Sorry, April was a very busy month for me, so I haven't been able to post anything for awhile (BTW, saw Kylie and she was SPECTACULAR!) But Lumel requested Jomanda, and since I mentioned them in the previous post, I'm finding a moment to post this. Luckily I already did my research for them when I did the write-up for their Lastfm page, so I have the info ready. ;) Jomanda was formed in New Jersey and consisted of Joanne Thomas, Cheri Williams and Renee Washington. They had all worked solo with the production trio of Derek A. Jenkins, Dwayne Spen Richardson & Cassio Ware, also known as Backroom Productions, who brought the ladies together. They debuted in 1986 with the independently released house song “On Top (Of The Groove)” and followed it up with "I'll Give It To You (Come Get It)" in 1987 and "Drifting" in 1988, both on the Quark label. While these singles generated interest, it was their next track, “Make My Body Rock”, which became their first genuine hit, partly due to their being signed to the Big Beat label. It hit #5 of the Billboard Dance Chart and made them genuine house divas. The track was also heavily sampled the following year by previous Isle postees The 28th Street Crew on their dance hit "I Need A Rhythm". (Incidentally, they also did backing vocals on previous Isle postee Jamie J. Morgan's track "She's On It" around this time.) Their next single, "Don't You Want My Love", also hit the Billboard Dance Charts, and they soon had an album deal with Big Beat. It was their next single, however, that would make them, temporarily, a household name. "Got A Love For You" reached #40 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1991 and took them from the clubs to living rooms everywhere thanks to radio and the flashy video. The album included all of their Big Beat singles as well as follow up singles "The True Meaning (Of Love)", which also hit the dance charts, and "Share", which didn't, likely because it was much more downtempo and not the house sound fans expected. The failure of this track didn't deter them from changing their sound on their follow-up album, however. Though their house fans were kept happy the following year with Felix's progressive house hit "Don't You Want Me", which relied on a sample from "Don't You Want My Love", when Jomanda emerged in 1993 with their new album, their sound had almost totally transformed. Instead of the exciting garage house jams fans had come to love and expect, the lades instead focused on new jack swing and soul, thus the title Nubia Soul. It was much more downtempo and only contained two house tracks. They also brought in a host of other producers. The first single, a remake of DeBarge's "I Like It", managed to hit the bottom end of the Billboard Hot 100 and the dance chart. But the follow up, "Back To You" barely dented the R&B charts. There were a number of new jack swing girl groups at the time who specialized in the sound, and since Jomanda began in a much different genre, they go lost in the fray. In an attempt to get back their original fan base, they released the non-album house track "Never" the same year, to minimal success. In 1994, one of the two album house tracks, "I Cried The Tears", was released and hit the top 20 of the Billboard Dance Charts, but it was too little too late and the ladies soon broke up. Since then the whereabouts of Renee Washington and Cheri Williams remain unknown. Joanne Thomas, however, rejoined her old producers in 1995 and they revived a group they began in the late 80s called Ruffneck. Joanne took on the moniker Yavahn and took lead, releasing two albums and many singles with Ruffneck, including the huge dance chart hit "Everybody Be Somebody". Sadly, in 2000 Joanne learned that she had colon cancer, and three years later she succumbed to the disease. Though we can never have a full Jomanda reunion, it would be awesome if the other two ladies could get together once again as a tribute to their former bandmate and friend. Jomanda are one of my fave acts of the 90s and I would love to hear something from them again.Video for Make My Body Rock
Video for Got A Love For You
Download Someone To Love Me
| 1 | Make My Body Rock 1990 | |||
| 2 | Someone To Love Me | |||
| 3 | Share | |||
| 4 | Don't You Want My Love | |||
| 5 | What's The Deal? | |||
| 6 | You Knew, Boy | |||
| 7 | Dance | |||
| 8 | Got A Love For You | |||
| 9 | It Ain't No Big Thing | |||
| 10 | When Love Hurts | |||
| 11 | The True Meaning (Of Love) | |||
| 12 | I Will Always Be There For You | |||
| 13 | Without You | |||
| 14 | Make My Body Rock (Basic Mix) |
Video for I Like It
Download Nubia Soul
| 1 | Don't Deny | ||
| 2 | Just A Little More Time | ||
| 3 | I Like It | ||
| 4 | I Cried The Tears | ||
| 5 | Back To You | ||
| 6 | When You Come Home | ||
| 7 | Tell Me (Whatcha Gonna Do) | ||
| 8 | Don't Fight The Feeling | ||
| 9 | Ez'A Said Than Done | ||
| 10 | Life | ||
| 11 | Gotta Be With You | ||
| 12 | After All This Love | ||
| 13 | Tonight's The Night | ||
| 14 | Kiss You | ||
| 15 | I Like It (Kenny Smoove Remix) |
Loved Jomanda, especially "Got a Love For You (Hurley's House Mix)." It always got the crowd on the dance floor in the early '90s. I used to own both CDs; I admit, I liked their house stuff better than the new jill swing stuff. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteGreat! Thanks for this and for bas noir.
ReplyDeleteGreat! Thanks for these gems.
ReplyDeleteAll links dead
ReplyDeleteThey have been reupped. ;)
DeleteThanks for this share. Been all over the place looking for that 'Share' track...is there any chance you might be having the single?? theres a dope club mix on there
ReplyDeleteI discovered Jomanda after hearing "I Like It" and it became my first love for R&B girl groups! Joanne was my first crush, she is beautiful in the said singles video. Sad to learn of her passing, she had so much potential. Thank you for this insightful look into the history of Jomanda!
ReplyDelete