The O'Jays Previews First Album In 15 Years With Soothing 'I Got You'!

New York, NY (Top40 Charts) The legendary O'Jays have been filling concert houses everywhere since they announced their upcoming 2020 retirement, and for the past few months they have new music out to boot.
Last Fall, the trio, consisting of Eddie Levert, Walter Williams, and Eric Nolan Grant, issued "Above The Law," a throwback to their socially conscious music of the 70s, when they were teamed with iconic songwriter/producers Gamble and Huff.

"I Got You" offers a message of reassurance in a time of political tumult: "Even if the sky begins to fall, and even if they try to build that wall, and even if the bomb goes off and the world is set on fire, I got your back." "It's almost gospel," says the O'Jays' Walter Williams. "It's good news. Whatever happens, don't worry about it — I'm gonna be there. That's a hell of a statement. It works in a friendship; it works certainly in a relationship."

Philadelphia producers like Thom Bell and Gamble and Huff were famous for swaddling soul in impeccable orchestral arrangements. That's the stuff of "I Got You:" Strings flutter and twirl above the singers, while muted brass swells beneath them. The opening notes on the guitar in "I Got You" also hint at another Philadelphia classic, the Spinners' "I'll Be Around." "'I Got You' is close to what the O'Jays used to be," says founding member Eddie Levert.

The Last Word is set for release on April 19. The album includes contributions from the songwriter Sam Hollander — known more for pop and rock hits like Panic! at the Disco's "High Hopes" — and Betty Wright, another Seventies soul hit-maker.
The O'Jays' last non-Christmas album, Imagination, came out in 2004.