Al Hudson - Soul Partners - One Way
    Detroit vocalist Al Hudson has led various funk and soul aggregations since the 1970's. His first stab at hit making was his own 1976 Atco release "Love Is." Needless to say the record, although quite good, went unnoticed by the general public. It did however perk up the ears of the powers that be at ABC Records.
     Al, who had been playing the local Detroit club scene with a group of fellow musicians and friends, brought Kevin McCord (lead vocals & bass guitar), Cortez Harris (vocals & guitar), Jack Hall (piano), and Theodore Dudley, Jr. (drums) together as his Soul Partners.
     The newly christened Al Hudson & The Soul Partners 1977 debut for ABC Records was "Especially For You." The first single was the obvious pick, "I've Got A Notion, You've Got The Motion." The two blatantly club tracks, "Disco Lover" and "Let's Disco" show the potential buried within. And then there's the remakes "Feelings" and "When Something Is Wrong With My Baby." The former was best left to the song's writer and original maker Morris Albert, while the latter was surely the inspiration for Linda Ronstadt's 1989 duet with Aaron Neville. Although uneven at times it's well worth having if you're lucky enough to find a copy.
     For their second release the group took a more ballad approach to their music. The eight tracks featured on 1977's "Cherish" are all ballads with the exception of the group's first 12" single, "If You Feel Like Dancin'." The album soars with Al's gospel-inspired tenor and McCord's cool falsetto. "Tripped, Slipped, Stumbled And Fell" is a classic '60s love song that features Hudson, McCord, and Cortez Harris on vocals. Though they sound like one, they're not a traditional vocal group. The material could be stronger; still, it's well executed by one of the most exciting live acts to emerge from Detroit's overflowing music scene.
     By 1978 ABC was about to give up on Al and his guys when they reached their first success with their almost last single "Spread Love." The 12" single, with it's lengthy intro, broke in the clubs first followed by a short but promising appearance on the R&B radio playlists. The sales and interest generated enough enthusiasm for an album release. "Spread Love" (the album) contained a stunning rendition of the O'Jay's "You & I" and "Lost Inside Of You" featuring Kevin on lead vocal. The percolating bass, chanting lyrics and infectious hand clapping of "Small Talk" made it another club favorite. This catchy album cemented their future in the club world and guaranteed them one more album and their biggest success.
     By 1979 ABC had released Al Hudson from the label, and besides they were about to press their last record anyways. Shopping for a new label Al Hudson found his new home at MCA Records. With a new label came the first of many name variations. This led to Al Hudson & The Partners release "Happy Feet." As the title track suggests this album gave us happy feet and shot the group into it's biggest success yet. The 12" of "You Can Do It" featured Al and the new addition to the group, Alicia Meyers.
    When Al Hudson & The Partners (later One Way) recorded their "Happy Feet" album in 1979, the singer who stood out the most was Alicia Myers. Arguably, she was the best lead vocalist Hudson ever had, which is ironic because One Way enjoyed some of its biggest hits after her departure. In 1979, it seemed inevitable that the passionate, big-voiced Myers would pursue a solo career — and sure enough, MCA released her first solo album, "Alicia," in 1981.
     During the 1979 period the group became known as One Way featuring Al Hudson. With this moniker MCA released the same-titled album. The six track album contained the 12" singles of "You Can Do It" and their second MCA hit "Music" plus four other disco-oriented tracks.  Later as One Way the group would focus on the quiet storm front and R&B radio when disco seemed dead.
    To further instill the name and image, the group's second MCA Records album was simply entitled "One Way." The album spawned three hits, the radio-friendly "Let's Go Out Tonight" and the 12" single club hits "Pop It" and "Do Your Thang." These would be their last club hits for several years as music was changing with the new decade and the groups push towards Alicia's solo efforts.
     1981's "Love Is...One Way" featured songs of heartbreak and unrequited love. With titles like "Get It Over," "Be Serious" and "All Over Again" the album was a concept album.  For this album and all future releases the group would be simply known as One Way even though the line-up and vocalists came and went.
    Over the next six years One Way remained staples on the R&B radio scene. Albums were released consistently. "Wild Night" (1982), "Shine On Me" (1983), "Lady" (1984), "Wrap Your Body" (1985), "Nine" (1986) and "Turn Up The Music" (1987). The hits, mostly radio numbers were also consistent. "Cutie Pie," "Mr. Groove," "Pull Fancy Dancer Pull," "Push" and "You Better Quit" were all hits. The latter was their most successful club hit since "You Can Do It" thanks to producer Deodato. After a two-year hiatus the group returned with one final album. "New Beginnings" released in 1989 on Capitol Records failed to give them a new beginning and the group disbanded. McCord went on as a sessionist and producer and Hudson produced discs for Latanya and Bert Robinson. The Robinson release featured other "disco" stars like Osborne & Giles, Preston Glass and Linda "Peaches" Greene. A planned solo album for Hudson to be released on Capitol Records was recorded but for some reason never released,
    Al Hudson regrouped a newly vamped One Way in 1996 for a release on ZYX entitled "Carnival." Several compilations and a "Best Of" have been released through the years. The four worth having are the "Best Of" for Alicia Meyer's 12' version of "You Get The Best From Me (Say, Say Say)," "Cutie Pie" for the 12" versions of the title track and "You Better Quit," "Push" for "Pop It" and "Happy Feet" for the 12"s of "You Can Do It" and "Music."
     Other members of the group included Candye Edwards (now Candye McCord, Kevin's wife), Brenda Wiley (vocals), Leroy Hyter (sax/keyboards), Gregg Gregg (drums) and more recently Jeanette Mack (vocals), Lorrie Tice (vocals), Valdez Brantley (keyboards) and Jonathan 'Corky' Meadows (keyboards). However none of them achieved the success that Alicia Meyers did with her four albums released in the 1980's.
     Perhaps one day maybe Al will surprise us with another funky club hit. If you have the chance catch Hudson on one of the many oldies shows he does with a variation of One Way.
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