DeBarge, the progressive singing group from Motown is back with it's second album, All This Love. The first LP for this close-knit family was not quite as successful as expected, but with this second album comes the realization that DeBarge--Bunny, Marty, Randy, El, and James--definitely have fame in their future and the talent to back it up.
The DeBarge family grew up in Grand Rapids, Michigan, in a quiet neighborhood, relatively quite considering the noise often generating from the DeBarge household. Musical training began almost as soon as each child could walk.
According to Bunny, the oldest of the group at 27, and by consensus, the boss, "Our getting musical training was just as natural as eating and breathing. My mother's side of the family was musically inclined, so she always encouraged us."
Readily admitting the difficulty involved in being the leader of the group of young men, Bunny attributes all the strength and success to God. The brothers all agree with a statement made by Bunny, "If man can put you up there, man can bring you down." As a result their faith is constantly reasserted, Randy, 24, soft spoken yet assertive, contends, "We are real and we have a strong root of love in us; our fans see it not only in our music but in our faces."
Originally, Bobby and Tommy DeBarge were a part of the Motown recording group Switch, and when Switch emerged on the music scene with their hit, "There'll Never Be (Another Love)", the brothers didn't forget their siblings back home. Instead, they arranged an audition for them. That audition led to another Motown contract and the first DeBarge LP. Contrary to rumor, DeBarge is not another name from the seemingly disbanded Switch. According to Bunny, a revised Switch is making plans for a new release later this year.
But for now, the second DeBarge album is on the move, with the popular single hits, "Stop! Don't Tease Me," and "I Like It." Motivated by girl-watching on Hollywood Boulevard, the DeBarge brothers put together "I Like It" as an overall assessment of the pastime. Currently, the tune is nearing the top of the charts.
Since the first LP, which according to one brother suffered because of bad management, DeBarge changed much of their style, moving away from the mellow, ballad-oriented music to a more fast moving and growing sound. The group hopes these changes will attract more attention.
"I would describe our music as encouraging and positive," says James DeBarge, the tallest yet the baby of the group. "Our music reaches out to practically all age groups," continues Bunny.
Despite the fact that sex and gore seem to be big in the contemporary music market right now, DeBarge has decided to veer away from the trend.
"Sex can be remote and after it's gone, you have to have love to endure--what we give is something that will last 10 years from now," says Bunny.
The future for DeBarge looks bright as they now make plans for another album to be released this summer and a national tour.
Originally published in Washington Afro-American Newspaper, March 1983
Transcribed for the web by thedebarges.blogspot.com
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