Dude sounds like a lady: Arnold Blair

Arnold Blair was a singer signed to Curtis Mayfield's Curtom Records during the label's most creatively fertile period in the early 1970s--its roster included Linda Clifford, The Natural Four, June Conquest, The Notations, and the great, under-extolled singer, songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist Leroy Hutson, who co-wrote with Blair 1975's "Trying To Get Next To You":



Blair contributed background vocals to a bunch of other Curtom records but as far as I know, "Trying To Get Next To You" is his only release under his own name, with the majestic ballad "I Won The Big Deal" on the B side (and yes, he totally sounds like a chick on that cut, too). The 7" has long been one of the most coveted platters on the rare groove circuit, and it easily fetches hundreds of dollars upon its periodical appearances on the collectors market. One of the aspects of this record that soulkids find eternally fascinating is that for a record from 1975, it sounds so darn "modern," almost like something the Mizell Brothers or Roy Ayers could have produced in the late 70s or early 80s.

I sometimes wonder what happened to Arnold Blair after Curtom closed its doors in 1980. The most recent credit I've seen for him was a 1996 gospel album, and his name isn't even on the cover. Neither is his face. I've never seen a picture of him.




For some reason, I always imagine him looking like Randy Watson, though.