Chocolate Milk was an American

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...

and soul band from New Orleans, Louisiana, active in the 1970s and early 1980s.

Biography

Chocolate Milk was formed in 1974 in New Orleans, Louisiana, after the emergence of the bands Kool & the Gang and Earth, Wind & Fire. The eight-piece band included Frank Richard (vocals), Amadee Castenell (saxophone), Joe Foxx (trumpet), Mario Tio (guitars), Earnest Dabon (bass), Robert Dabon (keyboards/piano) and Dwight Richards (drums/percussion). The band also worked as the studio group for songwriter and

producer Producer or producers may refer to: Occupations *Producer (agriculture), a farm operator *A stakeholder of economic production *Film producer, supervises the making of films **Executive producer, contributes to a film's budget and usually does not ...

Allen Toussaint Allen Richard Toussaint (; January 14, 1938 – November 10, 2015) was an American musician, songwriter, arranger and record producer. He was an influential figure in New Orleans rhythm and blues from the 1950s to the end of the century, descri ...

, following the tenure of the Meters as Toussaint's band. Chocolate Milk backed Toussaint as a live band and on his album ''New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival'' (1976), and also recorded with Paul McCartney. The band then signed with RCA Records. Their first of eight albums released on RCA was ''Action Speaks Louder than Words'', an album that included a political message. The title cut, "Action Speaks Louder Than Words" (1975), has a break beat that has been sampled numerous times in hip hop music, including "Move the Crowd" from the 1987 album '' Paid in Full'' by Eric B. & Rakim, and "Don't Let Your Mouth Write a Check Your Ass Can't Cash" (1991) by Stetsasonic. The band became known for "Action Speaks Louder than Words", and other hit songs: "Girl Callin'" (1978), "Say Won't Cha" (1979), and "I'm Your Radio" (1980). The band was also known for their versatility in musical styles, later adding elements of

disco Disco is a genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the 1970s from the United States' urban nightlife scene. Its sound is typified by four-on-the-floor beats, syncopated basslines, string sections, brass and horns, electric pia ...

, prevalent on their 1981 hit, "Blue Jeans" which peaked at number fifteen on the soul chart. Chocolate Milk broke up in 1983 due to the waning popularity of disco, numerous personnel changes, and changes in producers after splitting with Toussaint in 1980.Phillips, Dan (2006). ''Action Speaks Louder than Words''

D liner notes D, or d, is the fourth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''dee'' (pronounced ), plural ''dees''. History The ...

Sony/BMG Music Entertainment.

Discography

Studio albums

* ''Action Speaks Louder than Words'' ( RCA, 1975) * ''Chocolate Milk'' (RCA, 1976) * ''Comin (RCA, 1976) * ''We're All in This Together'' (RCA, 1977) * ''Milky Way'' (RCA, 1979) * ''Hipnotism'' (RCA, 1980) * ''Blue Jeans'' (RCA, 1981) * ''Friction'' (RCA, 1982)

Compilation albums

* ''Ice Cold Funk: The Greatest Grooves of Chocolate Milk'' ( Razor & Tie, 1998) * ''Best of Chocolate Milk'' (Camden, 2002)

Singles

References

External links

Chocolate Milk
at Discogs
Chocolate Milk at T-Mad's Music
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chocolate Milk (band) Musical groups established in 1974 American disco groups American funk musical groups Musical groups from New Orleans American soul musical groups RCA Records artists