For the members of Kool & The Gang, Mother definitely knows best.
“I can still hear my momma say ‘stay together and write something that somebody’s going to remember.’” Ronald “Khalis” Bell said.
They sure listened.
More than 50 years later and with several hits — including the ubiquitous party song, “Celebration” — Kool & The Gang is still going strong. The Grammy Award-winning R&B group brings their unique blend of funk, jazz and pop to Festival Park in Elgin July 4 for Grand Victoria Casino’s Summer Concert Series, in a concert with the Commodores.
“We’re going to have a good time that night. Let’s celebrate. It’s all right,” Bell said. “It’s going to be a celebration and we’ll have a good time.”
Also performing are The Commodores. The concert begins at 7 p.m., with doors opening at 5 p.m. The concert is held rain or shine. Fireworks will follow the show.
Kool & The Gang formed in 1964 in New Jersey when a group of friends came together to make music.
“We grew up together. We started when we 13, 14, 15. The original members. We still have three, we lost four,” Bell said. “… Once you’re in the gang, you can’t get out. We’ve had many members come and go, but the core members are still here. Our mothers told us, ‘whatever you do, sons, stay together.’ And we stuck to that.”
Current members Bell, his brother Robert “Kool” Bell and George Brown recently came together with former member James “J.T.” Taylor when they were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame.
“That was a surprise for me. That’s like all your peers. There’s some great songwriters there, you know, John Mellencamp. There’s so many writers there it was unbelievable,” Bell said. “Being in the same room with them, it made you kind of nervous. Being in there with lyricists, real heavy storytellers … We made it in. We’re really honored to be amongst that class of writers.”
It was the first time Taylor performed with them in more than two decades, Bell said
“He was there and he sang ‘Celebration.’ After 25 years since the last time we’ve been on stage together, we had a ball. And so did the audience,” Bell said. “They all stood up and celebrated the evening. And then Neil Diamond came on and sang ‘Sweet Caroline.’ That was great.”
Much of the No. 1 hit “Celebration” was written by Bell.
“I wrote the music and part of the lyrics. Most of those songs, I either spearheaded them or wrote over 50 percent or even more,” Bell said. “But because it’s a group and we wrote those songs collectively, I call it the Koolective genius of the band called Kool & the Gang.”
The song originated in part from a previous Kool & The Gang hit.
“We were singing ‘Come on, let’s all celebrate’ at the end of ‘Ladies’ Night,’” Bell said. “But where I got ‘Celebration’ … I got that when I was reading Scripture where the angels were celebrating the creator for creating man,” he said. “I said, ‘wow, that would be a great song.’ So it’s a celebration. That’s where I got the inspiration from. The lyric in there, ‘everyone around the world, come on,’ that was the intent.”
Bell said he had no idea how successful the song would become a party staple everywhere around the world.
“Wherever we went in our travels they sing the song. They know the lyrics, no matter what language it is. That’s just one of those big ones that I never thought we’d have, but we do have it,” Bell said. “It’s at every party, every bar mitzvah or bat mitzvah. Every time there’s a celebration. When the hostages came home from Iran, on the space shuttle. It’s just celebrate good times. Come on. Yahoo.”
Kool & the Gang with The Commodores
When: 7 p.m. July 4
Where: Festival Park, adjacent to Grand Victoria Casino, 250 S. Grove Ave., Elgin
Tickets: $35-$78
Information: 847-468-7000; www.grandvictoriacasino.com
