Smorgasbord Music Column – William Price King with The Duet – #1970 – 1972 – Seals and Crofts – Summer Breeze, Roberta Flack and Donny Hathaway

In this series for 2024, William will be sharing some of the iconic duets from the 1960s onwards. Collaborations between artists that were hits around the world and are still enjoyed today.

Thanks for joining me today and I hope you will enjoy this trip down memory lane with me in coming months. William

1972 – Seals and Crofts – Summer Breeze

“Summer Breeze” was written by Seals and Crofts. It was the title track of their fourth studio album and was released as the album’s lead single in August 1972. The song reached #6 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #4 on its Easy Listening chart. It was ranked #13 in Rolling Stone’s “Best Summer Songs of All Time.”

The song also became a hit for the Isley Brothers in 1974. The album “Summer Breeze” peaked at #7 and was certified double platinum for sales of over two million copies. Both Seals and Crofts were publicly outspoken advocates for the Bahá’í Faith.

1972 – Roberta Flack and Donny Hathaway – Where is the Love

Roberta Flack and Donny Hathaway were both solo artists on the Atlantic Records roster who’d enjoyed critical acclaim. The singers’ careers had overlapped, however: Flack had included Hathaway compositions on her “First Take” and “Chapter Two” albums, with the latter also featuring Hathaway as pianist, arranger and background vocalist.

It was producer Jerry Wexler who suggested that a joint venture might consolidate Flack and Hathaway’s popularity. In 1972 Atlantic Records released the duet album “Roberta Flack and Donny Hathaway” which became an instant million seller, produced by Joel adorn and Aria Mardin.

“Where is the Love” was the third single from the album, and peaked at #5 on the Billboard Hot 100, and #1 on its Easy Listening and R&B charts. The song won the duo a Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals in 1973.

Thanks for joining me today and look forward to hearing from you… William.

William Price King is an American jazz singer, crooner, and composer.

His interest in music began at an early age when he studied piano and clarinet in high school. At Morehouse College in Atlanta where he grew up, he sang in the Glee Club and studied classical music. After graduation he went off to the Yale School of Music where he earned a Masters degree. From there he journeyed to New York where he created a jazz trio ‘Au Naturel’ which performed in some of the hottest venues in Manhattan including gigs on Broadway and the famous ‘Rainbow Room.’ These gigs opened doors for performances in Montreal and a European tour.

While touring Europe he met a lovely French lady, Jeanne Maïstre, who, a year later became his wife. King left the group ‘Au Naturel’ and settled in the south of France where he started a new life on the French Riviera, opening his own music school – the “Price King Ecole Internationale de Chant.” He has had the pleasure over the years of seeing many of his students excel as singers on a professional level, and some going on to become national celebrities. He continues to coach young singers today, in his spare time.

Website: William Price King – Blog– IMPROVISATION – William Price King on Tumblr – Buy William’s music: William Price King iTunes – Facebook – William Price King – Twitter – @wpkofficial – Regular Venue – Cave Wilson