Chambers Brothers: Biography

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• Sylvester "Sly Stone" Stewart
• Sly & the Family Stone
• Stevie Wonder
• Brian Keenan
• James Brown/The JB's
• Apple Pie Motherhood Band
• The Impressions

• The Rolling Stones
• Jimi Hendrix
• Otis Redding
• The Isley Brothers
• Bob Dylan
• The Impressions

• Urban Dance Squad
• Parliament
• The Undisputed Truth

• Jesse Cahn

• Joseph Chambers

Formed:

Jan 1, 1954 in Lee County, MS

Disbanded:

Jan 1, 1972

Genres:

R&B and Soul Music, Rock Music, Psychedelic Oldies Music, Soul Music

Decades Active:

1960's|1970's

Artistic Quality

Low

Cultural Impact

Low

Popularity

Low

Ratings Guide

Like their West Coast contemporaries Sly and the Family Stone, the Chambers Brothers shattered racial and musical divides to forge an incendiary fusion of funk, gospel, blues, and psychedelia which reached its apex with the perennial 1968 song "Time Has Come Today." The Chambers siblings bassist George, guitarist Willie, harpist Lester, and guitarist Joe, all of whom contributed vocals were born and raised in Lee County, MS; the products of an impoverished sharecropping family, the brothers first polished their vocal harmonies in the choir of their Baptist church, a collaboration which ended after George was drafted into the army in 1952. Following his discharge he relocated to Los Angeles, where the other Chambers brothers soon settled as well; the foursome began performing gospel and folk throughout Southern California in 1954, but remained virtually unknown until appearing in New York City in 1965. The addition of white drummer Brian Keenan not only made the Chambers Brothers an interracial group, but pushed their music closer to rock roll; a wellreceived appearance at the Newport Folk Festival further enhanced their growing reputation, and they soon recorded their debut LP, People Get Ready.

As the Chambers Brothers toured rock clubs (including the famed Fillmore in San Francisco) and RB venues (most notably the Apollo Theatre) alike, their music increasingly embraced elements of both; after recording 1968's Shout for the Vault label, the group signed to Columbia to issue Time Has Come Today, scoring a major pop hit with the title track, an 11minute psychedelic soul epic in its original album incarnation. The followup, A New TimeA New Day, yielded another Top 40 hit, a cover of the Otis Redding's classic "I Can't Turn You Loose," but subsequent efforts including 1969's Love, Peace and Happiness and 1970's Live at Fillmore East failed to maintain the commercial momentum. Upon completing 1972's Oh My God, the Chambers Brothers disbanded, only to reunite two years later for Unbonded. Right Move appeared in 1975, and although no new studio records were forthcoming, the group regularly performed live in the decades to follow, with the brothers also pursuing individual projects; the Chambers Family Choir, a gospel group including the siblings' own children, remained a priority as well.

- Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide