They had their first U.S. hit in 1971 with "You're a Big Girl Now". Signing to Avco Records, The Stylistics began working with producer Thom Bell, who had already produced a catalogue of hits for The Delfonics, and songwriter Linda Creed. Bell imported the sweet soul techniques he had perfected with The Delfonics, and his arrangements worked perfectly with Thompkins' falsetto. The bittersweet lyrics from Creed were a key factor in creating hugely memorable music.
Their hits, distilled from three albums, from this period included "Betcha by Golly, Wow", "I'm Stone in Love with You", "You Make Me Feel Brand New" featuring a double lead with Love, "Stop, Look, Listen To Your Heart" and "You Are Everything". "You Make Me Feel Brand New" was the group's biggest U.S. hit, holding at #2 for two weeks in the spring of 1974, and was one of five U.S. gold singles the Stylistics collected. The Stylistics' smooth sound also found an easier path onto adult contemporary airwaves than other soul artists, and the group made Billboard magazine's Easy Listening singles chart twelve times from 1971 to 1976, with three entries, "Betcha By Golly, Wow," "You Make Me Feel Brand New," and "You'll Never Get To Heaven (If You Break My Heart)" reaching the Top 10.
The group split with Thom Bell in 1974, and the split proved devastating commercially to the group's success in the USA. Just as with The Delfonics, The Stylistics were to some extent a vehicle for Bell's own creativity. They struggled hard to find producers who could come up with the right material, and partnerships with Hugo & Luigi and Van McCoy were notably less successful. They left Avco for H&L Records and the Stylistics' popularity rapidly declined in the U.S., though their British popularity continued for the rest of the 1970s.
In 1980, James Dunn departed due to health problems, and James Smith left shortly thereafter. The group continued, recruiting new member Raymond Johnson, and releasing the album Some Things Never Change, in 1985. Johnson departed shortly afterward, leaving the group a trio. Love, Murrell, and Thompkins continued to tour until 2000, when original lead Thompkins left. Love and Murrell brought in two new members, Harold "Eban" Brown, formerly of the Delfonics, as lead ( who sounds amazingly like a young Russell Thompkins), and tenor Van Fields. The present group is featured live on the DVD's "The Stylistics Live at the Convention Center" (2006), as well as along with other artists of the '70's on the DVD "The Big Show."
In 2004, Russell Thompkins, Jr. started a new group, the New Stylistics, with the returning Raymond Johnson, James Ranton, and Jonathan Buckson. They are featured on the DVD "Old School Soul Party Live!," which was part of the PBS "My Music" series.
The Stylistics' catalog of hits have been mined frequently by other artists in recent years. Notable examples include "Betcha By Golly, Wow" covered by Prince, "You Are Everything" remade by Vanessa Williams, and "You Make Me Feel Brand New" redone by Boyz ll Men Roberta Flack and Simply Red. Mary J. Blige also used the chief line from the chorus of "You Are Everything" ("You are everything, and everything is you") in her 1997 hit "Everything." In 2006, Letoya Luckett used a similar sample to the background track of "You Are Everything" for the music to her hit single "Torn."
You
The Stylistics Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And she said it's really a sin to be mean and cruel
So remember if you're untrue
Angels up in heaven are looking at you
You'll never get to heaven if you break my heart
So be very careful not to make us part
You won't get to heaven if you break my heart
I've been hearin' rumors about how you play around
Though I don't believe what I hear, still it gets me down
If you ever should say goodbye
It will be so awful, the angels would cry
You'll never get to heaven if you break my heart
So be very careful not to make us part
You won't get to heaven if you break my heart
Oh no
If you break my heart, break my heart
I can hardly wait for the day when we say I do
It's a day I've dreamed of so long now it's comin' true
You will promise to cherish me
If you break your promise the angels will see
You'll never get to heaven if you break my heart
So be very careful not to make us part
You won't get to heaven if you break my heart, heart heart
Oh no
Never get to heaven if you break my heart (if you break my heart)
Never get to heaven if you break my heart (if you break my heart)
Never get to heaven if you break my heart (if you break my heart)
Never get to heaven if you break my heart (if you break my heart)
Never get to heaven if you break my heart (if you break my heart)
Never get to heaven if you break my heart (if you break my heart)
The Stylistics's song "You" is a love song about a man who cannot forget about a past love. The song starts by describing how the man sees someone who looks just like his former flame, and for a moment he believes it is her, but when she turns the corner, it isn't her. The man feels ashamed for longing for someone who is no longer there.
The second verse continues with the man expressing how he cannot forget about this love. Every face he sees just reminds him of her, and he cannot help but compare every girl to her, knowing they just won't do. The chorus then repeats the line "You are everything, and everything is you," emphasizing the idea that this former love defined the man's world and he cannot escape those feelings.
The song is a timeless classic that speaks to the heart of anyone who has ever experienced a love that they cannot forget. The emotional power of the song is heightened by the exceptional delivery of the vocals, which are full of heartache and longing. The song's simple melody and catchy chorus make it easy to sing along to as well.
Line by Line Meaning
Today I saw somebody
I witnessed someone today
Who looked just like you
The individual I saw had an appearance similar to yours
She walked like you do
Her walk resembled the way you walk
I thought it was you
I believed it was really you
As she turned the corner
At the moment she rounded the corner
I called out your name
I shouted your name
I felt so ashamed
I experienced feelings of guilt
When it wasn't you
Once I realized it was not you
How can I forget
It is difficult to let go of the past
When each face that I see
Every face that I encounter
Brings back memories
Recalls memories
Of being with you
Of having spent time with you
How can I go on
It is hard to continue
Living life as I do
Existing the way I am
Comparing each girl to you
Constrasting every girl I meet to you
Knowing she just won't do
Being aware that no one else is good enough
She's not you
The other girl does not measure up to you
You are everything
You embody all that is important to me
And everything is you
All facets of my life are centered around you
Oh, you are everything
You are my whole world
And everything is you
All that matters is you
You are everything
You are the essence of my existence
And everything is you
My whole life revolves around you
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: Burt Bacharach, Hal David, BURT F. BACHARACH
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Bodhicitta Acupuncture & Holistic Healing - Bali
My love
I'll never find the words, my love
To tell you how I feel, my love
Mere words could not explain
Precious love
You held my life within your hands
Created everything I am
Taught me how to live again
Only you
Cared when I needed a friend
Believed in me through thick and thin
This song is for you, filled with gratitude and love
God bless you
You make me feel brand new
For God blessed me with you
You make me feel brand new
I sing this song 'cause you
Make me feel brand new
My love
Whenever I was insecure
You built me up and made me sure
You gave my pride back to me
Precious friend
With you I'll always have a friend
You're someone whom I can depend
To walk a path that sometimes bends
Without you
Life has no meaning or rhyme
Like notes to a song out of time
How can I repay you for having faith in me?
God, it's you
You make me feel brand new
For God blessed me with you
You make me feel brand new
I sing this song for you
You makin' me feel so brand new
Oh, honey
Makin' me, makin' me, makin' me feel so new
(Make me feel brand new)
You, you make me feel brand new
(Make me feel brand new) So brand new
You make me feel brand new
God has blessed me with you
(Make me feel brand new)
You make me feel brand new
(Make me feel brand new)
God has blessed me, girl
You make me feel brand new
Douglas Kondor
I absolutely love this song and the way the Stylistics sing and perform it
It’s what my only true love and Soulmate first danced to at a school dance
And then at our spiritual ceremony
(God Rest Her Soul ,
R.I.P. Marissa Gomes Kondor)
She passed shortly after
But she said I truly made this song a reality for her, and she did for me too …
Raven Meadows
My love,
I'll never find the words my love, to tell you how I feel my love.
Mere words, could not explain.
Precious love,
You held my life within your hands, created everything I am,
Taught me how to live again.
Only you,
Cared when I needed a friend, believed in me through thick and thin,
This song is for you, filled with gratitude and love
God bless you, you make me feel brand new,
For God blessed me with you, you make me feel brand new,
I sing this song 'cause you, make me feel brand new.
My love,
When ever I was insecure, you built me up and made me sure,
You gave, my pride, back to me.
Precious friend,
With you I'll always have a friend, you're someone who I can depend,
To walk a path that sometimes bends.
Without you,
Life has no meaning or rhyme, like notes to a song out of time,
How can I repay, you for having faith in me
God bless you, you make me feel brand new,
For God blessed me with you, you make me feel brand new,
I sing this song 'cause you, make me feel brand new.
Songwriters: Linda Diane Creed / Thomas Randolph Bell
You Make Me Feel Brand New lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc
5Eπ610 Cπuz
Deitar debaixo de uma árvore num parque tranquilo e ouvir essas músicas e meditar.
Preciso de paz.
Um abraço a todos os ouvintes.
Agustin Tellez
Tengo 62 años y doy gracias a Dios porqué viví una época inolvidable de la música, está melodía es una joya de la música del alma, la sigo disfrutando como si fuera la primera vez.
Saludos desde Costa Rica.
Troy A. Schulte
58 years young and still I've found nothing that compares to this era of truly great vocalists.
Pappa Fett
we won't..it was our time..just keep it , and never forget..😊
Kenneth Caffas
I'm 55 and still love this song
Lisa Hagerman
@Kenneth Caffas I'm 66 and still love it!!!!
Rosana guimarães
Com certeza
Tonya Baldwin
I hear you ... 57 years & Fabulous ..and music is not like this anymore... I converted all our family cassettes to CD's ...and
Thank God for YouTube, etc.
Roqqi
I'm only 30 years young but I'm an old soul in a young girl's body who grew up listening to some of the greatest hits that have bought peace and love to so many people out there and to all my elders and older generations before me I gotta extend my gratitude and say thank you for raising us younger folks on this music. In my childhood, my mom, Aunties, uncles, and family friends played these tunes at family functions, family gatherings, cookouts, etc. Thank you, thank you, thank you 🫂❤️
Cupcakethecatsworld🐯🐯
Me too sis!!!!