Fast Pop-Soul Aerobics: Right Back Where We Started From by Maxine Nightingale
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Description
“Right Back Where We Started From” is a fast pop-soul song written by Pierre Tubbs and J. Vincent Edwards[1] which was first recorded in the middle of 1975 by Maxine Nightingale for whom it was an international hit. In 1989, a remake by Sinitta, then 25, reached #4 in the UK Singles Chart. The music features a significant repetitive sample from the song ‘Goodbye, Nothing To Say’ written by Stephen Jameson and Marshall Doctores, recorded by Jameson under the name of Nosmo King, then by The ‘Javells ft Nosmo King’, both in 1974.[2][3][4]
In the UK
In a 3 May 2008 interview with Michael Shelley of WFMU, Edwards recalled that after hearing Maxine Nightingale sing on the session for Al Matthews’ “Fool” that track’s producer Pierre Tubbs had come up with “Right Back Where We Started From” as a good title for a song for Nightingale herself to record and had invited Edwards to co-write the song. Utilizing a tune which Edwards had written “a couple of years before”, Tubbs and Edwards wrote “Right Back Where We Started From” in about seven minutes while driving to the hospital where Tubbs’ wife was set to give birth: the song heavily reflects Edwards’ admiration for the Motown songwriting team of Holland–Dozier–Holland. A rough demo featuring Edwards’ vocal was cut the next day and it was Edwards – who had performed with Nightingale in the West End production of Hair – who approached Nightingale with an offer for her to record the song.
Nightingale recorded “Right Back Where We Started From” within a week of Edwards offering her the song, although she had initially refused succumbing to Edwards persuasion only on the condition that the track be released under a pseudonym. Edwards also had to convince Nightingale to accept a royalty payment rather than a one-time session fee equivalent to $45 US. “Right Back Where We Started From” would ultimately be released in Nightingale’s real name; she would also be awarded a more substantial royalty than she had agreed to. According to Edwards consideration was given to “Right Back Where We Started From” being recorded as a duet featuring Nightingale and himself but this possibility ended when Private Stock Records recruited Edwards to cut a remake of “The Worst That Could Happen”. Nightingale herself had opined to Rolling Stone that Edwards’ vocal on the demo was “pretty horrendous”.
“Right Back Where We Started From” was recorded at Central Sound Studio a small demo studio on Denmark Street in Camden: personnel on the session included two former members of the Electric Light Orchestra: Mike de Albuquerque (bass guitar) and violinist Wilfred Gibson who did the strings arrangement.[5] In the WFMU interview, Edwards identified other players on the session as drummer Pete Kircher and keyboardist Dave Rowberry: also Tubbs played guitar and Edwards provided percussion. Nightingale would advise Rolling Stone that she had disliked Tubbs’s utilization of both a crashing keyboard arrangement and heavy hand claps: she was also discomfited by being required to sing in a higher key than she was accustomed to.
Mike de Albuquerque recalled: “We were doing…one of those demo sessions where everybody goes and sits down with music in front of you and you try and get through as many tunes as possible….I remember [Pierre Tubbs]…saying, listen guys, I want to record in entirety four pieces in this three hour session…and we recorded two pieces with Maxine and two with somebody else….[Let] me stress, it was a demo session that this multi million selling thing came out of, it wasn’t let’s go and remake it… it was the original demo session….[That] multi million selling recording, I would think, cost [Tubbs] less than a £100 if you put the other tracks into the pudding”.[6]
Released within two weeks of its recording by United Artists – who employed Tubbs in its art department – “Right Back Where We Started From” broke in the London discos and reached #8 on the UK Singles Chart dated 29 November 1975.[7]
In the US
United Artists issued “Right Back Where We Started From” in the US in January 1976 and the single entered the charts in February to rise as high as #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the spring of 1976. Although “Right Back Where We Started From” was held off from the top of the Hot 100 for four weeks, the single – which received Gold certification for sales of a million on 27 April – did reach #1 on the charts for the two other major US music industry journals, Cash Box and Record World.
“Right Back Where We Started From” also appeared on Billboard’s Adult Contemporary and Black Singles charts at #5 and #46, respectively.[8]
Following the single’s US success Nightingale completed a Right Back Where We Started From album with Tubbs producing: Billboard ranked the album at #65.[9]
