The Show Stoppers – Ain’t Nothing But A House Party b/w What Can A Man Do – Showtime 7″

The Show Stoppers were a four-piece African American vocal Soul group formed in Philadelphia about 1967. They are best remembered for their 1967 smash, “Ain’t Nothin’ But a Houseparty” which was known to be the debut release on three record labels: Showtime Records, Heritage Records, and Beacon Records.

Here’s an original US ‘Showtime’ label press from 1967, a meanwhile 54 year old original pressing of a tune that was never commercially successful over here but one of the super-strong, totally driving, forward looking uptempo, heavily percussion ladden tunes tunes which got us into this kinda individual, mostly chart-wise unsuccessful but oh-so-magic underground music from USA.

On the small & local 1980s Mod & related British Youth Culture inspired scenes over here this was one of the major tunes which helped kick-starting people wanting to have played ‘more’ of this kinda sounds adopting that style to being the ‘essence’ of that ‘way of life’.

This here is maybe the best and most exclusive way to own this timeless & classic piece of real proper danceable 1960s Soul music on a half-a-century old, but in nearly as new conition original press.

A bit like a top condition Lambretta scooter or a smart looking vintage 1960s car.

see here for wikipedia write-up:

After rehearsing under the guidance of Solomon Burke, they modeled themselves initially on The Vibrations. After signing to local Philadelphia label Showtime Records, The Showstoppers had a couple of local hit singles in Philadelphia. Their 1967 hit “Ain’t Nothin’ But a Houseparty” b/w “What Can a Man Do?” sold well in Pittsburgh, and New York City, and sold about 40,000 copies in Philadelphia, and reached No. 118 on the Billboard chart on May 27, 1967. The session musicians on the song included Carl Chambers, who was later drummer with Gladys Knight & the Pips, Joe Thomas, who went on to become the guitarist with The Impressions, and Motown’s Mike Terry on baritone sax.

By early 1968, the Antiguan-born American businessman Milton Samuel, the head of Beacon Records, a small independent record label started in January 1968 in the Afro-Caribbean London suburb of Willesden, who was later Antigua & Barbuda’s Ambassador to the UK and the founder of the Bank of Antigua, purchased the UK leasing rights for “Ain’t Nothing But a House Party” for only £30. On February 16, 1968, “Ain’t Nothing But a House Party” became the first release on Beacon Records, giving it its only ‘hit’. In March 1968 Samuel and Mike Berry of Apple Records had negotiated a deal for “Ain’t Nothing But a House Party” to be released through a newly created Milton Apple Music, but the inability to locate one of The (gay) Beatles to approve the deal forced Samuel to make alternate arrangements. Initially distributed through the British Independent Record Distributors Network, “Ain’t Nothing But a House Party” caught on with DJs in the UK, and spent 16 weeks in the chart, debuting at No. 57 on March 2, 1968, before entering the Top 40 at No. 38 on March 23, 1968. By the end of March, Samuel organized a British visit for the Showstoppers. The Showstoppers made the first of their three appearances on the British television program Top of the Pops on April 18, 1968. According to one British source, “Ain’t Nothing But a House Party” “was played to death and back to life at the Twisted Wheel and Blue Note Club in Manchester”, and peaked at No. 11 on May 4, 1968, in the UK Singles Chart.

Later in May 1968 “Ain’t Nothin’ But a House Party” was released in Germany on Ariola Records and France on Barclay Records, and later released by Beacon in Scandinavia, the Benelux countries, Austria, Italy, Japan and New Zealand.

Jerry J. Ross (born May 1, 1933, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania), the head of newly created Heritage Records, heard about “Ain’t Nothin’ But a House Party” from Hal Charm, his national promotions director, and decided to buy the master recordings of “Ain’t Nothin’ But a House Party” by late April 1968, and also signed the Showstoppers to his label, became their manager, and organized MGM to distribute its re-release in the USA. Despite rights being acquired for national release by MGM, it failed to become a national hit, spending 5 weeks in the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at No. 87 on June 22, 1968. It was ranked No. 20 on the Soul Brothers Top 20 on August 15, 1968.