The late sixties were a weird, beautiful mess for music. You had the raw grit of Otis Redding competing with the polished, factory-line perfection of Motown. Then, out of nowhere, this group from Los Angeles shows up looking like they stepped out of a high-end fashion magazine and sounding like a jazz-infused dream. They were The Friends of Distinction. Honestly, if you grew up listening to the radio in 1969, Friends of Distinction songs weren't just background noise; they were the vibe.
They didn't just sing. They harmonized with a mathematical precision that felt almost otherworldly. Harry Elston, Floyd Butler, Jessica Cleaves, and Barbara Jean Love (and later Charlene Gibson) created a sound that was somehow breezy and incredibly dense at the same time. People call it "Champagne Soul." It’s a fitting nickname. It’s bubbly, it’s expensive-sounding, and it goes down smooth, but it’s got enough kick to leave you spinning if you aren't careful.
The Magic Behind "Grazing in the Grass"
Let’s talk about the big one. You know the "Can you dig it?" hook. Everyone does. But most people don't realize that "Grazing in the Grass" started as an instrumental hit by Hugh Masekela. Harry Elston took that track and decided it needed words. He wrote lyrics that captured this weird, idyllic sense of freedom that resonated with a generation tired of the Vietnam War and civil unrest. It’s a song about doing absolutely nothing. And it’s glorious.
The rhythmic complexity is what kills me. They are singing these rapid-fire, staccato lines that should feel rushed, but they don't. It feels like a summer afternoon. The vocal arrangement is a masterclass in counterpoint. While one voice is holding a long, soulful note, another is darting around it with percussive "dig its" and "can you dig its."
It’s easy to dismiss this as "light" music. That’s a mistake. If you try to sing along and actually hit every note and every rhythmic shift, you'll realize how technically demanding these Friends of Distinction songs actually are. They were doing vocal gymnastics while looking effortless. That’s the definition of cool.
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Why "Going in Circles" is the Real Masterpiece
If "Grazing in the Grass" is the party, "Going in Circles" is the 2:00 AM realization that the person you love is driving you insane. This song is heavy. It was written by Jerry Peters and let’s be real—it’s one of the best soul ballads ever recorded. Period. The way the melody climbs and then just drops off into that melancholic refrain is gut-wrenching.
Most fans remember the cover versions first. Gap Band did it. Isaac Hayes did a massive, orchestral version. Luther Vandross, of course, put his stamp on it. But the original Friends of Distinction version has a specific kind of fragility. When they sing about being "like a spinning wheel," you actually feel the dizziness. It isn't just a metaphor. The arrangement reflects that circular, repetitive pain of a relationship that won't end but won't get better.
What's fascinating is the lack of a traditional "lead singer" ego in the group. In many of their best tracks, the lead shifts or the harmony becomes the lead. This wasn't the Supremes where one person stood in front. This was a collective. That unified front gave "Going in Circles" a weight that a solo artist might have missed. It sounds like a chorus of internal thoughts rather than just one person complaining.
The Ray Charles Connection and the 5th Dimension "Rivalry"
People always compare them to the 5th Dimension. It’s lazy. Yeah, both groups had that "up with people" sunshine-pop-meets-R&B energy, but the Friends of Distinction had a different edge. Harry Elston and Floyd Butler actually started out in a group called The Hi-Fi’s, which opened for Ray Charles. Think about that for a second. You don't tour with Brother Ray if you don't have some serious chops.
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Ray Charles actually helped sharpen their ears. You can hear that jazz influence in their B-sides and deeper cuts. Songs like "I've Never Found a Girl (To Love Me Like You Do)" show a deeper R&B root than the "pop" label usually allows. They weren't just trying to cross over to the white charts; they were trying to expand what Black vocal music could sound like. They were sophisticated. They were "distinguished." The name wasn't just a marketing gimmick; it was a mission statement.
The Deep Cuts You’re Probably Missing
If you only know the hits, you’re eating the icing and throwing away the cake. Dig into the album Highly Distinct. Tracks like "Love or Let Me Be Lonely" reached the Top 10, but the arrangement is actually quite daring. The horn section is aggressive. The vocal transitions are sharp. It’s a song about desperation masked by a driving, upbeat tempo.
Then there’s "Check It Out." Long before Tavares made it a hit, The Friends of Distinction recorded a version that captures a very specific 1970s soulful optimism. It’s got that lush, cinematic production that RCA was famous for at the time.
And we have to talk about Jessica Cleaves. Her voice was a crystalline instrument. She eventually left the group and joined Parliament-Funkadelic. That should tell you everything you need to know about her range. Going from "Grazing in the Grass" to George Clinton’s Mothership is a wild career arc, but it proves that the foundation of the Friends of Distinction was built on pure talent, not just studio magic.
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The influence of these songs didn't stop in 1975. You hear their DNA in the neo-soul movement of the late 90s. You hear it in the way hip-hop producers sample those lush string arrangements. They provided a blueprint for how to be "soft" without being weak.
The industry often forgets the groups that didn't have a massive "diva" figurehead. Because the Friends of Distinction functioned as a unit, they sometimes get lost in the shuffle of solo legends. But the music holds up. It doesn't sound dated in the way a lot of 60s pop does. It sounds like a high-fidelity snapshot of a time when people still cared about the physics of a harmony.
How to Truly Experience This Catalog Today
To get the most out of these recordings, you have to move past the compressed versions on a cheap phone speaker. This music was engineered for high-end stereo systems.
- Listen to the original vinyl presses if you can find them. RCA’s "LSP" series from that era has a warmth in the low-end that digital remasters often sharpen too much.
- Focus on the panning. In songs like "Going in Circles," the way the voices are placed in the stereo field is intentional. It’s designed to wrap around you.
- Check out the live footage. There are a few clips of them on shows like Soul Train or The Ed Sullivan Show. Watching their choreography—which was subtle but incredibly synchronized—adds a whole new layer to the audio.
The best way to honor the legacy of Friends of Distinction songs is to stop treating them like "oldies." They are masterclasses in vocal arrangement. Whether you are a songwriter looking for inspiration or just someone who needs a vibe for a Sunday morning, this discography is a gold mine.
Go back and listen to "Lonesome Mood." It’s a track that often gets overlooked. It’s moody, atmospheric, and shows a darker side of the group. It proves they weren't just the "sunny day" band. They knew how to handle the shadows too. That’s the mark of real artists. They didn't just give us songs; they gave us a standard of vocal excellence that few have reached since.
Actionable Listening Strategy
- Start with the "Big Three": "Grazing in the Grass," "Going in Circles," and "Love or Let Me Be Lonely." This establishes the baseline.
- Move to the "Highly Distinct" album: This is arguably their most cohesive work. Listen to it start to finish to understand the flow they intended.
- Compare the covers: Listen to Hugh Masekela’s original instrumental of "Grazing" and then the Friends' vocal version. Notice how the vocals aren't just added on top—they transform the melody into a completely different animal.
- Analyze the harmony: In "Going in Circles," try to isolate just one voice in the chorus. It’s harder than it sounds because their tones are so perfectly blended. That is the "distinction" in their name.