The members of Sister Sledge were born and raised in Philadelphia and began singing in local Philadelphia churches like Williams Temple CME and Second Macedonia Baptist Church. They are granddaughters of the former opera singer Viola Williams.
Their professional music career launched when they entered the UK Singles Chart in 1975 with "Mama Never Told Me". The young girl group released their first two albums, Circle of Love and Together in 1975 and 1977, respectively but, aside from scoring the Silver Prize at the 1975 Tokyo Musical for Gwen Guthrie's composition "Pain Reliever" and oft-recorded "Love Don't You Go Through No Changes on Me," Produced by Bert Deco and Tom Bell.
The group attained pop success with their next album: 1979's We Are Family. The album would become the group's best selling. Singles included "He's the Greatest Dancer" (#9 US, #1 R&B) and "We Are Family" (#2 US, #1 R&B), the latter song becoming their biggest hit. The album was written and produced by Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards of the group Chic.
Sister Sledge's next album was 1980's Love Somebody Today. The album included the songs "Got to Love Somebody" (#64 US, #6 R&B, #34 UK) and "Pretty Baby".
Collaborating with producer Narada Michael Walden in 1981, they released the album "All-American Girls", yielding the title track single, which reached No. 3 R&B and No. 79 Pop in the U.S. and No. 41 Pop in the UK; and the single "Next Time You'll Know", which reached No. 28 R&B in the U.S. The sisters continued singing new material throughout the 1980s and 1990s, although not matching the success of the late 1970s. They achieved a hit with "Frankie" in 1985 (#1 in the UK). In 1989 Kathy Sledge left the group to pursue her solo career. Joni Sledge produced and recorded the album "African Eyes" with her sisters Debbie and Kim Sledge in 1998 which was nominated for a Grammy as best produced CD, as well as the Live in Concert album in 1997. In 2003, Debbie and Joni Sledge performed with three other female singers which included Debbie's daughters Amber and Camille in the PBS special, My Music: 70's Soul Superstars, which is also available on DVD.
Their most popular songs have been re-released and re-recorded several times in Europe, often in newly-remixed versions. Their song "Il Macquillage Lady" written by Joni Sledge is believe to be sampled for French electronic duo Daft Punk's 2001 track Aerodynamic although Daft Punk have denied sampling the song.
The sisters continue to perform collectively and individually worldwide. The four original group members were reunited in 2011 on Oprah Winfrey's "Women Who Rock" episode, highlighting their song "We Are Family" as one of the most requested songs of all time.
One More Time
Sister Sledge Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
It's easier to love, don't you see
Sometimes it seems that way to me
It's easier to love, don't you see
Won't someone please explain, why all the hurt and the pain?
Can't you make 'em see, it's not supposed to be
All this beautiful land, see the children playing in the sand
Total destruction and I don't understand why
Sometimes it seems that way to me
It's easier to love, don't you see
Sometimes it seems that way to me, yeah
It's easier to love, don't you see
Sometimes it seems that way to me, oh
It's easier to love, don't you see
What more can I say, war is no game you play
Give a person a little might
Well, that don't make him right
And I hope and pray, oh please let the children play
All this killing each other, you should be loving your brother
And I don't understand why, why
Sometimes it seems that way to me
It's easier to love, don't you see
Sometimes it seems that way to me, yeah
It's easier to love, don't you see
Sometimes it seems that way to me, oh
It's easier to love, don't you see
Yeah, let me hear you say
I do, I love you, I do, I love you, I do, I love you, I do, I love you
I do, I love you, I do, I love you, I do, I love you, I do, I love you
And I don't understand why
Sometimes it seems that way to me
It's easier to love, don't you see
Sometimes it seems that way to me
It's easier to love, don't you see
Sometimes it seems that way to me
It's easier to love, don't you see
Sometimes it seems that way to me
It's easier to love, don't you see
Sister Sledge's song One More Time explores the idea that love is always better than hate and violence. The lyrics are deeply emotional, as the singers wonder why there is so much pain and hurt in the world. They ask for someone to explain why war exists and why people cannot just love each other. The song also mentions the beauty of the world and the innocence of children playing, making the distressing nature of the song more pronounced. The last part of the song is a call to action for listeners to proclaim their love for each other.
The lyrics are delivered with a lot of passion and a sense of longing for a better world. Despite the sadness, however, the song also has a positive message of hope and faith. The singers believe that love can conquer all and that people can change their ways.
Overall, the song is a plea for peace and an end to senseless violence. It encourages people to love each other and to strive for a better, more compassionate world.
Line by Line Meaning
Sometimes it seems that way to me
I sometimes feel that life can be hard and complicated
It's easier to love, don't you see
Showing love to each other is much simpler than the alternative
Won't someone please explain, why all the hurt and the pain?
I need someone to help me make sense of all the suffering in the world
Can't you make 'em see, it's not supposed to be
Why can't we convince people that violence and pain aren't natural parts of life?
All this beautiful land, see the children playing in the sand
Our world is full of beauty and innocence
I put to you this question
I ask this of you
Total destruction and I don't understand why
I can't comprehend why people would cause such widespread devastation
What more can I say, war is no game you play
War shouldn't be taken lightly or treated like a game
Give a person a little might
Empowering someone doesn't necessarily make them good
Well, that don't make him right
Just because someone has power, doesn't mean they should be trusted to use it wisely
And I hope and pray, oh please let the children play
I wish we could protect the innocence of children and allow them to live free from fear and violence
All this killing each other, you should be loving your brother
Rather than fighting and killing, we should be loving one another
Yeah, let me hear you say
Speaking to the listener, asking them to repeat after her
I do, I love you, I do, I love you, I do, I love you, I do, I love you
Affirming love, asking the listener to repeat after her
And I don't understand why
Reiterating her confusion about violence and pain in the world
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: NILE RODGERS, BERNARD EDWARDS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Tigerex966
supposedly after Joni's death the wounds are healed.
I think Kathy's husband may have had a hand and Kathy no longer using Kathy Sledge on her tours and instead using the title Sister SLEDGE featuring Kathy Sledge with none of her sisters there but her daughter and friends taking the sister sledge role.
Some fans expected to see the sisters there and did not, and on the other side, some fans expected to see Kathy singing with the other three and did not.
Sort of like the Jackson five as jackson 5 featuring Michael Jackson.
Or Commodores featuring Lionel Richie.
Or even if when CHIC was still all original, if one left and one had CHIC for tours, and the other had CHIC featuring Nile Rodgers
So I could definitely the three sisters, who did not choose to go totally solo,
being upset.
I could also see Kathy tours not going to well if she only used her name, as she is not known well for her music outside of sister sledge.
Good to see the are back together, like birds of a feather, and a lot of the songs I love are lead sung by different sisters, including Kathy, Kim, Joni, etc.
jim rockford
SISTER SLEDGE STILL THE BEST. WHAT AN ALBUM.WHAT AN ERA
Don H
I miss those days and this music. Can't get those days back, but the music is here and lives on.
dinard38
This is one of my favorite all-time records. I just LOVED Sister Sledge growing up. This song certainly bring back memories. Sing Kim!!! I love Kathy, but I wish they would have spotlighted the other sisters a bit more. All four of them could sing. Joni has a beautiful voice. Just listen to her on 'Easier to Love' on this album. You can hear Kim on this one, and Debbie on "You're a Friend to Me'.
doubleolove
I can never listen to this just one time! Love it!
DeeNice681
Great lead by Kim Sledge, and she’s an underrated beauty too!
Dail McDavid
I was wondering who was lead
Damper Goldenrod
Still sounds so good almost 40 years later. A very unique and posh sound never heard again.
wandermusic27
Wow! It's been a long time since I heard this song! You can say at least 30 years! I love this album because I bought it back in 1979! It is one of the best albums of the late 70's as stated!!!!!
Cilla C
This whole album got me through losing my dad. He paased away just as "We are family"was becominge a top hit.
Virgil Wyatt
I can't say it enough times....this track will NEVER grow old! It's sounds better now than when I purchased the album when it first dropped while I was in high school! Just wished it was longer. Time for a replay on the You Tube Time Machine!