Members The Sylvers family consisted of ten siblings, nine of whom performed in the band at different times: • Olympia Ann "Olan" Sylvers (born October 13, 1951) — vocals •
Leon Frank Sylvers III (born March 7, 1953) In the late 1960s, they added Edmund and Joseph Richard "Ricky" to the group. After signing a recording contract with MGM, the sextet changed their name from the Little Angels to the Sylvers and released three albums on the MGM/Pride label, titled simply
The Sylvers,
The Sylvers 2, and
The Sylvers 3. Released between 1972 and 1974, these LPs offered soulful numbers written by Leon and produced by
Jerry Butler (of
the Impressions) and
Keg Johnson. Four singles from the self-titled albums entered the
Billboard R&B charts. The song "Fool's Paradise" reached No. 14 on the
R&B charts in the autumn of 1972. The single featured Charmaine, Edmund, and Ricky as lead singers, backed by the harmonies of Olympia, Leon, and James. "Wish That I Could Talk to You" was the next single. During early 1973, it became the siblings' first top 10 song. The track features Leon, Edmund, and Ricky on lead. The two-sided hit "Stay Away From Me" (No. 33) and "I'll Never Be Ashamed", as well as "Through the Love in My Heart" (No. 50),
Solo careers As the world's appetite for dance music waned in the early 1980s, so did the Sylvers' popularity. In 1981, five members of the group, now without Edmund, recorded a new album
Concept for Solar Records, with Leon producing and playing bass but not performing vocally. The first single from that effort, "Come Back Lover, Come Back" (featuring a now grown-up Foster on lead) was a minor hit, reaching No. 63 in
Billboard. "Take It to the Top" failed to chart, but both singles appear on the Solar Records retrospective box set. In 1984, after a three-year hiatus, the siblings (now six strong, with Charmaine returning) regrouped with new management (Weisner–DeMann) and a new label (
Geffen Records). The result was an unsuccessful album entitled
Bizarre. The disc was not heavily promoted, but spawned two minor hits: "In One Love and Out the Other" (No. 42) and "Falling For Your Love" (No. 76). The Sylvers' youngest sibling, Christopher, died of
hepatitis on June 18, 1985, at age 18. He was never part of the performing family. After the disappointing sales performance of the Geffen LP, the brothers and sisters officially disbanded in 1985. They would continue to do studio work, playing and singing background vocals for artists including
Janet Jackson. Edmund recorded a solo album for
Arista in 1985, but it was never released in the United States, although a single from the set, "I Love the Streets", was released in Japan in 1989. Foster started his own group, Hy-Tech, in 1989, but two CDs went relatively unnoticed, as did a solo MP3 CD in 1998 called "Foster Vs. Foster". Lead singer Edmund, who played
Marlon Jackson's voice on the 1971–1973
ABC-TV Saturday morning cartoon series
The Jackson 5ive, died of
lung cancer in Richmond, Virginia, on March 11, 2004, at age 47. In 2007, Pat shared lead on the Larry O. Williams gospel duet, "Thank You". In the December 10, 2007 issue of
Jet magazine the Sylvers were featured in the "Where Are They Now?" segment. In early 2008, a few siblings did an interview with Damien Maurice on his show
Just Chillin' with KPOO-FM in San Francisco. Both a
Jet article and the radio interview hinted at the possibility of new Sylvers music in the near future. During the summer of 2011, the Sylvers were featured on the
TV One hit series,
Unsung. Leon, James, Charmaine, Angie and Pat—along with their mother Shirley—appeared on the show to discuss their career successes and aftermath. It was mentioned that both Foster and Ricky had been incarcerated at the time of taping for parole violations. However, after the release of Foster, he and his sisters Angie and Pat made a television appearance on
The Cindy Davis Show to discuss the politics of the music industry, and more. == Legacy and influence ==