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Reichhold Center Will Present Kool and the Gang

Oct. 9, 2006 – Kool and the Gang will perform at 8 p.m., on Saturday, Oct. 28, at Reichhold Center for the Arts.
Kool and the Gang, who have been making music for more than 30 years, have won worldwide recognition and numerous accolades including two Grammy Awards, seven American Music Awards, 31 gold and platinum albums and nearly 70 million albums sold.
They dominated the 1970s music scene, starting with their album "Live at the Sex Machine," which produced three hit singles: "Funky Man," "Who's Gonna Take The Weight" and "I Want To Take You Higher." The group followed up with "Wild & Peaceful," earning spots on Billboard's R&B and pop charts.
Kool and the Gang shined with hits such as "Summer Madness," from the Grammy-winning movie soundtrack "Rocky." Their mega hit "Open Sesame," for which they also won a Grammy, was featured on the top-selling movie soundtrack of all time, "Saturday Night Fever." "Pulp Fiction," one of the biggest movies at the end of the 20th century, brought an expanded audience for them when "Jungle Boogie" became the title track.
Brothers Robert "Kool" Bell, who played bass, and Ronald Bell, aka Khalis Bayann, who played horns, joined friends from the projects in Jersey City, New Jersey, to create music that generations later people still love.
Along with the brothers were drummer George Brown, alto saxophonist Dennis Thomas, and trombone player Clifford Adams who continue to perform with Kool and The Gang. Former members include Charles Smith, Woody Sparrow and Ricky West.
James "J.T." Taylor joined the band in the early 1980s and brought in the vocals that made such hits as "Ladies Night" and "Celebration."
In the hip-hop era, a new audience discovered Kool and The Gang's groove through samplings by hip-hop artists. On their 2004 album "The Hits: Reloaded," the band introduced the 21st century generation to their brilliant sounds by collaborating with musicians such as Ashanti, Lil' Kim, Blackstreet and Sean Paul to remake some of their biggest hits.
In 2006, Kool and the Gang is back on the Billboard charts with the album "Steppin' Into Love."
Their night at Reichhold Center is sponsored by First Bank, First Insurance, Marriott's Frenchman's Reef Resort, Tropical Shipping, Theodore Tunick Insurance Company and the Virgin Islands Council for the Arts.
Tickets are available at Modern Music, Parrot Fish, UVI Bookstore, V.I. Bridal & Tuxedo and the Reichhold Center box office at 693-1559.

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