Leon F. Sylvers III

Leon F. Sylvers III wrote the first hit ("Wish That I Could Talk to You") for his family's singing group the Sylvers, his brother Foster Sylvers' Top Ten R&B/Top 30 pop debut single "Misdemeanor," and a slew of hits for artists signed to Dick Griffey's Solar Records. The Sylvers, whose million-selling single "Boogie Fever" was a number one R&B hit in March 1976 and number one pop hit in May 1976, were flippantly called "the West Coast answer to the Jackson 5." A more accurate overall comparison would be with the 5th Dimension. Their harmonies were quite similar as well as the timbre of their core material and, like the 5th Dimension, the Sylvers had a natural middle America appeal. Leon Sylvers III collaborated with Leon Sylvers IV on "Love Online" and a track on Guy's Guy III CD issued on January 25, 2000. True enough, there are some traits that the Jackson 5 and the Sylvers share. They were both family groups of the '70s, both benefited from the talents of songwriter/producer Freddie Perren ("Boogie Fever"), who as a member of the Motown collective the Corporation was responsible for "ABC," "I Want You Back," and "The Love You Save." Both were frequent pinups in Right On! and other teen magazines, as well as Soul Magazine and Ebony Magazine's sister publication Black Stars. Another more peculiar commonality was that Edmund Sylvers was the voice of Marlon in the Jackson 5 cartoon show that premiered on ABC-TV in September 1971 and still occasionally airs on VH1 and rerun syndication. The eldest Sylvers, Olympia-Ann, Leon Frank III, Charmaine, and James began performing as the Little Angels in their native Memphis, TN, tutored by their mother Shirley Sylvers, a former opera singer. After winning local talent shows, they moved to Harlem, NY, where they found a more...