Ohio Players
Tenderness
Remastered CD with Bonus Tracks | ICON 1053
- Originally released 1981
- The hidden gem of the Ohio Players catalog
- 2 bonus tracks, including CD debut of "Try a Little Tenderness" 12" remix
- Liner notes by A. Scott Galloway
- Digitally remastered by Vic Anesini
Track Listing
- 1. Try a Little Tenderness
- 2. Sometimes I Cry
- 3. Skinny
- 4. Try to be a Man
- 5. Boardwalkin’
- 6. Call Me
- 7. Sitting on the Dock of the Bay
- 8. It Takes a While
- 9. Hard to Love Your Brother
Bonus Tracks
- 10. Just Me
- 11. Try a Little Tenderness (12" Remix)
Lineup
- Leroy "Sugar" Bonner - Guitars, Sitar and Lead Vocals
- Marshall "Rock" Jones - Bass
- Marvin "Merv" Pierce - Trumpet, Flugelhorn and Trombone
- Ralph "PeeWee" Middlebrooks - Saxophones
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Special Guests
- L. David Johnson - Baldwin Grand Piano, Fender Rhodes 88, Sequential Circuits Prophet 5, Mini Moog, ARP String Ensemble and Wurlitzer
- Jimmy Sampson - Drums and Background Vocals
- Vincent "Vennie" Thomas - Percussion and Background Vocals
- Wes ‘Duck Army’ Boatman, L. David Johnson - Synthesizer Programming
- Renée Armand, Danielle Foreman, Ellen Goldman, Susan Grindell, Irene Revets, Abbie Rubin, Sally Stevens, Ann White - Vocalists
- Vince Andrews, Bryan Cumming, Gary Platt - Horns
- Members of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra and in L.A. – The L.A. Players - Strings
- Mark Thomas, James ‘Diamond’ Williams - Drums and Percussion
- Chuck Rich - Steel Guitar
- Mike McDonough - Guitar
“Of all the albums I’ve ever made for mine, I think I like Tenderness the best. Because I got the chance to really write some good things. Even though it never did catch on selling I think one day it will…when people know what I wrote.” – Leroy “Sugar” Bonner
We all have albums that we just missed. Even though we were fans of the artist. Maybe we already had several of their albums in our collection and decided we didn’t need another. Maybe we hadn’t loved the act’s last couple of albums and didn’t give their next one a fair hearing. Maybe we saw the album in a discount bin and figured it just wasn’t very good. Maybe we were focusing on newer artists that seemed more exciting and innovative in the moment. Yet with the benefit of hindsight – when an act is no longer producing new music with regularity, and after key personnel have passed – we can hear that not only did we underrate an album, we actually overlooked a gem.
Tenderness by the Ohio Players is one of those albums.
Originally released in 1981 on the short-lived Boardwalk Records label, Tenderness finds a slimmed-down Ohio Players lineup featuring original members Leroy “Sugar” Bonner, Marshall “Rock” Jones, Ralph “PeeWee” Middlebrooks and Marvin “Merv” Pierce (with a crucial assist from classic-era drummer James “Diamond” Williams) tackling a new decade. The band’s 13th album proved to be unlucky on the charts, but stands today as their last great organic work. Two Otis Redding covers first capture the attention, yet it’s the depth of soulfulness in Bonner’s own compositions and performances that makes Tenderness a must-hear entry in the Ohio Players discography.