The dog days of summer are upon us. I’m feeling lazy these days and I’ve even considered suspending the column for the rest of the summer and coming back fresh in September so if you don’t see the column for the next few weeks, don’t worry, I’ll be back. I’m pretty proud of my non-stop streak though so chances are I’ll be back next week.
There’s not much to say about the Free Movement. They are one of those groups that hit big once and then faded into history. The Free Movement got together in L.A. in 1970 in an apparent effort to build on the success of fellow Angelenos the Fifth Dimension. And it worked … for a minute. The original members of the Free Movement were Godoy Colbert, Josephine Brown, Cheryl Conley, Jennifer Gates, Adrian Jefferson, and Claude Jefferson. Their lineup even emulated that of the Fifth Dimension albeit with the addition of one more female singer.
Their first record deal was with Decca and it was for that label that the Free Movement had their one and only hit. “I’ve Found Someone of My Own” climbed the pop chart all the way to #5 in 1971 while also making its way to the Top 20 on the R&B chart. Ironically, by the time the single hit, the Free Movement had moved on to Columbia Records where they released their one and only album for which “I’ve Found Someone of My Own” was the title track. The album failed to make the Top 100 on the pop chart but did rise to #26 on the R&B chart.
The follow-up Free Movement single, “The Harder I Try (the Bluer I Get),” barely crawled into the Top 50 on the pop and R&B charts and subsequently a cover of Stephen Stills’ “Love the One Your With” and another single called “I Can’t Move No Mountains” failed to chart at all. And that is where the story of the Free Movement ends.
It’s a short story of one sweet single this week. See you soon.
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