Emergency (Kool & the Gang album)

Emergency
Emergency
Studio album by Kool & the Gang
Released	November 15, 1984
Recorded	October 1983 – August 1984
Studio	Compass Point Studios (Nassau, Bahamas); House of Music (West Orange, New Jersey);
Genre	Post-disco; R&B;
Length	35:47
Label	De-Lite
Producer	Kool and the Gang; Jim Bonnefond; Ronald Bell;
Kool & the Gang chronology
Singles from Emergency
	"Misled"; Released: November 2, 1984; "Fresh"; Released: November 24, 1984; "Cherish"; Released: May 1985; "Emergency"; Released: August 1985;

Emergency is the sixteenth studio album by the American band Kool & the Gang, released in 1984. It ultimately became the group's biggest selling career album, earning Double Platinum status in America, Platinum in Canada, and Silver in the UK.

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	^[1]
Record Mirror	^[3]
Stereo Review	(favourable)^[4]
The Village Voice	B−^[2]

The album produced four US top 20 hit singles including "Fresh" (US #9); "Misled" (US #10); the title track "Emergency" (US #18); and the album's biggest hit, the million-selling "Cherish" (US #2). "Fresh", "Misled", and "Cherish" also cracked the top 40 in the UK reaching #11, #28, and #4 respectively while "Emergency" only reached #50 in that country.^[5]

Track listing

Side 1
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Emergency"	Brown, Taylor, Kool & the Gang	5:17
2.	"Fresh"	Taylor, Linzer, Kool & the Gang	4:22
3.	"Misled"	Bell, Taylor, Kool & the Gang	4:56
4.	"Cherish"	Bell, Taylor, Kool & the Gang	4:47

Side 2
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Surrender"	Williams, Taylor, Kool & the Gang	5:00
2.	"Bad Woman"	Brown, Taylor, Kool & the Gang	5:35
3.	"You Are the One"	Williams, Taylor, Kool & the Gang	7:00

Personnel

Kool & The Gang

James "J.T." Taylor – lead vocals, backing vocals
Curtis "Fitz" Williams – keyboards, Yamaha DX1, Yamaha DX7, Oberheim OB-Xa, Oberheim OB-8, Oberheim Xpander, Roland Juno-60
Ronald Bell – Oberheim OB-8, tenor saxophone, backing vocals
Claydes Charles Smith – guitars
Robert "Kool" Bell – bass guitar
George "Funky" Brown – drums
Dennis "Dee Tee" Thomas – alto saxophone
Clifford Adams – trombone, additional backing vocals (1)
Robert "Spike" Mickens – trumpet
Michael Ray – trumpet

Additional musicians

Rick Iantosca – guitars (1–3, 5, 6)
Kendal Stubbs – bass guitar (3), backing vocals
Jimmy Maelen – percussion
Starleana Young – backing vocals

Production

Kool & The Gang – producers
Ronald Bell – producer, mixing
Jim Bonnefond – producer, engineer, mixing
Kendal Stubbs – engineer, mixing
Gabe Vigorito – mixing, album coordinator
Jim Roth – assistant engineer
Jose Rodriguez – mastering at Sterling Sound (New York, NY)
Joni Weinstein – art direction, design, cover concept
Murry Whiteman – art direction
Lumel/Whiteman Graphics Design – graphics
Brian Hagiwara – cover photography
Lazaro Arias – stylist
Roz Burns – make-up
Gerald Delet – management

Certifications


Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)^[6]	Platinum	100,000^{^}
United Kingdom (BPI)^[7]	Silver	60,000^{^}
United States (RIAA)^[8]	2× Platinum	2,000,000^{^}
^{^} Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

^ Lytle, Craig. "Kool & the Gang: Emergency" at AllMusic. Retrieved 30 October 2011.
^ Christgau, Robert. "Kool and the Gang: Emergency". robertchristgau.com. Village Voice.
^ Gardner, Mike (December 8, 1984). "Kool and the Gang: Emergency". Vol. 31, no. 50. Record Mirror. p. 18. {{cite magazine}}: Cite magazine requires |magazine= (help)
^ Garland, Phyl (May 1985). "Kool and the Gang: Emergency" (PDF). americanradiohistory.com. Vol. 50, no. 5. Stereo Review. p. 95.
^ "Emergency > Charts & Awards > Billboard Singles" at AllMusic. Retrieved 30 October 2011.
^ "Canadian album certifications – Kool & the Gang – Emergency". Music Canada. Retrieved April 25, 2023.
^ "British album certifications – Kool & the Gang – Emergency". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved April 25, 2023.
^ "American album certifications – Kool & the Gang – Emergency". Recording Industry Association of America.

External links

Kool & The Gang – Emergency at Discogs

[1] Lytle, Craig. "Kool & the Gang: Emergency" at AllMusic. Retrieved 30 October 2011.

[2] Christgau, Robert. "Kool and the Gang: Emergency". robertchristgau.com. Village Voice.

[3] Gardner, Mike (December 8, 1984). "Kool and the Gang: Emergency". Vol. 31, no. 50. Record Mirror. p. 18. {{cite magazine}}: Cite magazine requires |magazine= (help)

[4] Garland, Phyl (May 1985). "Kool and the Gang: Emergency" (PDF). americanradiohistory.com. Vol. 50, no. 5. Stereo Review. p. 95.

[5] "Emergency > Charts & Awards > Billboard Singles" at AllMusic. Retrieved 30 October 2011.

[CanadaKool_&_the_GangEmergencyalbumCertRef-6] "Canadian album certifications – Kool & the Gang – Emergency". Music Canada. Retrieved April 25, 2023.

[United_KingdomKool_&_the_GangEmergencyalbumCertRef-7] "British album certifications – Kool & the Gang – Emergency". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved April 25, 2023.

[riaa-8] "American album certifications – Kool & the Gang – Emergency". Recording Industry Association of America.

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