by Jeff Meier (FB: Jeff.Meier.90)
On this week’s Music Monday playlist, “Sarah Dash: Nightbird, Fly,” we take a closer look at the musical career of the late Sarah Dash, most known as one third of the pioneering rock/soul trio LaBelle. Sarah passed away early last week at the age of 76.
Six decades ago, at a time when young musical acts still formed from local friends getting together instead of backstage at the Disney Channel, Sarah and Nona Hendryx were two members of the Trenton, NJ-based Del-Capris. They soon paired up with Patricia Holte and Cindy Birdsong from across the river, who were part of the Philly-based Ordettes. And Patti LaBelle and the Bluebelles were soon born.
This traditional 1960s girl group survived the decade touring the chitlin circuit, becoming favorite live performers (nicknamed The Sweethearts of the Apollo) even if their string of mid-60s Atlantic Records singles was commercially unremarkable amid competition backed by powerhouses like Motown, Stax, and Phil Spector.
When Birdsong left the group to take Florence Ballard’s spot in The Supremes, and as Aretha Franklin took up residence as Atlantic’s reigning diva, it’s a wonder the group survived.
But the remaining trio’s inescapable singing talents were recognized in the United Kingdom – where the British rock music community often championed the Black artists and sounds that had provided rock’s roots. They connected with British music manager Vicki Wickham (known for her work with Dusty Springfield), and were soon re-invented as LaBelle.
As if to symbolically transition from their ‘60s sound to their new world, among their first projects was a 1971 collaboration with legendary folk rock singer/songwriter Laura Nyro on the album Gonna Take A Miracle. On it they offered prominent backing vocals for Nyro’s tribute to the hits of ‘60s soul, kissing goodbye the sounds of their past.
Way ahead of their time, Labelle were by the early ‘70s three Black women performing funk-infused rock music, trading their matching dresses and wigs first for jeans and afros, but later for futuristic space outfits of silver and feathers. (Costume designer Larry Legaspi later went on to design the costumes for the group KISS.)
They were no longer playing the chitlin’ circuit – now they were opening for The Who (The Who’s manager Kit Lambert actually produced Labelle’s first album as a trio). They even became the first Black female group on the cover of Rolling Stone. They were Afro-punk – decades before that phrase existed.
Musically, LaBelle created an original blend of rock instrumentation mixed with gospel soul vocal licks that had not ever been heard before (and, arguably, not since). Freed from the safe traditions of girl group vocalizing, lead singer Patti Labelle became an unleashed powerhouse, the likes of which are still unmatched today.
But, importantly, Sarah Dash and Nona Hendryx too were freed of their traditional back-up vocal roles. Wickham instructed them to all sing at full voice – and their blend is that of three lead singers harmonizing at once, rather than one lead voice with some “doo wops” in the background.
Hendryx took the low notes, while Sarah’s effortless soprano vocals soared over the top of Patti’s theatrics. At a time when most Black female artists were singing the songs of others, most of Labelle’s songs were actually written by Hendryx – who specifically tailored her efforts to the group’s strengths.
The commercial results of this huge transition in sound and style were mixed. Too rock for the soul stations, and too Black (and female) for the rock stations, the group received critical acclaim, but didn’t break through commercially until their 4th album, 1974’s Nightbirds, featuring the funky disco mega-hit “Lady Marmalade.”
Within just a couple years of that success, the threesome was headed towards a musical split, with Nona continuing to pursue rock, Patti following the more traditional R&B path for which she’s still known today, and Sarah lighting up the discos.
Each wanting to express themselves in a different way musically, they’ve said that they ultimately ended the group so that they could remain friends.
Unique among Black female vocal groups, the trio’s talents were all so well-respected by the industry that all three of them ended up with several solo albums to their names. You won’t find that with The Marvelettes, The Supremes, En Vogue, TLC, The Three Degrees or The Emotions. Not until Destiny’s Child was there another group whose members all recorded multiple major label solo projects.
Sarah’s solo career, which would eventually yield four major label albums, got off to a quick start with the disco hit “Sinner Man.” Although the success of that first solo single was not to be repeated, her second album Oo-La-La yielded a notable ‘70s pop culture moment, as the title track “Oo-La-La, Too Soon” got transformed into the famous commercial jingle for Sassoon blue jeans.
As her solo recording career cooled, Dash would eventually return to her musical roots in a couple ways. Throughout the last couple of decades, Dash often performed live as a nightclub act, and as a longtime member of the New York music scene she often did session work for artists ranging from the Marshall Tucker Band to David Johansen. She recorded a duet with Chic legend Nile Rodgers and another with soul act Ray, Goodman & Brown.
Dash creatively connected with an old friend from the British rock scene, performing a duet single with Keith Richards on one of his solo efforts. She also accompanied Richards on his subsequent tour, where she was a highlight of most shows singing solo on the Stones’ classic “Time Is On My Side.” Here is video of her performing live with Richards:
Most importantly, despite moving onto their separate career paths, the three women from LaBelle have remained friends, and musical sisters. In the intervening decades, they reunited multiple times for individual tracks or duets. In 2008, they gathered for another complete album, Back to Now.
Amidst the sadness of Sarah’s passing, it is perhaps poetic to note that her final performance took place just two days before her death when she unexpectedly joined Patti on stage in Atlantic City to sing the words of the song that had been the final recording of the 70’s Labelle, singing “Isn’t it a shame… sometimes such a love must end.”
RIP Sarah Dash.
Our playlist includes many highlights from the LaBelle years, as well as from Sarah’s solo recordings and her work with other artists on duets. With LaBelle songs, we’ve tried to find key songs in which Sarah’s vocal presence is truly felt via her own solo sections or her soaring soprano distinctly heard in the background.
From Sarah’s own solo career, we’ve chosen key tracks from the two solo albums (out of 4) that are available on Spotify. We’ve closed with an appropriate early hit from the Bluebelles era, “You’ll Never Walk Alone.”
For those wanting to see more of Sarah in action, from early in the Labelle run, the trio perform Nina Simone’s classic “Four Women” on the public television series Soul (which they never released on album):
Finally, from the tail end of their ‘70s run is this YouTube clip capturing an entire performance of LaBelle from Don Kirshner’s Rock Concert series:
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