On February 26th 1978, "Imaginary Lover" by the Atlanta Rhythm Section entered Billboard's Hot Top 100 chart at position #70; and on May 28th it peaked at #7 (for 1 week) and spent 17 weeks on the Top 100. It spent 4 weeks on the Top 10; started out at #10, then to #9, next was #8, and finally to #7. Between 1974 and 1981 the sextet had fourteen records on the Top 100; with two making the Top 10, and its other Top 10 record, "So In To You", also reached #7 on the Top 100.
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Put the Atlanta Rhythm Section before an audience and watch the boys from Doraville whip them to a screaming, foot-stomping frenzy with their all-time clasics. "So Into You," "Imaginary Lover," and "Champagne Jam," are just part of the specially priced two record set of ARS at their best, doing their best. (November 3, 1978. Billboard )
Features of This Track
basic rock song structuresa subtle use of vocal harmony
mild rhythmic syncopation
repetitive melodic phrasing
extensive vamping
a clear focus on recording studio production
minor key tonality
a vocal-centric aesthetic
mixed acoustic and electric instrumentation
electric guitar riffs
an electric guitar solo
a dynamic male vocalist
heavy instrumental improvisation
The cream of the studio musicians from Atlanta, Georgia, USA, the Atlanta Rhythm Section (actually from nearby Doraville, Georgia) came together in 1970 after working at a Roy Orbison recording session. Dean Daughtry (b. 8 September 1946, Kinston, Alabama, USA; keyboards) and drummer Robert Nix had been members of Orbison's backing group, the Candymen, and both Daughtry and J.R. Cobb (b. 5 February 1944, Birmingham, Alabama, USA; guitar) had been members of the Top 40 hitmakers Classics IV. Rounding out the line-up were vocalist Rodney Justo (replaced after the first album by Ronnie Hammond), Barry Bailey (b. 12 June 1948, Decatur, Georgia, USA; guitar), and Paul Goddard (b. 23 June 1945, Rome, Georgia, USA; bass). The band, guided by manager/producer Buddy Buie, recorded two albums for Decca Records in 1972, neither of which made an impact, before signing to Polydor Records in 1974. Their first album for that company, Third Annual Pipe Dream, reached only number 74 in the USA and the next two albums fared worse. Finally, in 1977, the single `So Into You' became the band's breakthrough, reaching the US Top 10, as did the album from which it came, A Rock And Roll Alternative. Their follow-up album, Champagne Jam, went into the Top 10 in 1978, together with the single 'Imaginary Lover', after which Nix left, to be replaced by Roy Yeager (b. 4 February 1946, Greenwood, Mississippi, USA). The band's last hit on Polydor was a 1979 remake or Spooky', a song with which Cobb and Daughtry had been involved when they were with Classics IV. A switch to Columbia Records in 1981 gave the band one last chart album, Quinella, and a US Top 30 single, 'Alien', after which they faded from the national scene. The band continued to perform to a loyal audience, although they have only recorded sporadically in the subsequent decades. The line-up for 1999's Eufaula comprised Hammond, Bailey, Daughtry, R.J. Vealey (drums), Justin Senker (bass) and Steve Stone (guitar).
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