The O’Jays, “Stairway to Heaven” | Throwback Vibez 🕶️🎶

In the 44^th edition of Throwback Vibez (2022), we recollect and reflect on “Stairway to Heaven” by iconic soul collective, The O’Jays.

The vibes, the vibes, those Throwback Vibez 🕶️🎶! Throwback Vibez 🕶️🎶 is a column that celebrates awesome songs from the past.  The records that grace Throwback Vibez 🕶️🎶 are older, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that they’re ancient – no fossils 🦴! All genres of music are welcome – we don’t discriminate ‘round here! In the 44^th edition of Throwback Vibez 🕶️🎶 (2022), we recollect and reflect on 🎵 “Stairway to Heaven”, performed by iconic soul collective, 🎙 The O’Jays. 

Theme & Lyrics ✍ 

There’s an iconic scene in the movie 🎦 Garden State where Sam (🎭 Natalie Portman) tells Andrew Largeman (🎭 Zac Braff), “You gotta hear this one song. It’ll change your life, I swear.”  That song happens to be by the alternative collective, 🎙 The Shins. I’d like to swap The Shins for a more iconic collective, predating them a couple of decades: 🎙 The O’Jays.  The Ohio-born soul collective, originally comprised of 🎙 Walter Williams, Sr. and 🎙 Eddie Levert, and various other members, two of which are deceased, is one of the greatest R&B groups of all time. I’d even take it a step further – they’re one of the greatest groups, regardless of musical style, of all time.  The hits are endless for this Philadelphia soul proponent, who famously worked with the legendary, dynamic duo of 🎼✍ 🎛 Kenneth Gamble and 🎼✍ 🎛 Leon Huff.  One of the greatest fruits of their labor: 🎵 “Stairway to Heaven” (No, NOT the also iconic 🎙 Led Zeppelin record).

“Stairway to Heaven” is, indeed, heavenly; north of six minutes of sheer glory.  It arrives as the sixth track on The O’Jays’ platinum-certified, 1975 album, 💿 Family Reunion.  The moment you hear the silky smooth, lush backdrop, you know it’s the work of Gamble and Huff.  The writing/production team see their music continue to find new life within R&B and hip-hop. 🎙 Chrisette Michele repurposed “Stairway to Heaven” brilliantly in 2013 with her own slice of R&B heaven, 🎵 “A Couple of Forevers”.   Michele not only borrows the instrumental, but she’s inspired by the vocal arrangement and ad-libs, which are truly masterful. Honestly, these guys could just flat-out sing.  Here, they provide a vocal bible of sorts, bringing smooth moments as well as dynamic, truly gritty moments.

“Here we go, climbing the stairway to heaven

Here we go, walking the road of ecstasy

Taking a load of the whole world off our shoulders

The door is wide open for you

The door is open for me.”

Yes, yes, yes! That’s before The O’Jays put ample emphasis on “Climbing the stairway to heaven / And we’re going step by step together.” Oh, the love, it’s L-I-T!

Final Thoughts 💭

Honestly, I could write a book about 🎵 “Stairway to Heaven” – it’s that good.  And the thing is, it’s not necessarily one of the records that first comes to mind when mentioning 🎙 The O’Jays.  Regardless, by my estimations, “Stairway to Heaven” sounds and feels like musical salvation, if such a thing exists.

🎙 The O’Jays • 💿 Family Reunion • 🏷 Sony Music Entertainment • 🗓 1975

The O’Jays, “Stairway to Heaven”: Throwback Vibez 🕶️🎶 No. 44 (2022) [📷: Brent Faulkner, Gerhard G., JL G via Pixabay,  Karl Hörnfeldt via Unsplash,  The Musical Hype, Sony Music Entertainment]