| B i o g r a p h y |
Soul II Soul
is a 2-time Grammy winning act that emerged at the end of the 1980s
from London. The group initially attracted attention as a sound system,
playing records at house and street parties (where their clothing style
- dubbed "Funki Dred" - quickly made a splash, inspiring them to start
a line of clothing). Founded by Jazzie B (b. Beresford Romeo, 26th January 1963, London, England - singer and vocal dialogue) and featuring a changing
roster of other musicians - notably Nellee Hooper (producer/mixer/arranger), Simon Law and Caron
Wheeler (vocals) - Soul II Soul's experiments in music-making of their own
resulted in the dub plate "Fairplay," which secured them a deal with
Virgin Records. They had huge hits in 1989 with the singles "Keep on
Movin'" and "Back to Life (However Do You Want Me)," both from their
debut album Club Classics Vol. I. These songs (both featuring Wheeler
on vocals) set the tone for early 90s mainstream dance music in the UK.
Their follow-up album, Vol. II: 1990 - A New Decade, yielded the hits "Get A Life" and "A Dream's A Dream," the latter featuring operatic vocals by Victoria Wilson-James. While their U.S. following declined somewhat following its release, Soul II Soul continued to have hits in the UK, including 1992's #4 single, "Joy."
Soul II Soul reached Volume 5 of their series for Virgin in 1995, then released 2 more albums for Island Records.
In October 2004 "Keep on Movin" appeared in popular videogame Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, playing on R&B, Soul radio station CSR 103.9.