The Spirit's in It

The Spirit's in It
Studio album by Patti LaBelle
Released	August 28, 1981[1]
Studio	Sigma Sound Studios (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania).
Length	35:44
Label	Philadelphia International CBS
Leon Huff James "Budd" Ellison Cynthia Biggs Dexter Wansel Cecil Womack
Patti LaBelle chronology
Released (1980) The Spirit's in It (1981) I'm in Love Again (1983)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[2]

The Spirit's in It is the fifth studio album by American singer Patti LaBelle. It was released by Philadelphia International Records on August 28, 1981, in the United States, her first with the label.

Background

Patti LaBelle embarked on a solo career in 1977, shortly after the split of the girl group Labelle. Her first solo album, a self-titled affair, was critically acclaimed and also found commercial success. However, her three follow-ups for Epic failed to match that album's momentum, despite some charted singles. When her fourth album, Released, failed to generate a significant R&B or pop hit, she agreed to sign with Philadelphia International Records, which had been known to provide hits for veteran artists such as The O'Jays, Lou Rawls and Billy Paul.

With the help of

• Patti LaBelle – lead vocals, backing vocals (1, 2, 4-9)
• Joel Bryant – keyboards (1)
• Lenny Pakula – organ (1, 3, 4)
• Dexter Wansel – arrangements (1, 8), synthesizers (8)
• James Budd Ellison – keyboards (2, 5, 7, 9), arrangements (2, 5, 7, 9), backing vocals (5, 7)
• Philip Woo – keyboards (2, 9)
• Fender Rhodes
  (3, 4), arrangements (3, 4, 6), backing vocals (6), BGV arrangements (6)
• Nathaniel Wilkie – keyboards (5, 7), acoustic piano (5, 7), organ (5, 7), synthesizers (5, 7)
• Cynthia Biggs – acoustic piano (8)
• Dennis Harris – guitar (1)
• Cecil Womack – guitar (1, 3, 4, 6), backing vocals (6)
• Edward Levon Batts – guitar (2, 9), backing vocals (2, 7)
• Herb Smith – guitar (2, 5, 7-9), backing vocals (5, 7, 9)
• Bobby Bennett – acoustic guitar (6)
• Marc Rubin – guitar (8)
• Roy Smith – guitar (8)
• Jimmy Williams – bass (1-5, 9)
• Derrick Graves – bass (6)
• Idress "Skeets" Young – bass (8)
• Quinton Joseph – drums (1, 3, 4, 6)
• John Ingram – drums (5, 7, 9), backing vocals (5, 7, 9)
• Clifford "Pete" Rudd – drums (8)
• orchestral bells (3), vibraphone
  (3)
• Miguel Fuentes – percussion (5, 7, 8)
• Michael Mee – alto saxophone (1)
• Ralph Olson – alto saxophone (1)
• Bob Malach – tenor saxophone (1)
• Michael Pedicin Jr. – tenor saxophone (1)
• Willie Williams – soprano saxophone (5), tenor saxophone (5)
• Sam Peake – saxophone (9)
• Larry Gittins – trumpet (1)
• Bobby Rush – harmonica (6)
• MFSB – horns (2, 8, 9), strings (2, 3, 8, 9)
• Jack Faith – arrangements (3)
• Carl Helm – backing vocals (2, 7, 9)
• Reggie Workman – backing vocals (2, 9)
• Kenneth Gamble
  – backing vocals (5, 7)

Handclaps on "Family"

• Miguel Fuentes
• Stacey Todd Holt
• Norman Maxon
• Fred Murphy
• Vivian Reed
• Idress "Skeets" Young

Production

• Kenneth Gamble – executive producer
• Leon A. Huff – executive producer
• Dirk Devlin – engineer
• Arthur Stoppe – engineer
• Joseph Tarsia – engineer
• Michael Tarsia – assistant engineer
• Vince Warsavage – assistant engineer
• Jean Scott – A&R coordinator
• Paula Scher – art direction, design
• Rebecca Blake – photography
• Mastered at Frankford/Wayne Mastering Labs (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania).

Charts

References