". Two Years Later in 1986 "Sands Of Time" hit Number 4
with the hits "Sands Of Time", "Borrowed Love", "The Finest", "Even When
You
Sleep", and "No Lies". In 1989, After Mary Davis left the group and to
pursue her solo career, the band released a low quality LP "Diamonds In
The
Raw" which only made it to Number 43 on the R&B charts in the fall of 1989.
- Lonnie B. Booker, Jr. ( bookerlonnie@sbcglobal.net )
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