The Stylistics at The Suffolk

Suffolk Theater presents iconic soul and R&B group The Stylistics on Friday, June 16, at 8 p.m.

In 2018, The Stylistics celebrated their 50th Anniversary and are still going strong with original founding members Airrion Love and Herb Murrell, along with Jason Sharp and Grammy Award winning former lead vocalist of The Temptations, Barrington “Bo” Henderson. Together, they look forward to taking their musical journey to new heights.

The Stylistics were formed in Philadelphia in 1966 from the combination of two groups, The Percussions and The Monarchs. When members from each group were drafted into the armed services, the remaining members, under the guidance of their English teacher, Beverly Hamilton, joined forces and changed the name to The Stylistics.

After working locally for a few years, the group recorded their first song, “You’re a Big Girl Now” at Virtue Recording Studio in Philadelphia. The song was written by their guitarist at the time, Robert “Doc” Douglas and Road Manager, Marty Bryant. The song was soon picked up in the tri-state area, and before long, it became a #1 hit in Philadelphia and other cities.

Subsequently, Avco Records made a deal to promote their song nationally. After its success, Avco wanted to follow up with an album release. Hit veteran producer Tom Bell was contacted and was hired to produce the group’s first album titled “The Stylistics,” and from that album came “Stop, Look, Listen to Your Heart,” “You Are Everything” and “Betcha By Golly Wow.” The album’s success was nothing short of phenomenal. The ball continued to roll with the release of their second album titled “Round Two.” The Stylistics were quickly becoming known as the Philly group with the sweet love songs.

Herbert Murrell and Airrion Love are the remaining original members of the band. Friends since junior high school, they have managed to keep their era of 1970s music alive. Their newest lead singer, Grammy Award-winning recording artist, Barrington “Bo” Henderson, began his professional career with groups such as The Dramatics and Lakeside. Later, Henderson became lead singer of The Temptations, and was featured on their album “Phoenix Rising,” which became almost double platinum. He was also a vocalist on the album “Ear-Resistible,” and helped win The Temptations a Grammy Award.

Tickets for the show are $69 to $89 at thesuffolk.org. Suffolk Theater is at 118 East Main Street, Riverhead.