Chi-Lites

The group started in the 1950s as the Chi-Lites by Robert Lester, known to his friends as squirrel, along with Clarence Johnson. Robert was in the vocal hall of fame and died aged 67 in 2010 from Liver Cancer. Other original members included Creadel Jones and Marshall Thompson. Creadel died in 1994.

Eugene Record was the lead singer and died in 2005 aged 64 from cancer. He actually wrote and produced a lot of the group’s hits including Have You Seen Her and Oh Girl.

In the UK their first top thirty single hit came in 1971 with (For God’s Sake) Give More Power To The People. The biggest hit that year of course was Have You Seen Her getting in the top three in the UK and U.S. on the Brunswick label. Barbara Acklin was the co-writer on this single. She had a few hits in the U.S. in the 1960s and 70s and she died in 1998. The song is all about a lost love.

1972 and Oh Girl got to No 14 in the UK and No. 1 in the U.S. and again concentrates on a relationship break up. No happy ending here. Leo Sayer also had this song on his 1979 album.

A few singles were released after that with little or no success in the U.S., so move on to 1974 and the release of Homely Girl making the top 5 in the UK charts. This was followed the same year by Too Good Too Be Forgotten which was much more of a happy song for the group getting to No.10 in the UK and a non-charter in the U.S.

But the group were not finished yet. 1975 they re-released Have You Seen Her getting back in the UK top ten. This allowed them to release It’s Time For Love on the back of that later in the year. No. 5 UK No. 94 U.S.
The last chart single came in 1976 with a much more disco orientated track called You Don’t Have To Go which got inside the top five in the UK but failed to chart at all in the States.

Nine albums in the States during the 1970s of which Lonely Man was probably the highest ranking in the Billboard charts.