''Back on the Block'' is a 1989 studio album produced by

Quincy Jones Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (born March 14, 1933) is an American record producer, musician, songwriter, composer, arranger, and film and television producer. His career spans 70 years in the entertainment industry with a record of 80 Grammy Award n ...

. The album features legendary musicians and singers from across three generations, including

Ella Fitzgerald Ella Jane Fitzgerald (April 25, 1917June 15, 1996) was an American jazz singer, sometimes referred to as the "First Lady of Song", "Queen of Jazz", and "Lady Ella". She was noted for her purity of tone, impeccable diction, phrasing, timing, i ...

Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Davis adopted a variety of musi ...

Joe Zawinul Josef Erich Zawinul ( '; 7 July 1932 – 11 September 2007) was an Austrian jazz and jazz fusion keyboardist and composer. First coming to prominence with saxophonist Cannonball Adderley, Zawinul went on to play with Miles Davis and to b ...

, Ice-T, Big Daddy Kane, Sarah Vaughan, Dizzy Gillespie,

George Benson George Washington Benson (born March 22, 1943) is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He began his professional career at the age of 19 as a jazz guitarist. A former child prodigy, Benson first came to prominence in the 1960s, pla ...

Luther Vandross Luther Ronzoni Vandross Jr. (April 20, 1951 – July 1, 2005) was an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. Known for his sweet and soulful vocals, Vandross has sold over 40 million records worldwide. He achieved eleven consecutive P ...

Dionne Warwick Marie Dionne Warwick (; born December 12, 1940) is an American singer, actress, and television host. Warwick ranks among the 40 biggest U.S. hit makers between 1955 and 1999, based on her chart history on ''Billboards Hot 100 pop singles ch ...

Barry White Barry Eugene Carter (September 12, 1944 – July 4, 2003), better known by his stage name Barry White, was an American singer and songwriter. A two-time Grammy Award winner known for his bass voice and romantic image, his greatest success came ...

, Chaka Khan,

Take 6 Take 6 is an American a cappella gospel sextet formed in 1980 on the campus of Oakwood College in Huntsville, Alabama. The group integrates jazz with spiritual and inspirational lyrics. Take 6 has received several Grammy Awards as well as Dove ...

Bobby McFerrin Robert Keith McFerrin Jr. (born March 11, 1950) is an American folk and jazz singer. He is known for his vocal techniques, such as singing fluidly but with quick and considerable jumps in pitch—for example, sustaining a melody while also ra ...

Al Jarreau Alwin Lopez Jarreau (March 12, 1940 – February 12, 2017) was an American singer and musician. His 1981 album '' Breakin' Away'' spent two years on the ''Billboard'' 200 and is considered one of the finest examples of the Los Angeles pop and R ...

, Al B. Sure!,

James Ingram James Edward Ingram (February 16, 1952 – January 29, 2019) was an American singer, songwriter and record producer. He was a two-time Grammy Award-winner and a two-time Academy Award nominee for Best Original Song. After beginning his career i ...

, El DeBarge,

Ray Charles Ray Charles Robinson Sr. (September 23, 1930 – June 10, 2004) was an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. He is regarded as one of the most iconic and influential singers in history, and was often referred to by contemporaries as "The Ge ...

and a 12-year-old Tevin Campbell.

Overview

Multiple singles were lifted from the album and found success on

Pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop!, a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Albums * ''Pop'' (G ...

and R&B radio, including "I'll Be Good to You", "I Don't Go for That", "The Secret Garden (Sweet Seduction Suite)", and "Tomorrow (A Better You, Better Me)" which was originally an instrumental track on

the Brothers Johnson The Brothers Johnson were an American funk and R&B band consisting of American musicians and brothers George ("Lightnin' Licks") and Louis E. Johnson ("Thunder Thumbs"). They achieved their greatest success from the mid-1970s to early 1980s, ...

's '' Look Out for #1'' set. "Tomorrow" is also noteworthy for introducing a young Tevin Campbell to the music scene. ''Back on the Block'' won the 1991

Grammy Award for Album of the Year The Grammy Award for Album of the Year is presented by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to "honor artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in the recording industry, without regar ...

. Jones' track, "Setembro (of brazilian composers Gilson Peranzzetta and

Ivan Lins Ivan Guimarães Lins (born June 16, 1945) is a Latin Grammy-winning Brazilian musician. He has been an active performer and songwriter of Brazilian popular music (MPB) and jazz for over thirty years. His first hit, "Madalena", was recorded by ...

)" was featured on the

soundtrack A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying and synchronised to the images of a motion picture, drama, book, television program, radio program, or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack o ...

of the 1991 film, ''

Boyz n the Hood ''Boyz n the Hood'' is a 1991 American coming-of-age hood drama film written and directed by John Singleton in his feature directorial debut. It stars Cuba Gooding Jr., Morris Chestnut, Ice Cube, Laurence Fishburne, Nia Long, Regina King, ...

''. ''Back on the Block'' topped the R&B Albums chart at number-one for twelve weeks, and topped the Contemporary Jazz Albums chart as well.

Ella Fitzgerald and Sarah Vaughan

''Back on the Block'' featured the last studio recordings of jazz singers

and Sarah Vaughan. Fitzgerald and Jones had previously worked together on her 1963 album with

Count Basie William James "Count" Basie (; August 21, 1904 – April 26, 1984) was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. In 1935, he formed the Count Basie Orchestra, and in 1936 took them to Chicago for a long engagement and th ...

, ''

Ella and Basie! ''Ella and Basie!'' is a 1963 studio album by Ella Fitzgerald, accompanied by Count Basie and his orchestra, with arrangements by Quincy Jones and Benny Carter. It was later reissued with slightly different cover art as ''On the Sunny Side of the ...

''. Jones had produced three albums with Sarah Vaughan when they both worked for

Mercury Records Mercury Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It had significant success as an independent operation in the 1940s and 1950s. Smash Records and Fontana Records were sub labels of Mercury. In the United States, it is ...

Grammy Awards

At the

33rd Grammy Awards The 33rd Annual Grammy Awards were held on February 20, 1991. They recognized accomplishments by musicians from the previous year. Quincy Jones was the night's biggest winner winning a total of six awards including Album of the Year. Performers ...

, ''Back on the Block'' won seven Grammy Awards, including the

. In arranging,

Jerry Hey Jerry Hey (born 1950) is an American trumpeter, flugelhornist, horn arranger, string arranger, orchestrator and session musician who has played on hundreds of commercial recordings, including Michael Jackson's ''Thriller'', ''Rock with You'', ...

, Quincy Jones, Ian Prince and

Rod Temperton Rodney Lynn Temperton (9 October 1949 – 25 September 2016) was an English songwriter, producer and musician. Temperton was the keyboardist and main songwriter for the 1970s pop music, disco and funk band Heatwave, writing songs including " ...

won the Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Arrangement for " Birdland", and

Glen Ballard Basil Glen Ballard Jr. (born May 1, 1953) is an American songwriter, lyricist, and record producer. He is best known for co-writing and producing Alanis Morissette's 1995 album ''Jagged Little Pill'', which won Grammy Awards for Best Rock Album ...

, Hey, Jones and Clif Magness won the Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocal(s) for "The Places You Find Love". Jones also won the Grammy Award for Best Jazz Fusion Performance for "Birdland", and the Grammy Award for Producer of the Year, Non-Classical. Bruce Swedien won the Grammy Award for Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical for his work on the album.

and Chaka Khan won the

Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal The Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by man ...

for "I'll Be Good To You". The Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group went to Big Daddy Kane, Ice-T, Kool Moe Dee,

Melle Mel Melvin Glover (born May 15, 1961 in The Bronx), better known by his stage name Grandmaster Melle Mel (or simply Melle Mel) () is an American hip hop recording artist who was the lead vocalist and songwriter of Grandmaster Flash and the Furio ...

Quincy Jones III Quincy Delight Jones III (born 23 December 1968), better known as QDIII, QD3 and Snoopy, is an English-born Swedish-American music producer and film producer. Family Jones was born in Wimbledon, London, the son of Swedish model Ulla Andersson ...

and Jones for "Back on the Block".

Track listing

All tracks produced by

and

. ”Tomorrow (A Better You, A Better Me)” co-produced by

Charts

Weekly charts

Certifications

Personnel

Adapted credits from the liner notes of ''Back on the Block''. *

– lead vocals (track 1), choir conductor (7), handclaps (2, 6, 9), drums (6), drum machine (2), M1 pads (10) *

Gerald Albright Gerald Albright is an American jazz saxophonist. He earned Grammys for 24/7 in 2012 and Slam Dunk in 2014 and has been nominated for New Beginnings in 2008 and for Sax for Stax in 2009. Biography Born in Los Angeles, Albright grew up in its ...

– alto saxophone solo (tracks 10, 12) * Nadirah Ali – background vocals (track 3) * Maxi Anderson – background vocals (track 7) *

– guitar solo (tracks 8–10) * Peggi Blu – sampled background vocals (track 7) *

Michael Boddicker Michael Lehmann Boddicker (born January 19, 1953) is an American film composer and session musician, specializing in electronic music. He is a three times National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (N.A.R.A.S.) Most Valuable Player "Synthes ...

– drum machine (track 2), M1 pads (10), synth pads (10), synth programming (4, 7, 9) * McKinley Brown – background vocals (track 12) *

Ollie E. Brown Ollie E. Brown (sometimes credited as simply Ollie Brown) (born April 20, 1953) is an American drummer, percussionist, record producer, and high-school basketball coach. A prolific session musician, Brown has performed on over a hundred albums in ...

– percussion (track 12) * Jorge Calandrelli – synth strings (track 13) * Tevin Campbell – lead vocals (tracks 2, 12) *

– lead vocals (track 4) * Paulinho da Costa – percussion (track 10, sampled on 7) *

Andraé Crouch Andraé Edward Crouch (July 1, 1942 – January 8, 2015) was an American gospel singer, songwriter, arranger, record producer and pastor. Referred to as "the father of modern gospel music" by contemporary Christian and gospel music profess ...

– vocal arranger, choir conductor, background vocals (tracks 2, 7) * Sandra Crouch – choir conductor (track 2), background vocals (2, 7) *

– trumpet solo (tracks 8–9) * El DeBarge – lead and background vocals (track 14) *

George Duke George M. Duke (January 12, 1946 – August 5, 2013) was an American keyboardist, composer, singer-songwriter and record producer. He worked with numerous artists as arranger, music director, writer and co-writer, record producer and as a pr ...

– keyboard solo (track 10, 11) * Chad Durio – backing vocals (track 12) * Sheila E. – timbales solo (track 11) *

Nathan East Nathan Harrell East (born December 8, 1955) is an American jazz, R&B, and rock bass player and vocalist. With more than 2,000 recordings, East is one of the most recorded bass players in the history of music. East holds a Bachelor of Arts deg ...

– bass guitar (track 9) * Geary Lanier Faggett – background vocals (track 7) * Vonciele Faggett – background vocals (tracks 2, 7) *

– lead vocals (tracks 6, 8–9) * Kenneth Ford – background vocals (track 12) * Jania Foxworth – background vocals (track 12) *

Siedah Garrett Deborah Christine "Siedah" Garrett (born June 24, 1960) is an American singer and songwriter who has written songs and performed backing vocals for many recording artists in the music industry, such as Michael Jackson, the Pointer Sisters, Brand N ...

– lead vocals (tracks 3, 6–7, 11), background vocals (tracks 3, 11, 14, sampled on 7, additional on 4), choir director (12) * Tammi Gibson – background vocals (tracks 2, 7) * Dizzy Gillespie – trumpet solo (tracks 8–9) * James Gilstrap – background vocals (track 4) * J. C. Gomez – African percussion (track 2) * Jackie Gouche – background vocals (track 7) * Gary Grant – trumpet (track 9) * Reginale Green – background vocals (track 12) *

Herbie Hancock Herbert Jeffrey Hancock (born April 12, 1940) is an American jazz pianist, keyboardist, bandleader, and composer. Hancock started his career with trumpeter Donald Byrd's group. He shortly thereafter joined the Miles Davis Quintet, where he hel ...

– keyboard solo (tracks 3, 7, 10), synth pads (10) * Alex Harris – background vocals (track 12) *

Howard Hewett Howard Hewett Jr. (born October 1, 1955) is an American singer–songwriter. Hewett rose to fame as the lead vocalist of the group Shalamar. In 1985, he left the group to pursue his solo career, but he later returned to the group in 2001. He si ...

– sampled background vocals (track 7) *

– trumpet (track 9), additional keyboards (7) *

Jennifer Holliday Jennifer Yvette Holliday (born October 19, 1960) is an American actress and singer. She started her career on Broadway theatre, Broadway in musicals such as ''Dreamgirls (musical), Dreamgirls'' (1981–83), ''Your Arms Too Short to Box with G ...

– sampled background vocals (track 7) * Pattie Howard – sampled background vocals (track 7) * Ice-T – rap (track 2) *

– lead vocals (track 14), additional background vocals (4), sampled background vocals (7) *

Jesse Jackson Jesse Louis Jackson ( né Burns; born October 8, 1941) is an American political activist, Baptist minister, and politician. He was a candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1984 and 1988 and served as a shadow U.S. senato ...

– narrator (track 2) *

Paul Jackson Jr. Paul Milton Jackson Jr. (born December 30, 1959) is an American fusion/urban jazz composer, arranger, producer and guitarist. He was born and raised in Los Angeles. Jackson knew by the age of fifteen that he wanted to become a professional musi ...

– sampled guitar (track 7) *

– vocals (track 6) * George Johnson – guitar (track 4), sampled background vocals (4) * Louis Johnson – Moog synth bass (tracks 2, 4), bass guitar (2, 4, sampled on 7), sampled background vocals (4) * Tiffany Johnson – background vocals (track 12) * Jean Johnson-McRath – background vocals (tracks 2, 7) * Big Daddy Kane – rap (vocals) (tracks 2, 8 * Randy Kerber – keyboards (track 12), sampled keyboards (7), sampled synthesizer (7), synth bass (12) * Chaka Khan – lead vocals (tracks 4, 7) * Michael Landau – sampled guitar (track 7) * Rhett Lawrence – Fairlight bass and analog guitar synthesizer (track 7) * Edie Lehman – background vocals (tracks 6, 7) *

Steve Lukather Steven Lee Lukather (born October 21, 1957) is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, arranger and record producer, best known as the sole continuous founding member of the rock band Toto. His reputation as a skilled guitarist led to a stead ...

– guitar (tracks 12, 14) *

Clif Magness Clifton “Clif” Magness is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and multi-instrumentalist, best known for co-writing and producing several tracks on Avril Lavigne’s 2002 debut album, '' Let Go'' including the song " Losing Grip". ...

– sampled background vocals (track 7) *

Harvey Mason Sr. Harvey William Mason (born February 22, 1947) is an American jazz drummer, record producer, and member of the band Fourplay. Mason, who attended Berklee in the 1960s, received an Honorary Doctorate at Berklee's 2015 Commencement Ceremony ...

– drums (track 4) * Donovan McCrary – background vocals (track 12) * Howard McCrary – background vocals (tracks 2, 7) *

– vocals, additional percussion (track 6) *

– rap (track 2) * Kool Moe Dee – rap (tracks 2, 8) * James Moody – alto saxophone solo (tracks 8–9) * Perry Morgan – background vocals (tracks 2, 7) *

David Paich David Frank Paich (born June 25, 1954) is an American musician, best known as the co-founder, principal songwriter, keyboardist and singer of the rock band Toto since 1977. He wrote or co-wrote much of Toto's original material, including the ban ...

– keyboards (tracks 4, 10, additional on 7) * Phil Perry – additional background vocals (track 4) * Tyren Perry – background vocals (track 12) *

Greg Phillinganes Gregory Arthur Phillinganes (born May 12, 1956) is an American keyboardist, singer-songwriter, and musical director based in Los Angeles, California. A prolific session musician, Phillinganes has contributed the role of keyboards to numerous alb ...

– keyboards (tracks 2, 4, 10–11), Fender Rhodes (12, 14) *

Steve Porcaro Steven Maxwell Porcaro (born September 2, 1957) is an American keyboardist, songwriter, and film composer, known as one of the founding members of the rock band Toto and the last surviving Porcaro brother (after the deaths of Jeff in 1992 and ...

– synth programming (tracks 2, 4, 7, 10) * Ian Prince – keyboards (tracks 3–4, 9–11), vocoder (6), background vocals (3) * Bill Reichenbach Jr. – trombone (track 9) *

John Robinson John Robinson may refer to: Academics *John Thomas Romney Robinson (1792–1882), Irish astronomer and physicist * John J. Robinson (1918–1996), historian and author of ''Born in Blood'' *John Talbot Robinson (1923–2001), paleontologist *John ...

– drums (tracks 12, 14, sampled on 7) * Derrick Schofield – background vocals (track 7) *

Caiphus Semenya Caiphus Semenya (born 19 August 1939) is a South African composer and musician. He was born in Alexandra, Gauteng, Johannesburg, South Africa. He left South Africa for Los Angeles, California, United States, in the 1960s, together with his wife ...

– background vocals (track 2) * Shane Shoaf – background vocals (track 12) * Alfie Silas – background vocals (tracks 2, 7) * Neil Stubenhaus – bass guitar (14) * Rose Stone – choir director (track 12), background vocals (2, 7) *

Bill Summers Bill Summers may refer to: *Bill Summers (car builder) (1935–2011), American car builder and longtime speed record holder *Bill Summers (musician) (born 1948), American jazz percussionist * Bill Summers (umpire) (1895–1966), American umpire *'' ...

– percussion (track 8, African on 2, additional on 7),

hindewhu Pygmy music refers to the sub-Saharan African music traditions of the Central African foragers (or "Pygmies"), predominantly in the Congo, the Central African Republic and Cameroon. Pygmy groups include the Bayaka, the Mbuti, and the Batwa. ...

* Al B. Sure! – lead and background vocals (track 14) * Bruce Swedien – recording engineer (all tracks), mixing (all tracks), kick & snare drums (tracks 4, 14) *

– background vocals (tracks 1, 6, 10) *

– drum machine (tracks 1–2), handclaps (2, 6, 9) *

Ian Underwood Ian Robertson Underwood (born May 22, 1939) is a woodwind and keyboards player, known for his work with Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention. Biography Underwood graduated from The Choate School in 1957 and Yale University with a bachelor ...

– handclaps (tracks 2, 6, 9), synth programming (3–4, 10) *

– sampled background vocals (track 7) * Sarah Vaughan – lead vocals (tracks 6, 8–10) * Mervyn Warren – background vocals (tracks 1, 6, 10), voices (5) *

– sampled background vocals (track 7) *

– lead vocals (track 14) * Larry Williams – saxophone (track 9), keyboards (9, 13–14, sampled on 7), sampled synthesizer (7), synth programming (3–4, 11, 13–14) *

Syreeta Wright Syreeta Wright (February 28, 1946 – July 6, 2004), who recorded professionally under the single name Syreeta, was an American singer-songwriter, best known for her music during the early 1970s through the early 1980s. Wright's career heights we ...

– sampled background vocals (track 4) * Charity Young – background vocals (track 12) * Michael C. Young – synth programming (track 9) *

– synthesizer solo (tracks 2, 8), sampled synthesizer (9)

Notes

References

{{Authority control Quincy Jones albums 1989 albums Grammy Award for Album of the Year Albums produced by Quincy Jones Albums arranged by Quincy Jones Qwest Records albums New jack swing albums Grammy Award for Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical

Overview

Ella Fitzgerald and Sarah Vaughan

Grammy Awards

Track listing

Charts

Weekly charts

Certifications

Personnel

See also

Notes

References