Open Sesame (Kool & the Gang album)

Open Sesame
Studio album by
Kool & the Gang
ReleasedOctober 1976
Recorded1976
GenreFunk, disco
Length35:03 (LP)
51:33 (CD)
LabelDe-Lite
ProducerKool and the Gang
Kool & the Gang chronology
Love & Understanding
(1976) 		Open Sesame
(1976) 		The Force
(1977)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
The New Rolling Stone Record Guide[2]

Open Sesame is the eighth studio album by the funk band Kool & the Gang, released in 1976 on Mercury Records.[3] The album reached No. 9 on the US Billboard Top Soul Albums chart and No. 33 on the US Billboard Top Jazz LPs chart.[4][5]

Compendium

Open Sesame was the second of two studio albums released by the band in 1976. The title track became a top ten R&B single, and later part of the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack. The single "Super Band" also reached the R&B top twenty.

Record World said that in the title track the group is "laying down a funky backbeat geared for the discos."[6]

Track listing

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Open Sesame (Groove with the Genie)"Ronald "Khalis Bayyan" Bell, Kool & The Gang3:46
2."Gift of Love"Ronald "Khalis Bayyan" Bell, Donna Johnson, Kool & The Gang4:07
3."Little Children"Claydes Charles Smith, Donna Johnson, Kool & The Gang5:28
4."All Night Long"Claydes Charles Smith, Donna Johnson, Kool & The Gang3:53
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Whisper Softly"Ronald "Khalis Bayyan" Bell, Donna Johnson, Kool & The Gang6:04
2."Super Band"Kool & The Gang4:54
3."L-O-V-E"George Brown, Kool & The Gang3:23
4."Sunshine"Robert "Spike" Mickens, Donna Johnson, Kool & The Gang3:28
CD release bonus tracks
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
9."Open Sesame, Part 2 (Groove with the Genie)" (Single Version)Ronald "Khalis Bayyan" Bell, Kool & The Gang4:26
10."Super Band" (Single Version) 3:20
11."Open Sesame (Groove with the Genie)" (12″ Extended Disco Version)Ronald "Khalis Bayyan" Bell, Kool & The Gang8:44

Personnel

Kool & the Gang

  • Ronald Bell – arrangements (1, 2, 5, 6, 8), vocals, keyboards, clavinet, ARP synthesizer, ARP String Ensemble, percussion, vibraphone, tenor saxophone, alto flute
  • Ricky West – vocals (1), vibraphone (3), keyboards (4, 8)
  • Claydes Charles Smith – acoustic guitar, electric guitar, percussion, arrangements (3, 4)
  • Robert "Kool" Bell – bass guitar, percussion, vocals,
  • George Brown – drums, percussion, keyboards (7), clavinet (7), vocals (7), arrangements (7)
  • Dennis Thomas – alto saxophone, flute, percussion, congas, vocals
  • Otha Nash – slide trombone, valve trombone, percussion, vocals
  • Larry Gittens – trumpet, flugelhorn
  • Robert "Spike" Mickens – trumpet, flugelhorn, percussion

Additional personnel

  • Jimmy J. Jordan – special effects
  • Ellouise Vaughn – harp
  • Don Boyce – vocals
  • Cynthia Huggins – lead vocals (2, 5, 7, 8)
  • Donna Johnson – lead vocals (2)
  • Something Sweet (Renee Connel, Cynthia Huggins, Joan Motley and Beverly Owens) – backing vocals
  • Carry Muse – backing vocals (7)

Production

  • Produced and arranged by Kool & The Gang
  • Co-producer – George Brown
  • Executive producers – Ronald Bell and Claydes Charles Smith
  • Engineers – Terry Rosilleo and Nils Salminen
  • Mixing – Terry Rosilleo
  • Mastered by Nimitr Sarikanada at Frankfurt/Wayne Recording Labs (Philadelphia, PA)

References

  1. ^ "Kool & the Gang: Open Sesame" at AllMusic. Retrieved 29 October 2011.
  2. ^ The New Rolling Stone Record Guide. Random House. 1983. p. 283.
  3. ^ Kool and the Gang: Open Sesame. Mercury Records. 1976.
  4. ^ "Kool and the Gang". Billboard.
  5. ^ "Billboard Top Jazz LPs" (PDF). americanradiohistory.com. Billboard. December 25, 1976. p. 139.
  6. ^ "Single Picks" (PDF). Record World. October 9, 1976. p. 20. Retrieved 2023-03-03.