The Mac Band

The Mac Band was an R&B group from the late 80s\early 90s consisting of a group of four brothers: Ray, Derrick, Charles, and Kelvin McCampbell and musicians Ray Flippin (bass), Rodney Frazier (keyboards), Mark Harper (guitar), and Sly Fuller (drums).

The McCampbell brothers hail from Flint, Michigan.
In 1988, they released their debut album "The Mac Band Featuring the McCampbell Brothers" which peaked at #109 on the Billboard 200 chart and #22 on Billboard's R&B Albums chart.The group's first single and biggest hit to date, "Roses are Red" topped Billboard's Hot Black Singles chart in July of 1988, topping the chart for a week and staying on the chart for 17 weeks.

In the U.K., the song peaked at #8 on the U.K. Singles chart, staying on the chart for 13 weeks.

The second single, "Stuck" peaked at #25 on Billboard's Hot Black Singles chart, staying on the chart for 13 weeks.

The third single from the album, "Stalemate" peaked at #40 on the U.K. Singles chart, staying on the chart for 4 weeks.

The fourth single, "Jealous" peaked at #90 on the U.K. Singles chart, staying on the chart for only 2 weeks.

The last single from the album, "That's the Way I Look at Love" peaked at #70 on Billboard's Hot Black Singles chart, staying on the chart for 7 weeks.

In 1990, the Mac Band released their sophomore album, "Love U 2 the Limit" which failed to make the charts at all.

The first single, "Someone to Love" peaked at #27 on Billboard's Hot Black Singles chart, staying on the chart for 12 weeks.

The follow-up single, the title song, managed to peak at #52 on Billboard's Hot R&B Singles chart, staying on the chart for 12 weeks.

A promo single, "I Could Never Say Goodbye" was released, but didn't chart.

In 1991, the Mac Band released their last album, "The Real Deal" which peaked at #78 on Billboard's R&B Albums chart.

The only single to chart was "Everythang" which peaked at #73 on Billboard's Hot R&B Singles chart, staying on the chart for only 6 weeks.

After that, the Mac Band went their separate ways.

These days, Charles McCampbell runs a music studio in Duncanville, Texas.

Derrick McCampbell is the worship leader for "The Bridge" service at the Stonebridge United Methodist Church in McKinney, Texas.

He also follows his basketball passion by leading his signature "D-Mac" Hoops Basketball camps across the Dallas, Texas metro area. The camps are focused on team building, basketball skills, and Christian values.

Mark Harper continues to be active in the music business and released his solo jazz album, "The Mark Harper Project" which is available on CD Baby and iTunes.

He was a member of the Wayman Tisdale Band and the lead guitarist for Tower of Power. Mark has performed with artists such as Kirk Whalum, Toby Keith, Charlie Pride, Ronnie Laws, Yolanda Adams, BeBe Winans, and the late Phyllis Hyman.

He is also the leader of the Mark Harper Acoustic Band.  It is unknown what the other members of the band are up to.

To see Mark Harper's official website, go to:
http://www.markharpermusic.com/

To see the music video for "Roses Are Red," go to:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7WbJXY6epVo

To see the music video for "Stuck," go to:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WV8l9f9pjUk

To see a fan-made video for "That's The Way I Look at Love," go to:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cu0iSma6WLM

To see the music video for "Someone to Love," go to:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CAzqeExNYvc

To see a fan-made video for "Love U 2 the Limit," go to:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7936uJlvZAY

To see the music video for "Everythang," go to:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zIEXEIyfjRs



[updated on 05\23\12]

Colonel Abrams

Singer\songwriter Colonel Abrams (which is his real name) was born in Detroit, Michigan.

When he was ten years old, he and his family moved to New York. He was a member of music group Conservative Manor along with his brother, Morris.

By 1976, Colonel was singing lead vocals for music group 94 East (whose lineup featured Prince on guitar) before leaving to join New Jersey music group, Surprise Package.

In 1984, Colonel recorded his debut single, "Leave the Message Behind the Door" on New York's Streetwise record label.

The song managed to peak at #73 on Billboard's Black Singles chart, staying on the chart for 5 weeks.

His second single, "Music is the Answer" peaked at #11 on Billboard's Hot Dance Music\Club Play chart.

After that, Colonel Abrams was signed to MCA Records. In the U.K., the song managed to peak at #84 on the UK Singles chart, staying on the chart for 3 weeks.
In 1985, Colonel released his self-titled debut album which peaked at #75 on the Billboard 200 chart and #13 on Billboard's R&B Albums chart.

The first single from the album, "Trapped" peaked at #20 on Billboard's Hot Black Singles chart, staying on the chart for 14 weeks.

It became his first number-one dance hit, topping Billboard's Hot Dance Music\Club Play and Maxi-Singles Sales chart for a week in September of 1985.

In the U.K., the song peaked at #3 on the U.K. Singles chart for 24 weeks.

The second single from the album, "The Truth" peaked at #28 on Billboard's Hot Dance Music\Maxi Singles Sales chart and #78 on Billboard's Hot Black Singles chart, staying on the chart for 5 weeks.

It also peaked at #53 on the U.K. Singles chart, staying on the chart for 4 weeks.

In February of 1986, all of the cuts from Colonel's debut album topped Billboard's Hot Dance Music\Club Play chart for two weeks.

He earned his third number one dance hit with the song "I'm Not Gonna Let" topped the dance charts for a week in March of 1986.

The song also peaked at #2 on Billboard's Hot Dance Music\Maxi-Singles Sales chart and #7 on Billboard's Hot Black Singles chart, staying on the chart for 15 weeks.

It also peaked at #24 on the U.K. Singles chart, staying on the chart for 7 weeks.

The fourth single, "Over and Over" peaked at #45 on Billboard's Hot Dance Music\Club Play chart, #19 on Billboard's Hot Dance Music\Maxi-Singles Sales chart, and #68 on Billboard's Hot Black Singles chart, staying on the chart for 8 weeks.

The last single from the album, "Speculation" peaked at #15 on Billboard's Hot Dance Music\Club Play chart and #10 on Billboard's Hot Dance Music\Maxi-Singles Sales chart.

In 1987, Colonel Abrams released his sophomore album, "You and Me Equals Us" which peaked at #25 on Billboard's R&B Albums chart.

The first single from the album, "How Soon We Forget" topped Billboard's Hot Dance Music\Club Play chart for 2 weeks in September of 1987.

The song also peaked at #11 on Billboard's Hot Dance Music\Maxi-Singles Sales chart and #6 on Billboard's Hot Black Singles chart, staying on the chart for 16 weeks.

In the U.K., the song peaked at #75 on the U.K. Singles chart, staying on the chart for 3 weeks. 

The follow-up single, "Nameless" peaked at #54 on Billboard's Hot Black Singles chart, staying on the chart for 12 weeks.
In 1992, Colonel Abrams released his third album, "About Romance" which didn't receive the amount of success his previous albums did.

The first single, "You Don't Know (Somebody Tell Me)" peaked at #58 on Billboard's Hot R&B Singles chart, staying on the chart for 9 weeks.

The follow-up single, "When Somebody Loves Somebody" peaked at #70 on Billboard's Hot R&B Singles chart, staying on the chart for 6 weeks.

In 1995, Colonel released his fourth album, "Victim of Loving You."

Although the title song was an underground club hit, it didn't chart on the Billboard charts at all. This album is considered his rarest album because it went out of print after the release.

In 1996, Colonel released his fifth album, "Make A Difference" which also flopped.

These days, he still appears to be active in the music business.

To see Colonel Abrams' official MySpace page, go to:

www.myspace.com/colonelabramsrecords

To see the music video for "Trapped," go to:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tSNWeXGZMcU

To see the music video for "The Truth," go to:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WficDNu63ko

To see the music video for "Over and Over," go to:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hweCqM9t1vY

To see the music video for "How Soon We Forget," go to:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ORtPn_4Y9sE


[updated on 05\23\12]

"D" Train

"D" Train was an R&B\dance duo consisting of members James "D Train" Williams (who was the lead singer) and Hubert Eaves III (who played the keyboard, bass, and drums).

This group scored a lot of hits on the R&B and dance charts during the 80s.

James and Hubert met in high school and started performing together. Although Hubert spent most of the 70s in the R&B group, Mtume, he and Williams formed "D Train" by the 80s. The group's name comes for James' nickname he got as a high school football player.

In 1982, "D Train" released their debut album, "You're The One For Me" on Prelude Records which peaked at #128 on Billboard's Pop Albums chart and #16 on Billboard's R&B Albums chart. The album peaked at #72 on the U.K. Albums chart.

Their first single, "You're the One For Me" topped Billboard's Hot Dance Music\Club Play chart for 3 weeks in January of 1982. The song also peaked at #13 on Billboard's Hot Soul Singles chart, staying on the chart for 17 weeks.

In the U.K., the song peaked at #30 on the U.K. Singles chart, staying on the chart for 8 weeks. The "Labour of Love" remix version charted at #15 on the U.K. Singles chart in 1985.

The follow-up single from the album, "Keep On" peaked at #15 on Billboard's Hot Soul Singles, staying on the chart for 16 weeks.

The last single from the album, "Walk on By" peaked at #45 on Billboard's Hot Dance Music\Club Play chart and #42 on Billboard's Black Singles chart, staying on the chart for 12 weeks. The song also peaked at #44 on the U.K. Singles chart, staying on the chart for 6 weeks.

In 1983, "D Train" released their sophomore album, "Music" which peaked at #31 on Billboard's R&B Albums chart.

The title song peaked at #12 on Billboard's Hot Dance Music\Club Play chart and #20 on Billboard's Black Singles chart, staying on the chart for 12 weeks.

It also peaked at #23 on the U.K. Singles chart, staying on the chart for 8 weeks. The remixed version peaked at #62 on the U.K. Singles chart in 1985.

The follow-up single from the album, "Keep Giving Me Love" peaked at #24 on Billboard's Hot Dance Music\Club Play chart and #55 on Billboard's Black Singles chart, staying on the chart for 10 weeks. The song also peaked at #65 on the U.K. Singles chart for 4 weeks.

Another single, "The Shadow of Your Smile" peaked at #88 on the U.K. Singles chart, staying on the chart for a week.

In 1984, D-Train released their third and last album, "Something's On Your Mind" which didn't chart at all.

The title song became their biggest hit to date, peaking at #79 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #5 on Billboard's Black Singles chart, staying on the chart for 19 weeks.

In 1985, D-Train released the single, "Just Another Night (Without Your Love)" peaked at #59 on Billboard's Hot Black Singles chart, staying on the chart for 8 weeks.

After that, the duo left Prelude Records after releasing three albums on their label. Although they kept working together, James Williams signed to Columbia Records as a solo artist.

In 1986, James Williams released his debut solo album, "Miracles of the Heart." The album scored a top 10 R&B hit, "Misunderstanding." Another single, "Oh, How I Love You Girl" fared moderately well on the R&B charts.

In 1988, James released his sophomore album, "In Your Eyes" which didn't reach the same amount of success as his first album and by the 90's, his success started to fade and "D Train" had seemed to fade into obscurity.

James "D Train" Williams has worked with numerous artists such as Michael Jackson, the late Luther Vandross, Elton John, Vanessa Williams, Natalie Cole, Mary J. Blige, and American Idol Season 2 runner-up, Clay Aiken.

Along with that, he also works as a jingle vocalist and worked on spots for commercials such as Verizon, K-Mart, AT&T, Kodak, and Got Milk.

James is even an actor, starring in films such as "Keeping the Faith" with Ben Stiller and "A Walk in the Park" with Richard Gere and Winona Ryder. He also sang the theme song to the children's tv show, "Pokemon" and did background vocals for the Walt Disney movie, "Hercules."
In 2009, James released his third solo album, "701 Franklin Ave" which is available to download from his official website and off Amazon.com.

As for Hubert Eaves, nothing much has been heard from him. He has seemed to fade into obscurity.

To see James "D-Train" Williams' official website, go to:

http://www.jamesdtrainwilliams.com/

To see a fan-made video for "You're the One For Me," go to:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QWmteg9guoo

To see a fan-made video for "Keep On," go to:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qY1RvCU0rII

To see a fan-made video for "Walk on By," go to:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zmEgxqSnHXQ

To see a fan-made video for "Music," go to:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sErHC02QODE

To see a fan-made video for "Keep Giving Me Love," go to:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q27Pg5iWyKk

To see a fan-made video for "Something's on Your Mind," go to:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JwdN4nMzwDU

To see a fan-made video for "You're the Reason," go to:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tkKrfAClZ-o

To see a fan-made video for "Just Another Night (Without Your Love)," go to:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xA3mQl2uv6o

Check out James "D-Train" Williams'  fan-made videos from his solo albums:

To see a fan-made video for "Oh How I Love You (Girl)," go to:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1_tP9y2IUdA

To see a fan-made video for "Misunderstanding," go to:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mrlARuWMing

To see a fan-made video for "In Your Eyes," go to:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NZso5lazoI0


[updated on 05\24\12]

Ex-Girlfriend

Ex-Girlfriend were an R&B group from New York that consisted of members Tisha Hunter, Monica Boyd, Julia Robinson, and Stacy Francis.

They were the first group signed to Full Force's label, Forceful Records (which was distributed by Reprise Records\WEA) and were introduced to Full Force by Yvette Shure of Black Beat Magazine.

Tisha, Monica, and Julia were members of R&B group, Petite, who scored a minor R&B hit in 1986 with the song, "So Fine." After taking a break, the girls reformed in 1989 and after they added Stacy to the group, they re-named themselves "Ex-Girlfriend."

In 1991, Ex-Girlfriend released their debut album, "X Marks the Spot" which peaked at #37 on Billboard's R&B Albums chart.

Their first single and biggest hit, "Why Can't You Come Home" peaked at #78 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #5 on Billboard's Hot R&B Singles chart, staying on the chart for 19 weeks.

The follow-up single, "You (You're the One For Me)" peaked at #35 on Billboard's Hot R&B Singles chart, staying on the chart for 13 weeks.

In 1992, they were featured on the "Zebrahead" movie soundtrack with the track, "Colorless Love." It's unknown how or if the single ever charted.

In 1994, Ex-Girlfriend released their sophomore album, "It's a Woman Thang" which didn't reach the same success as their previous album.

The only single released from the album, "X in Your Sex" failed to chart.

The group was featured on various albums with artists such as Samantha Fox, Jasmine Guy, Cheryl "Pepsii" Riley, and Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam.

After that, it seemed that the group had faded into obscurity.  In 2008, Ex-Girlfriend reunited and was rumored to have started recording their next album in 2009, but as of 2018, nothing much has been heard about the album or the group.

Stacy Francis moved on to acting and even appeared in the Broadway musical, "Footloose."

In 2011, she was a participant on the FOX Network reality series, "The X-Factor," but was eliminated in the live show 4 of the final showdown.

It is unknown what the other members of the group are up to now since there hasn't been word about whether or not they're recording their third album.

To see the group's official MySpace page, go to:

www.myspace.com/officialexgirlfriend

To see Stacy Francis' Facebook page, go to:

https://www.facebook.com/officialstacyfrancis

To see the music video for "Why Can't You Come Home," go to:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QjRwPE_JSOs

To see the music video for "You (You're the One For Me)," go to:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i3oIlURYUi0

To see the music video for "Colorless Love," go to:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DOGF2YagjNE

To see the music video for "X in Your Sex," go to:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RO7vE3aNbPk


[updated on 03\12\2018]