D Train (group)

The project was a collaborative effort between the band's namesake, James D-Train Williams, who was featured as the lead vocalist and songwriter, and Hubert Eaves III, a keyboardist, who performed the instrumentation on the recordings. D Train released its first single "You're the One for Me" in late 1981. Williams himself played acoustic guitar on a cover of Carole King's "So Far Away". A greatest hits album titled ''You're the One for Me - The Very Best Of'' was released in the U.K. in 1985. An equivalent compilation was not released in the U.S. until the following year. Featured on this compilation was a remixed version of "You're the One for Me" that charted in the U.K. that same year. This version was remixed by Paul Hardcastle, who had previously issued a cover version of the song and, by 1985, had become well known for his own hit "19". Despite this success, the group disbanded that same year. ==D Train as a solo artist==

Following the dissolution of the group, D Train continued on as a successful solo career. Although billed as a solo artist, however, he did continue to work with Eaves acting as a producer and key instrumentalist. In 1986, D Train released his debut album, Miracles of the Heart, which featured a top ten R&B single, "Misunderstanding". The follow-up single, "Oh, How I Love You, Girl" also performed well in the R&B market. ==Legacy==

D Train's albums were eventually re-released on CDs by Unidisc Music, which acquired Prelude Records and several other New York dance-music labels during the 1990s. The Roland Corporation M-DC1 sound expansion module, released in 1995, features a vocal patch, "Aaaah! (169)", that is a sample of Williams's vocals in his 1986 solo single "Misunderstanding". The snippet, taken from the start of the line "I don’t want to lose you", was apparently used without Williams's knowledge or permission, and his identity as the source went uncredited and unknown until 2022. "Aaaah! (169)" was reportedly first used in Playa's 1998 single "Cheers 2 U" and has since become one of the most recognizable samples in hip-hop, appearing in songs such as Nelly's 2002 single "Dilemma", Migos's "Add It Up" from their 2014 album No Label 2, and Travis Scott's 2015 single "3500", among many others. "You're the One for Me" has been remixed by Larry Levan and Shep Pettibone, and has also been sampled in "I Got Love" by DJ Kue, and "Girls" by the Prodigy from its album Always Outnumbered Never Outgunned. The Notorious B.I.G.'s "Sky's the Limit" interpolates part of "Keep On". Rapper Yo-Yo's "Iz It Still All Good" sampled "Something's on Your Mind," which featured Gerald LeVert, in 1998. D Train contributed to the Pokémon anime's "PokéRAP" on the 1999 soundtrack album Pokémon 2.B.A. Master. In 1999, D Train did the backup vocal for "Eyes of a Child", a song written by Trey Parker and Performed by Michael McDonald for the film South Park Bigger Longer & Uncut. "You're the One for Me" appears in the 2013 video game Grand Theft Auto V, as one of the songs played by the in-game funk radio station Space 103.2. Williams was hired as a DJ for Heart & Soul Channel 51 on the Sirius Satellite Radio service based in New York City from 2001 to 2008. In 2007, his performances of "My Funny Valentine" and Hot Chocolate's "You Sexy Thing" appeared on the soundtrack of the film Perfect Stranger. ==Discography==

Studio albums Compilation albums • ''You're the One for Me (The Very Best Of)'' (1985) • The Best of "D" Train (1986, 1990) • The Best of the 12" Mixes (1992) Singles ==See also==