The Emotions

Any playlist of feel-good soul music would be incomplete without the jubilant harmonies of the church-bred Emotions. Essentially a sibling group during their most active years, Chicago natives Sheila, Wanda, and Jeanette Hutchinson got their start singing gospel as youngsters during the late '50s. Near the end of the following decade, recording for the Stax subsidiary Volt, they scored a Top 40 pop hit -- and their first of nine Top Ten R&B hits -- with the title song from So I Can Love You, written by Sheila and produced by Isaac Hayes and David Porter. Frequently collaborating with that duo during their years on Stax/Volt, the group, featuring Theresa Davis while Jeanette started a family, further distinguished themselves with second album Untouched and well over a dozen additional singles. Jeanette returned in time for the group to link with Columbia Records and Earth, Wind & Fire's Maurice White, who produced their next four albums from 1976 through 1979. The first three, Flowers, Rejoice, and Sunbeam, went either gold or platinum on the strength of joyous dancefloor fillers like "I Don't Wanna Lose Your Love" and the chart-topping, Grammy-winning "Best of My Love." White subsequently wanted some of that magic for his group's "Boogie Wonderland," a Top Ten pop hit in 1979. After their three '80s albums charted, the Emotions focused on touring, releasing a live album in 1996. With Wanda as the lone original member, they continued to perform as a family act deep into the 2020s.

Chicago-born sisters Sheila, Wanda, and Jeanette Hutchinson started performing gospel music with their father, Joe Hutchinson, as the Hutchinson Sunbeams in 1957. Their father had been a member of the Wings of Heaven, a gospel group that toured the country. The Hutchinsons went through several group names, recording singles as Hutch Stereo's ("Santa Got Stuck in the Chimney," 1962) and the Sunbeams ("Sing a Song," 1964). Joe eventually left the stage but remained involved as a songwriter. The Hutchinson sisters took their final name, the Emotions, and Pervis Staples became their manager. At Staples' suggestion, the Hutchinsons evolved into a secular R&B act, releasing a handful of singles for the related Brainstorm and Twin Stacks labels during 1967 and 1968.

The Hutchinsons won a talent contest at Chicago's Regal Theater and walked away with first prize, a recording contract with Memphis-based Stax/Volt Records. The label teamed the singers with the hit songwriting/production team of Isaac Hayes and David Porter. The Emotions' 1969 Volt debut, the smooth "So I Can Love You," was written by Sheila and became the group's first charting single, reaching number three on the R&B chart, cracking the pop Top 40, and pushing the like-titled album to number 43 on the R&B album chart. Hayes and Porter created a steady stream of hits for the Emotions with second LP single "The Best Part of a Love Affair" (number 27 R&B) followed by non-album A-sides like "Stealing Love" (number 40 R&B) and "Heart Association" (number 29 R&B). Bettye Crutcher produced the brassy "You Make Me Want to Love You" (number 47 R&B), the group's sixth charting single. At some point after the first album, Sheila left the group to start a family, and was replaced by friend Theresa Davis. In 1971, the group went back up the charts with another Hayes-Porter production, "Show Me How," a number 13 R&B hit. The alluring single highlighted Untouched, also released in 1971. Hayes and Porter did the bulk of the production work for the album, but after that, the Emotions more frequently worked with other Stax staff producers. From 1972 through 1974, the Emotions charted with standalone singles such as "My Honey and Me" and "I Could Never Be Happy," and the poppier, more Jackson 5-ish "From Toys to Boys," "Put a Little Love Away," and "Baby I'm Through." An album planned for release during this period was shelved.

Stax declared bankruptcy in 1975, leaving the Emotions without a record deal. The women became reacquainted with fellow Chicago musician Maurice White, who they had met in the '60s. White was enjoying phenomenal success as the leader of Earth, Wind & Fire. Family friend Ron Ellison coincidentally suggested that they work with EW&F collaborator Charles Stepney, who after an audition recommended the sisters to White. White signed the trio to his Kalimba production company, which had a distribution deal with Columbia Records. Sheila, Wanda, and the returning Jeanette made their Columbia debut in 1976 with Flowers, produced by White and Stepney. A gold-certified album, Flowers was highlighted by the sweet and airy title song and the ebullient "I Don't Wanna Lose Your Love," R&B hits that peaked respectively at number 16 and 13. Youngest Hutchinson sister Pamela joined for their 1977 album Rejoice. Highlighted by the crossover smash "Best of My Love" -- number one R&B and pop, and a Grammy-winner for Best R&B Vocal Performance -- the album went platinum, parking at number one R&B for seven weeks and reaching number seven on the Billboard 200. During the same year, the floundering Stax pieced together Sunshine, combining some nonalbum singles with previously unreleased material. Sunbeam, a new album helmed by White, saw release on Columbia in 1978 and yielded a number six R&B hit with "Smile."

White started his own Columbia-distributed label, ARC (short for American Record Corporation), and the Emotions were welcomed into the fold by powering Earth, Wind & Fire's "Boogie Wonderland." One of the biggest worldwide hits of 1979, the song went Top Ten in many territories, including the U.S., where it scaled up to number six on the pop chart. The Grammy-nominated song (for Best Disco Recording) was included on EW&F's I Am. The Emotions would release two albums for ARC, namely Come Into Our World (another 1979 release) and New Affair (issued in 1981). White produced the former and also contributed to the latter, which involved additional production from Wanda Hutchinson, Bill Meyers, and Wayne Vaughn. The two ARC LPs combined for four R&B chart entries, most notably "What's the Name of Your Love?," a number 30 single created with White and EW&F collaborators Allee Willis and David Foster. Deeper into the decade, Jeanette left the group, and the Emotions released Sincerely for Rich Tufo's independent Red Label in 1984, followed in 1985 by If I Only Knew, issued by Motown and featuring Adrianne Harris in place of Pamela Hutchinson. Sincerely included the sensuous ballad "You're the One," written and produced by Attala Zane Giles and Billy Osborne. Giles and Osborne also produced the ballads "Good Times" and "Eternally" for the Motown effort.

The Emotions wouldn't record another studio album, but they remained active on and off during the next decades. Throughout the latter half of the '80s and into the early '90s, the women contributed background vocals (in varying combinations) to songs by the likes of Tyler Collins, Nancy Wilson, and Earth, Wind & Fire. Sheila, Wanda, and Jeanette independently released Live in '96 the year it was recorded, and subsequently starred in the stage production Bigger Than Bubblegum, based on themselves. In 2000, Jeanette left and Pamela rejoined, and during the rest of that decade, they continued performing while recording with EW&F ("All in the Way") and Snoop Dogg ("Life"). Additionally, the U.K.-based Ace label issued Songs of Innocence and Experience, promoted as the group's shelved third album for Stax, mixing six previously unreleased songs with assorted single sides issued during the era. Sheila left in 2009 and was replaced by Wyann Vaughn, Wanda's daughter. Having dealt with multiple health challenges, Pamela died in 2020. Wendi Vaughn, also Wanda's daughter, eventually joined the group. From 2022 through 2024, Wendi's role was temporarily filled by Crystal Wilson, who had co-written "Supernatural" for the group's last album. Wendi returned in 2025. ~ Andy Kellman & Ed Hogan