Page 5 of 14

1990

In September, the second album is released by Reprise Records: So Much 2 Say
Off the album, singles I L-O-V-E U (by the way, see www.contactmusic.com for a HQ video), I Believe and Where Do The Children Play are released.

Take 6 collaborates with k.d. lang on the soundtrack of the movie “Dick Tracy"; it concerns ‘Ridin' The Rails'.
Mervyn and Mark arranged the vocals of this song. Mervyn says on the music video: “Those are the very suits the actors wore in the movie (hopefully cleaned before we shot the video). k.d.'s suit, too."
The ‘Sire' released single contains two songs: ‘Ridin' The Rails' and ‘Seven Lonely Days'.

April 4, single Lift Every Voice And Sing is released (recorded in May of this year).
Melba Moore asked several artists to join her on this anthem (Stevie Wonder, Anita Baker, Lou Gossett, Dionne Warwick, Stephanie Mills, Jasmine Guy, Freddie Jackson, Bobby Brown, Rev. Jesse Jackson, BeBe and CeCe Winans and Take 6 as well). Proceeds from the single's sales will go to the NAACP and the National Association for Sickle Cell Disease Inc.
On www.take6.net, you'll find this promotional photo and this promotional photo for the single.

Presumably, VH1 broadcasts this year TV special called ‘So Much 2 Say', of which you can find the first part on Youtube

October 20, an article is published in the Post Tribune about the rumour that the group had done a beer commercial.
The fact that they didn't, shows the interview “Divine Inspiration" of October 3, 1990.

They arrange and sing the leader for the series ‘Brewster Place' (which is a spin-off of the 1989 “Women of Brewster Place" series). This series runs for eleven episodes but is ended halfway through the year.
Video: theme song

This year, Mervyn Warren informs the group that he is about to quit because he wants to work as a producer in Los Angeles! The message lands as a bomshell. How can they go on without this important arranger, visionary and friend??

Performances
Collaborations

Performances

01-15-90 (TV) 5th Annual Stellar Gospel Music Awards
Marla Gibbs and Clifton Davis host this show in the Aquarius Theatre of Los Angeles. Take 6 is invited to sing (they were nominated for two Stellar Awards back in 1988).
Video: Mary

02-10-90 (TV) Saturday Night Live (Quincy Jones & Co.; season 15, episode 12)
Quincy receives musical guests, including David, Claude, Mark, Joey, Cedric and Alvin according to IMDB . It's strange that Mervyn is not listed there, since he hasn't left yet...

02-21-90 Los Angeles, CA (Shrine Auditorium, 32nd Annual Grammy Awards)
The group is nominated for two Grammy Awards for the year 1989:
- winner in category Jazz/Gospel: Best Gospel Performance by a Duo or Group, Choir or Chorus: ‘Time After Time (The Savior Is Waiting)'
- nominee: Best Jazz Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group: ‘Like the Whole World's Watching'
They perform ‘If We Ever' this night.

04-09-90 Newark, NJ (Mount Zion Baptist Church)
Sarah Vaughan passed away April 3rd. Take 6's “A Quiet Place" was her favorite song. Therefore, Quincy Jones, musical director of the funeral ceremony, asks Take 6 to sing this song in church.

05-10-90 (TV) Spike & Co.: Do It A-Cappella (Great Performances, season 19, episode 1)
Hosts are Spike Lee and Debbie Allen. Recorded in the Majestic Theater of Brooklyn's Academy of Music.
They sing: ‘Get Away Jordan', ‘Gold Mine' and ‘Somethin' Within Me'.
Video: Get Away Jordan + Somethin' Within Me
Video: complete show (low Q!)

05-23-90 until 05-24 New York City, NY (Carnegie Hall; Special Olympics Benefit “Take 6 and friends".)
The concert is held in an effort to get African teams to the US Special Olympics next year.
From a review of the NY Times :

(...) The group opened Wednesday night's concert with a dreamy six-part harmonization of ‘The Star-Spangled Banner' in the style of the Hi-Lo's, then moved into the sort of vocal imitations of instruments that has been a staple of harmony groups since the Mills Brothers.
(...) Wednesday's concert also showed that the group has reached a level of confidence where it can improvise comfortably even within arrangements that are texturally very dense. And in numbers like ‘Mary (Don't You Weep),' the singers tossed tones, notes and phrases at one another like musical footballs, turning these motifs into playful singing matches.
(...) Take 6's guests, most of whom performed two numbers, included Stevie Wonder, James Taylor, Phoebe Snow, Patti Austin, Branford Marsalis, the Boys Choir of Harlem, BeBe and CeCe Winans, and Bela Fleck and the Flecktones. All were hampered by sound problems that were never satisfactorily solved. Outside of Take 6, which seemed unaffected by the difficulties since it does not use instrumental backup, Mr. Wonder fared the best. His most impressive moment was a cautionary ballad for voice and piano that portrayed a world ‘stealing all the love and beauty' of God's land.

07-14-90 The Hague, Holland. (North Sea Jazz Festival)
Jan Steen hall, 21:15 - 22:15.

09-??-90 (TV) The Today Show
Video: Something Within Me

10-03-90 Scottsdale, AZ (Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts; Amphitheater)
This same day, the film “Listen Up: The Lives of Quincy Jones" is shown at the New York Film Festival. (Released in 1991 in France, Germany and Holland.) It's a 115 minute documentary (of director and writer Ellen Weissbrod) about QJ, interviewing several artists; Take 6 among them.
Trivia: Michael Jackson refused to be lit for his interview so it was conducted in the dark.

10-06-90 Los Angeles, CA (Wiltern Theater)

10-09-90 Anaheim, CA (Celebrity Theater)

10-13-90 Santa Rosa, CA (Luther Burbank Center)

10-15-90 (TV) The Tonight Show (with Jay Leno)

So Much 2 Say

I L-O-V-E U

10-20-90 Columbus, OH (Palace Theatre)

10-21-90 St Louis, MO (Fox)

10-22-90 Chicago, IL (Regal Theater)

10-23-90 Madison, WI (Madison Civic Center)

10-25-90 Denton, TX (Coliseum)

10-27-90 Chicago, IL (The New Regal Theatre)

10-28-90 Austin, TX (Texas Bass Hall)

10-30-90 New Orleans, LA (Saenger Theater)

10-31-90 Birmingham, AL (UAB Arena)

11-01-90 Atlanta, GA (Fox Theater)

11-04-90 Orlando, FL (Florida Theater PAC)

11-07-90 West Palm Beach, FL (Heritage Fest)

11-08-90 Tampa, FL (Tampa Theater)

11-10-90 Durham, NC (Durham HS)

11-11-90 Baltimore, MD (Meyerhoff Sym Hall)

12-01-90 Tokyo, Japan

12-12-90 Sendai, Miyagi, Japan

12-16-90 Tokyo, Japan

12-18-90 Tokyo, Japan

12-20-90 Tokyo, Japan

1991

In January, Mervyn officially resigns. Several people are asked, such as the brother of Claude, R&B singer Brian McKnight, but he declines. (Probably because his solo career is taking off.)
The younger brother of Mark, Joel Kibble, is another option. He sings in a Huntsville based group called Special Music - nicknamed Take 5.99. Meaning: they sound almost like Take 6... Listen and watch their 1990 song Christian Automobile from the “Jonathan Slocumb Show" in Indianapolis.

Joel, who has always been a fan of Take 6, is asked to join and he agrees. At first, he learns Mervyns part.

The line up is therefore:

1st tenor: Claude McKnight
1st tenor: Mark Kibble
2nd tenor: Joel Kibble
2nd tenor: David Thomas
baritone: Cedric Dent
bass: Alvin Chea

Alvin elaborates on the first days of Joel with the group:

Now like I've said before, when Merv left the group, it was devastating. I can remember being in Japan wondering who could possibly replace Merv. But our God Jehovah-Jireh is the author of order and He always provides. In fact, no one had to replace Merv; instead someone stepped up to serve God. It's not about the servant -- it's about being in His service.
It quickly became clear that Joey brought so many wonderful gifts to this ministry that his awesome vocal talents paled in comparison to the others. Joey probably has brought more spiritual awareness and bold leadership to this group then anyone else. And that's not easy when you're the new young guy.
His fearlessness was never more typified than his debut concert with the group. Believe it or not, Joey's first concert was at Carnegie Hall [New York City] on Valentines Day in 1991 in front of thousands. Talk about trial by fire. But he came through with flying colors. We even performed one of “Special Music's" arrangements, which received a rousing ovation.

During concerts they regularly repeat Joel's audition, at which he convincingly solos the introduction of ‘When I Die' (“oh..oh..oh.., I have, I have this assurance").
You can watch this solo, sung with Special Music on a 1989 Oakwood College Alumni Weekend, on Youtube; at the end you'll see Claude McKnight getting on stage to give props to Joey.

Third album He Is Christmas is released by Reprise Records in September.
Off the album God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen is released as single.
Claude collaborates this year vocally on the album of guitarist Eric Essix: Second Thoughts. The song is called ‘Just Like You' (track 3).

Performances
Collaborations

Performances

02-03-91 New York, NY (Apollo Theatre)
Black History Month Benefit Concert, in the series “It's Showtime at the Apollo".
Video: Spread Love (with drum intro of Cedric and Alvin)

02-20-91 New York, NY (Radio City Music Hall, 33rd Annual Grammy Awards)
The group is nominated for two Grammy Awards for the year 1990:
- winner in category Jazz/Gospel: Best Contemporary Soul Gospel Album: ‘So Much 2 Say'
- nominated in category Jazz: Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocals: ‘Come Sunday'
Donna, Cedric and Mervyn have been nominated together for this song, which can be found on Donna McElroy's 1988 album Bigger World.

04-11-91 Nashville, TN (Grand Ole Opry House, 22nd GMA Dove Awards)
Hosted by Clifton Davis and Sandi Patti.
The group is nominated for five Dove Awards for the year 1990:
- winner in category Jazz/Gospel: Contemporary Black Gospel Album of the Year: ‘So Much 2 Say'
- winner in category R&B/Gospel: Contemporary Black Gospel Song of the Year: ‘I L-O-V-E U'
- nominated in category R&B/Gospel: Song of the Year: ‘I L-O-V-E U'
- nominated in category Jazz/Gospel: Group of the Year
- nominated in category Gospel: Traditional Black Gospel Song of the Year: ‘Something Within Me'

?- ?-91 São Paulo, Brazil (Free Jazz Festival, with Joey)
They'd already been invited for the 1990 festival, but that festival was cancelled by the sponsor.
Video: Introduction
Video: I Believe
Video: David And Goliath

06-08-91 The Woodlands, TX (The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion)
Larry Fox has made a recording of this open air concert (which he doesn't sell by the way), see https://www.larry-fox.com/DesktopDefault.aspx?tabindex=2&tabid=27.

08-18-91 Norfolk, VA (Jazz In The Park)

09-22-91 New York, NY (Central Park: Billy Graham Crusade)
They sing ‘Come Unto Me' and ‘Something Within Me'.

11-05-91 Barcelona, Spain (Palau de la Música Catalana, III Festival de Tardor de Barcelona) 10:00 PM.

11-19-91 (TV) Arsenio Hall Show (season 4, episode 48)
Video: Medley Amen+Revelation, plus an interview

12-02-91 Sendai, Miyagi (Japan)

?- ?-91 Detroit, MI (Gem Theatre)

Take 6: biography

Article Index

1990

Performances

Collaborations

1991

Performances

Collaborations