Barbara Mason (born 9 August 1947,
Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania) is an
American R&B;/
soul singer best known for her 1965
hit song, "
Yes, I'm Ready".
Career
A soul singer, Mason initially focused on
songwriting when she entered the
music industry in her
teens. As a performer, though, she had a
hit single in 1965 with her self-penned Top 10 hit, "Yes, I'm Ready" (number five pop, number two R&B;), a fetching soul-
pop confection that spotlighted her high, girlish vocals. One of the first examples of the sweet, lush sound that came to be called
Philly soul, she had modest success throughout the rest of the decade on the small Arctic
label, reaching the
Billboard Hot 100 Top 40 again in 1965 with "Sad, Sad Girl", and "Oh How It Hurts" in 1967-68.
In the early and mid 1970s, Mason toughened her persona considerably, singing about sexual love and infidelity with a frankness that was uncommon for a female soul singer in songs like "Bed and Board," "From His Woman to You," and "Shackin' Up." Sweet soul continued to be her groove, and she continued to write some of her material. But the production, as it was throughout soul in the '70s, was more funk-oriented, and at times Mason would interrupt her singing to deliver some straight-talkin' raps about romance. Curtis Mayfield produced her on a cover version of Mayfield's "Give Me Your Love," which restored her to the pop Top 40 and R&B; Top Ten in 1973; "From His Woman to You" (the response to Shirley Brown's single "Woman to Woman") and "Shackin' Up" were also solid soul sellers in the mid '70s. After leaving Buddah Records in 1975, she only dented the charts periodically, with "I Am Your Woman, She Is Your Wife" (1978), "Another Man" (1984), and a couple of other singles.
Mason was set to release a new CD, Feeling Blue, on 18 September 2007.
Discography
Albums
1965: Yes, I'm Ready (Arctic) - US #129
1968: Oh How It Hurts (Arctic) - R&B; #42
1970: ''If You Knew Him Like I Do (National General)
1973: Give Me Your Love (Buddah) - US #95, R&B; #17
1974: Lady Love (Buddah) - R&B; #29
1974: Transition (Buddah)
1975: Love's the Thing (Buddah) - US #187, R&B; #42
1977: Locked In This Position - with Bunny Sigler (Curtom)
1978: I Am Your Woman, She Is Your Wife (Prelude)
1980: A Piece Of My Life (WMOT)
1984: Tied Up (Other End)
2007: Feeling Blue (Sunswept)
Singles
1965: "Girls Have Feelings Too" - R&B; #31
1965: "Sad, Sad Girl" - US #27, R&B; #12
1965: "Yes, I'm Ready" - US #5, R&B; #2
1968: "Oh, How It Hurts" - US #59, R&B; #11
1970: "If You Knew Him Like I Do" - R&B; #38
1970: "Raindrops Keep Fallin' On My Head" - R&B; #38
1972: "Bed and Board" - US #70, R&B; #24
1973: "Child of Tomorrow" - R&B; #79
1973: "Give Me Your Love" - US #31, R&B; #9
1975: "From His Woman to You" - US #28, R&B; #3
1975: "Make It Last" - R&B; #35
1975: "Shackin' Up" - US #91, R&B; #9
1975: "We Got Each Other" - R&B; #38
1978: "I Am Your Woman, She Is Your Wife" - R&B; #14
1981: "I'll Never Love the Same Way Twice" - R&B; #54
1981: "She's Got the Papers (But I Got the Man)" - R&B; #29
1984: "Another Man" - R&B; #68; UK #45
References and external links
Barbara Mason Official Web Site
Profile of Barbara Mason On AMG
Barbara Mason on Soul Patrol
Barbara Mason Page
Barbara Mason Myspace Page
Category:1947 births
Category:Living people
Category:Musicians from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Category:American soul singers
Category:American rhythm and blues singers
Category:American female singers
Category:Jamie Records artists
