American funk and R&B band Kool & the Gang are one of the leading names in 1970s and 80s music, having charted around the world with their unique sound and entertaining performances. Throughout their career, which has spanned over six decades, Kool & the Gang have collaborated with some of music’s biggest names and have performed all over the world.
Kool & the Gang first began to take shape when New Jersey high-school friends came together to practice. The band went on to record their debut self-titled album, which came out in 1969. The album saw three tracks chart in the US R&B charts.
The band continued to release music and albums, including live recordings, but found major success with their 1973 fourth studio album ‘Wild and Peaceful’, which saw the singles ‘Jungle Boogie’ and ‘Hollywood Swinging’ become instant hits reaching Number 4 and 6 in the US Billboard Chart respectively.
The band began touring and continued to release charting music throughout the remainder of the 1970s, before singing success through their 1979 ‘Ladies Night’ album. The album included the hits ‘Ladies Night’ and ‘Too Hot’, with the former becoming one of the hits that Kool & the Gang have become synonymous with.
A year later, Kool & the Gang created another worldwide hit in ‘Celebration’ which also became the band’s first Number 1, topping the US, Canadian and New Zealand charts, as well as entering the Top Ten in the UK. Kool & the Gang continued to have chart success throughout the 1980s with the likes of ‘Get Down On It’, ‘Joanna’ and ‘Cherish’.
