3rd Avenue (American band) explained

3rd Avenue
Background:group_or_band
Alias:3rd Ave
Origin:Baton Rouge, Louisiana, United States
Genre:R&B, quiet storm, new jack swing, soul
Years Active:1990–1993
Past Members:Maurice "Moe-P" Pearl
Eric Jason Robinson
Brad Nelson

3rd Avenue, composed of Maurice "Moe-P" Pearl, Eric Jason Robinson, and Brad Nelson, were an American trio of R&B vocalists signed to SOLAR Records (Sound of Los Angeles Records), a Los Angeles-based label built from the existing roster of the former Soul Train Records founded by Don Cornelius.[1] [2] [3]

History

Beginnings and initial group success

3rd Avenue, originally from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, gained recognition when Pabst Brewing Company contracted the group to perform commercial jingles for Olde English 800, a brand of malted liquor marketed towards the "urban contemporary market".[4] The resulting exposure from the commercials led to the group signing a recording contract with SOLAR, who had recently signed a distribution agreement with Epic Records as their previous distribution deal lapsed in 1989.[5] [6] "The Minute You Fall In Love", a record from their upcoming debut album, was placed onto the Billboard R&B Albums Chart Top 10-peaking Deep Cover Soundtrack, distributed by SOLAR/Epic and released in early 1992. [7] [8] The group's label debut was deemed a "priority project" by SOLAR executives in a June 1992 Billboard article alongside the launch of Times 3, a female R&B trio, and 3rd Avenue members Pearl and Robinson co-wrote portions of the project alongside producer Dennis "Den Den" Nelson.[9] Their debut album Let's Talk About Love was released in June 1992.[10] The parent album underperformed as it did not chart at a time in which the new jack swing genre was at its creative peak, but the singles fared better and received national R&B airplay without the aid of music videos, peaking at #66 and #58 respectively. [1] Lead single "I’ve Gotta Have It" remained on the Billboard Hot R&B Songs chart for 7 weeks, and the second single, a remixed version of the title track, lasted 6 weeks.[1] [11]

SOLAR decline and group dissolution

In 1993, the members of 3rd Avenue co-wrote and/or produced "Baby, I'm Hooked on You", "My Love for You Will Last Forever", and "Are You Ready To Be Loved?" for SOLAR labelmate and Cincinnati-based R&B Group The Deele's final 1993 album An Invitation To Love. Robinson also co-wrote album track "Feel It" alongside Vincent Herbert and SOLAR writer Tania Carmenatti. An Invitation To Love, a foray into a more hip-hop-influenced, new jack swing style without original members Kevin Roberson, Kenneth Edmonds and Antonio Reid, was a commercial disappointment.[12] As a result, Epic did not renew their SOLAR distribution deal, causing the label to cease operations in early 1994. [13] [14] [15] 3rd Avenue disbanded soon after.

Over the next two decades, the SOLAR catalog was purchased and sold by various companies (including label The Right Stuff Records in 1996), with Canadian independent record label Unidisc gaining control in 2009.[16] Fragments of "Freak Me" and "Wiggle It", the two tracks that did not make 3rd Avenue's debut album, were leaked onto YouTube in 2018. 3rd Avenue's debut album, along with the catalogs of many of their SOLAR labelmates, was re-released to various music streaming channels in January 2019 as a condition of a new shared global ownership agreement with BMG Rights Management. [17] [18] This resulted in the issuance of a deluxe version of Let's Talk About Love, attaching all of the various mixes from both singles to the parent project for the first time.[19]

Solo Careers

Pearl continued writing and producing for other artists, including "Don't Let It Slip Away" for R&B group Groove U's 1994 album Tender Love, "Sweat" for Hi-Five member Tony Thompson's 1995 solo album Sexsational,[20] lead single "I Do!" for Dean Phil's shelved 1997 album Personal,[21] and "What's Really Going On (Strange Fruit)" for Tony! Toni! Toné! member D'wayne Wiggins' 2000 solo album Eyes Never Lie.[22] He has also written or produced for Johnny Gill, Harold Travis, Big Cee, and Smoothe Sylk. In 2002, Pearl released Lost Inside, a solo R&B/Hip-Hop album under the name Moe-P on MoSound Records, and more recently co-wrote "Only You!" and produced "Lady in My Life" from Al B. Sure!'s 2009 album Honey I'm Home.

Discography

Albums

Let's Talk About Love (1992)

Singles

Title! scope="col" rowspan="2"
YearPeak chart positionsRefCertificationsAlbum

US R&B
"I've Gotta Have It"199266[23] [24] Let's Talk About Love
"Let's Talk About Love (Remix)"58

Guest appearances

Title! scope="col"
YearAlbum
"The Minute You Fall In Love"1992Deep Cover soundtrack

Notes and References

  1. Book: Joel Whitburn Presents Top R & B/hip-hop Singles, 1942-2004 - Joel Whitburn - Google Books . Google.ca . 2010-07-02 . 9780898201604 . 2023-06-08 . November 3, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231103181304/https://books.google.com/books?id=bZozAQAAIAAJ&q=3rd+avenue+let%27s+talk+about+love . live .
  2. News: Dick Griffey, Founder of Solar Record Label, Dies at 71. New York Times. October 4, 2010. December 24, 2022. December 24, 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20221224092243/https://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/04/arts/music/04griffey.html?_r=0. live.
  3. Web site: SOLAR Empire Strikes Gold . Stephen Gayle . Black Enterprise . July 1982 .
  4. News: THE MEDIA BUSINESS: ADVERTISING; Groups Plan to Protest Malt Liquor Campaigns . The New York Times . August 23, 1989 . Rothenberg . Randall . May 23, 2023 . April 8, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230408111514/https://www.nytimes.com/1989/08/23/business/the-media-business-advertising-groups-plan-to-protest-malt-liquor-campaigns.html . live .
  5. Web site: Black Music Month: Dick Griffey & SOLAR Records . June 24, 2010 . February 4, 2023 . February 4, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230204080512/https://lasentinel.net/black-music-month-dick-griffey-solar-records.html . live .
  6. https://history.ucla.edu/sites/default/files/u184/brown/solar_printed_article.pdf Solar Records
  7. Web site: Joel Whitburn's Top R & B albums, 1965-1998. Joel. Whitburn. July 13, 1999. Menomonee Falls, Wis. : Record Research. Internet Archive.
  8. Billboard Top R&B Albums (for the week ending August 1, 1992). August 1, 1992. Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc.. Google Books. July 9, 2023. November 3, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231103181943/https://books.google.com/books?id=bBAEAAAAMBAJ&dq=deep+cover+soundtrack+3rd+avenue&pg=PA18. live.
  9. Major Labels Stay Hyperactive . Billboard . June 27, 1992.
  10. Album Releases: 3rd Avenue - Let's Talk About Love. Billboard. June 3, 1992. January 9, 2023. November 3, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231103181125/https://books.google.com/books?id=jQ8EAAAAMBAJ&pg=RA1-PA48. live.
  11. Billboard R&B Singles Charts. July 18, 1992. Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc.. Google Books. July 9, 2023. November 3, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231103181124/https://books.google.com/books?id=lxAEAAAAMBAJ&dq=solar+records+3rd+avenue&pg=PA18. live.
  12. Web site: The Deele. May 7, 2007. SoulTracks - Soul Music Biographies, News and Reviews. October 29, 2023. October 29, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231029001707/https://www.soultracks.com/the_deele.htm. live.
  13. Web site: An Invitation to Love - Album by The Deele | Spotify . Open.spotify.com . 1993-01-01 . 2022-12-24 . December 24, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221224094822/https://open.spotify.com/album/6MmQ4nIK12IwCnjkCcaFVI . live .
  14. Web site: "Hip Chic" by Deele . February 4, 2023 . February 4, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230204021032/https://www.wefunkradio.com/song/play/824_bu/deele/hip+chic . live .
  15. Web site: THROWBACK THURSDAY: "Two Occasions" by The Deele. February 12, 2009. Congress Heights on the Rise. August 3, 2023. August 3, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230803041331/https://www.congressheightsontherise.com/blog//2009/02/throwback-thursday-two-occasions-by.html. live.
  16. Right Stuff Licenses SOLAR Masters . Billboard . April 27, 1996 . March 17, 2023 . November 3, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231103182303/https://books.google.com/books?id=-QsEAAAAMBAJ&dq=solar+records&pg=PA12 . live .
  17. Web site: Amid a Racial Justice Reckoning, Pioneers of Rap, Reggae, and R&B Recount Their Struggles to Get Paid . . July 27, 2020 . March 1, 2023 . August 4, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200804001042/https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/amid-a-racial-justice-reckoning-pioneers-of-rap-reggae-and-randb-recount-their-struggles-to-get-paid/ . live .
  18. Web site: Unidisc: Our Story . March 1, 2023 . July 15, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230715093430/https://unidisc.com/pages/about . live .
  19. Web site: Let's Talk About Love. January 1, 1992. open.spotify.com. February 4, 2023. February 4, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230204015639/https://open.spotify.com/album/4cBeStZGeIns3KmDsflC0N. live.
  20. Hi-Five Singer Thompson Goes Solo . Billboard . May 6, 1995 .
  21. Singles Review: Dean Phil - I Do . Billboard . February 8, 1997 .,
  22. Web site: Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks. July 1, 2000. Nielsen Business Media, Inc.. Google Books.
  23. Web site: Billboard Hot R&B Singles. June 13, 1992. Billboard. October 30, 2023. November 3, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231103181125/https://books.google.com/books?id=jQ8EAAAAMBAJ&dq=3rd+avenue+i%27ve+gotta+have+it&pg=PA22. live.
  24. Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs . . July 17, 1992 . January 9, 2023 . January 13, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230113023628/https://www.billboard.com/charts/r-b-hip-hop-songs/1992-07-17/ . live .

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