The Main Ingredient
This New York-based trio, Don ald McPherson (b. 9 July 1941, d. 4 July 1971), Luther Simmons Jnr. (b. 9 September 1942) and Tony Sylvester (b. 7 October 1941, Panama) made their recording debut in 1965. One of several groups using the name ‘the Poets’, they decided to become the Main Ingredient and signed with producer Bert DeCoteaux, whose lush arrangements provided the requisite foil for their excellent harmonies. This skill was particularly apparent on such early releases as I'm So Proud (1970), Spinning Around (I Must Be Falling In Love) and Black Seeds Keep On Growing (both 1971). McPherson died from leukaemia in 1971 and, ironically, it was his replacement, Cuba Gooding, who sang on the group's million-seller Everybody Plays The Fool. Although the Ingredient went on to enjoy further commercial success, their work grew increasingly bland and lacked the purpose of those early releases. Gooding embarked on a solo career with Motownin 1977, but reunited with Sylvester and Simmons in 1979, continuing to record under the Main Ingredient name into the '80s.