The history of the group starts with the instrumental outfit, The Nite-Liters which had originally been formed in 1963 in Louisville, Kentucky by Tony Churchill and Harvey Fuqua, and featured, in its heydey, besides Churchill on tenor sax and vibes, Charlie Hearndon on guitar, James Baker on keyboards, Robin Russell on drums, Robert "Lurch" Jackson on trumpet, Austin Lander on baritone sax, Leroy Taylor on bass, and, later, Carl McDaniel on guitar. (Earlier members included Johnny Graham, later of Earth, Wind & Fire) and Jerry Bell. Under this name the group had a few hits before the formation of New Birth proper. In 1969, Vernon Bullock had thought of creating an ensemble of groups for a touring company, and Harvey Fuqua and Tony Churchill soon took an interest. After discovering a male vocal group, The Now Sound, which featured Bobby Downs, Ron Coleman, Gary Young and an individual known as "Slim," and a female vocal group, known as Mint Julip, which featured Londee Loren, Tanita Gaines, Janice Carter and Pam Swent, they brought them together with The Nite-Liters and additional vocalist, Alan Frye and called the newly formed ensemble New Birth. The band came together in 1970 with their self-titled debut on RCA. Their second album, Ain't No Big Thing, But It's Growing, yielded a minor hit with their cover of Perry Como's "It's Impossible", in 1971.
Later that year, Bullock discovered a group from Detroit, Michigan called Love, Peace & Happiness which featured former Marvelettes singer Ann Bogan and brothers Leslie and Melvin Wilson. Finding that they had the spark that was missing from the New Birth ensemble, he paired them with the Nite-Liters and original members of New Birth, Londee Loren, Bobby Downs and Alan Frye. In 1972, the reorganized group (as a seventeen-piece ensemble) hit the R&B top ten with their cover of Bobby Womack and The Valentinos' "I Can Understand It", which paved the way for the band's future success. By the time the song hit the stores, however, Ann left to devote time to her family, leaving Londee Loren as the sole female member. Due to a brief dispute with their management company, their next hit, "Until It's Time for You to Go" featured, instead of the group members, future Supremes member Susaye Greene as lead vocalist.
In 1974, the group issued their hit album, It's Been a Long Time, which spawned the hits including the title track and their cover of the psychedelic single "Wildflower", which became a top ten hit in the UK singles chart. After the release of their sixth RCA album, Comin' From All Ends, the group split from RCA, Fuqua and their management company and signed with Buddah.
New Birth's Buddah debut, Blind Baby, featured the group's only number-one R&B single, a cover of the Jerry Butler classic, "Dream Merchant". After the release of the 1977 album, Behold The Mighty Army, the Wilson brothers split from the group following in-fighting and growing tensions in the group.
The group returned in 1979 James Baker, Tony Chruchill and Austin Lander introduce Jerry Bell as their new lead vocalist with Platinum City and in 1982 with the I'm Back album. Leslie Wilson had left the group to replace Jeffrey Osborne in L.T.D.. Jerry Bell left the group in 1981 to become the lead vocalist for Motown's Dazz Band.
The Wilsons toured with a new ensemble as New Birth in 1994, and released a few albums under the new name in the decade since. Drummer Robin Russell released a solo CD entitled Drum Beats in 2004 and Jerry Bell re-recored there hit "It"s Been Such A Long Time" 2010 for Lotus Records/ Bunglo/ Universal Records Music Group.
Since the group's initial split, their songs have been covered from the likes of Jamie Foxx, who sampled their cover of "Wildflower" for his 2005 hit, "Unpredictable". R&B group Something for the People sampled their "It's Been a Long Time" for their 1996 hit, "My Love is the Shhh". Rap artist Lil' Wayne sampled "You Don't Have to Be Alone" from their self-titled album in his song "La La" and Jerry Bell "It"s Been Such A Long Time 2010.
Singer Gary Young died in 2018.
Discography
As The Nite-Liters
* Nite-Liters (RCA Records, 1970)
* Morning, Noon & the Nite-Liters (RCA, 1971) US #167, US Black Albums #31
* Instrumental Directions (RCA, 1972) US #198, US Black Albums #41
* Different Strokes (RCA, 1972)
* A-Nal-Y-Sis (RCA, 1973) US Black Albums #34
Love, Peace & Happiness-
* Love Is Stronger (RCA, 1971)
* Here 'Tis (RCA, 1972)
As New Birth
* The New Birth (RCA, 1971)
* Ain't No Big Thing, But It's Growing (RCA, 1971) US #189, US Black Albums #50
* Comin' Together (RCA, 1972) US Black Albums #40
* Birth Day (RCA, 1973) US #31, US Black Albums #1
* It's Been a Long Time (RCA, 1974) US #50, US Black Albums #7
* Comin' From All Ends (RCA, 1974) US #56, US Black Albums #20
* Blind Baby (Buddah Records, 1975) US #57, US Black Albums #17
* Love Potion (Warner Bros. Records, 1976) US #168, US Black Albums #22
* Behold the Mighty Army (Warner Bros. Records, 1977) US #164, US Black Albums #28
* Disco (RCA, 1977)
* Reincarnation (RCA, 1977)
* Platinum City (Capitol Records, 1979)
* I'm Back (1982)
* God's Children (PNEC Records, 1998)
* I Am Blessed (Trio Records, 2004)
* Lifetime (Orpheus Records, 2005)
[edit] Singles
Year Title Chart Positions
U.S. Pop Singles U.S. Black Singles
1971 "It's Impossible" 52 12
"K-Jee" 39 17
1972 "(We've Got to) Pull Together" - 27
"Afro-Strut" 49 24
"I Don't Want to Do Wrong" - 41
1973 "I Can Understand It" 35 4
"Until It's Time for You to Go" 97 21
1974 "I Wash My Hands of the Whole Damn Deal, Part I" 88 46
"It's Been a Long Time" 66 9
"Wildflower" 45 17
1975 "Comin' From All Ends" - 76
"Dream Merchant" 36 1
"Grandaddy (Part I)" 95 28
1976 "The Long and Winding Road"
Dream Merchant
The New Birth Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Everything depends on you, whoa, yeah
Hey, hey, Mr. Dream Merchant
Bring her back to me and make my dreams come true
Baby, baby
When I say goodbye to my love
I didn't realize of our love
Now I need her back, my sun
Hey, hey, Mr. Dream Merchant
Everything depends on you, whoa, yeah
Hey, hey, Mr. Dream Merchant
Bring her back to me and make my dreams come true
You should have told this fool to stop it
You should have made this blind man see
I've got my pride back into my pocket
Oh, won't you bring her back to me
Hey, hey, Mr. Dream Merchant
Everything depends on you, whoa, yeah
Hey, hey, Mr. Dream Merchant
Bring her back to me and make my dreams come true
Baby, baby, baby, yeah
Woo...
Hey, hey, Mr. Dream Merchant
Everything depends on you, whoa, yeah
Hey, hey, Mr. Dream Merchant
Bring her back to me and make my dreams come true
Make 'em true, yeah, yeah
Oh, Lord, yeah, yeah
Listen Dream merchant
Would you please, please do me a favor
If you should happen to see my baby somewhere
Would you please tell her I'm waitin' with open arms
Would you please make my dreams come true
Baby, baby, baby, baby {Ooh}
Please, please, please, please
Hey, hey, Mr. Dream Merchant (Mr. Dream Merchant)
Everything, everything, everything depends on you, oh
Bring her back now, now, now, now, now, now, now
I need her, I need her, I need her, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Bring her back to me
The song "Dream Merchant" by The New Birth is a soul ballad about a man who has lost his love and is desperate to have her back. The lyrics are addressed to Mr. Dream Merchant, who the singer believes has the power to make his dreams come true and bring his lover back to him. The song expresses the singer's regret at letting his love go and his desperation to have her return to him. He acknowledges his mistake and pleads with Mr. Dream Merchant to make things right.
The song features a classic soul sound with a slow, sultry groove and smooth harmonies. The lead vocal is emotive and soulful, conveying the singer's deep longing and regret. The lyrics are simple but effective, expressing the singer's heartfelt desire to be reunited with his love. The repeated refrain of "Hey, hey, Mr. Dream Merchant" serves to anchor the song and emphasize the singer's plea to this mysterious figure who holds the power to make his dreams come true. Overall, the song is a poignant expression of love and desperation that resonates deeply with the listener.
Line by Line Meaning
Hey, hey, Mr. Dream Merchant
The singer addresses the Dream Merchant, asking for his help.
Everything depends on you, whoa, yeah
The singer believes that their fate is entirely in the hands of the Dream Merchant.
Bring her back to me and make my dreams come true
The singer wants the Dream Merchant to help them regain their lost love and make their dreams of being with her again come true.
When I say goodbye to my love
The artist reflects on the past and remembers how they said goodbye to their love.
I didn't mean to make her cry
The artist didn't intend to cause their love to cry when they left.
I didn't realize of our love
The singer did not understand the depth of their love until now.
Now I need her back, my sun
The singer realizes how much they need their love back in their life.
You should have told this fool to stop it
The artist laments how they made a mistake in letting go of their love and wishes someone had warned them.
You should have made this blind man see
The artist was blind to the love they lost, and wishes someone had made it clearer to them.
I've got my pride back into my pocket
The artist has let go of their pride and is now ready to do whatever it takes to get their love back.
Oh, won't you bring her back to me
The singer pleads with the Dream Merchant to help them regain their lost love.
Baby, baby, baby, yeah
The artist addresses their love and expresses their longing for them.
Make 'em true, yeah, yeah
The singer wants the Dream Merchant to make their dreams a reality.
Listen Dream merchant
The singer addresses the Dream Merchant again and requests their attention.
Would you please, please do me a favor
The singer humbly asks the Dream Merchant for a favor.
If you should happen to see my baby somewhere
The artist asks the Dream Merchant to help them find their lost love.
Would you please tell her I'm waitin' with open arms
The artist wants the Dream Merchant to convey the message that they are still waiting for their love with open arms.
Bring her back to me
The singer restates their desire for the Dream Merchant to help them regain their lost love.
Lyrics Β© Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: JERRY ROSS, LAURENCE WEISS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Jimmy Owner
My mom recently passed from covid, I remember her singing this song before, and all Iβve been doin was thinking about her, mama I love you so so much, thank you for being the best mom you can be , I hope we meet againβ€οΈβ€οΈβ€οΈ
Adrienne Robinson
My Heartfelt Condolences to You and your family.
Vanessa Anderson
SORRY FOR YOUR LOSS
MsDreamscaper
Sorry for your lossβ€οΈβ€οΈβ€οΈ
TL C
β€οΈβ€οΈβ€οΈ
Cooopay Butler
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Tomas Contreras
I was a soldier in Okinawa, Japan in 1976, when this song came out. To this day, I don't get tired of hearing it. I still cry.
Lisa Royster
Thank you for your Service β₯οΈ
Barry
Quite possibly one of the greatest songs ever written and recorded. Sheer poetic genius matched with harmonious soulful melodies!ο»Ώ
Michael Lee
You get no argument here!!!