We Are Family [Deluxe Edition]

Performer: Sister Sledge
Artist: Luther Vandross; Nile Rodgers; Bernard Edwards; Tony Thompson; Jon Faddis
Distributor: WEA (Distributor)

Notes: Sister Sledge: Debbie Sledge, Joni Sledge, Kim Sledge, Kathy Sledge (vocals). Additional personnel: Mark Ralph (guitar); Marianne Carroll, Cheryl Hong, Karen Milne (strings); Alex Foster (saxophone, flute); Jean Fineberg (saxophone); Ellen Seeling (trumpet); Barry Rogers (trombone); Robert Sabino (piano, Clavinet); Andy Schwartz (piano); Raymond Jones (Fender Rhodes electric piano); Sammy Figueroa (percussion); Alfa Anderson, Diva Gray, David Lasley, Norma Jean Wright (background vocals). Producers: Bernard Edwards, Nile Rodgers. Reissue producers: David McLees, Patrick Milligan. Engineers: Bob Clearmountain, Don Berman, Bert Szerlip. Recorded at The Power Station Studios, New York. Includes liner notes by Ken Barnes. Personnel: Debbie Sledge, Kim Sledge, Joni Sledge, Kathy Sledge (vocals); Nile Rodgers (guitar); Cheryl Hong, Marianne Carroll, Karen Milne (strings); Alex Foster (flute, saxophone, wind); Jeanie Fineberg (saxophone); Ellen Seeling, Jon Faddis (trumpet); Barry Rogers (trombone); Robert Sabino (piano, Clavinet, keyboards); Andrew Barrett (piano); Raymond Jones (electric piano, keyboards); Tony Thompson (drums); Sammy Figueroa (percussion); David Lasley, Diva Gray, Luther Vandross, Alfa Anderson, Norma Jean Wright (background vocals). Liner Note Author: Ken Barnes. Recording information: Power Station Studios, New York, NY. WE ARE FAMILY is the canonical Sister Sledge album, containing both of the group's biggest songs; their first hit, "He's the Greatest Dancer"; and their signature anthem,"We Are Family." Produced by Chic's Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards, WE ARE FAMILY is a landmark of the late disco sound. This inexpensive budget line reissue on the Rhino Flashback label contains the full 1979 album plus four bonus tracks: two remixes each of "We Are Family" and the album's third single, "Lost In Music." Before 1979's We Are Family, Sister Sledge wasn't a huge name in the R&B/disco world. The group had enjoyed a small following and scored a few minor hits, including "Love, Don't You Go Through No Changes on Me" in 1974 and "Blockbuster Boy" in 1977. But it wasn't until We Are Family that the Philadelphia siblings finally exploded commercially, and the people they have to thank for their commercial success are Chic leaders Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards. The Rodgers/Edwards team handles all of the writing, producing, and arranging on this album; so not surprisingly, almost everything on We Are Family is very Chic-sounding. That is true of the sexy "He's the Greatest Dancer" and the anthemic, uplifting title song (both of which soared to number 1 on the R&B charts), as well as excellent album tracks like the lush "Easier to Love," the perky "One More Time," and the addictive "Thinking of You." The least Chic-sounding tune on the album is the ballad "Somebody Loves Me," which favors a classic sweet soul approach and is the type of song one would have expected from Thom Bell, Gamble & Huff, or Holland-Dozier-Holland rather than Rodgers/Edwards. Meanwhile, the intoxicating "Lost in Music" (a number 35 R&B hit) is about as Chic-sounding as it gets. When Rhino reissued We Are Family on CD in 1995, it added four bonus tracks, all of which are remixes of either the title song or "Lost in Music." These remixes are intriguing; it's interesting to hear late-'70s classics turned into high-tech 1990s dance-pop. But they are less than essential, and the original versions are by far the best -- how can you improve on perfection? Both creatively and commercially, We Are Family is Sister Sledge's crowning achievement. ~ Alex Henderson

Like many R&B artists, Philadelphia's four Sledge sisters got their start singing gospel at their local church, and, as Sister Sledge, enjoyed a brief spurt of acclaim when a 1975 single graced the lower regions of the U.S. pop and dance charts. It wasn't until '79 that they burst into the public awareness in a big way with the Niles Rodgers-produced "He's the Greatest Dancer" and the anthemic "We Are Family," a classic and oft-played staple of the disco era (not to mention the beloved theme song of the 1979 world champion Pittsburgh Pirates). Soon after, the Rodgers connection ended. The sisters continued to release albums into the '90s, but never quite regained their standing on the charts.

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