Portrait (group)
Encyclopedia
Portrait are an American
R&B
vocal
quartet
, consisting of members Michael Angelo Saulsberry, Irving Washington III, Eric Kirkland and Philip Johnson.
, California
debuted in 1992 with a self-titled album
riding on the end of the New Jack Swing
era. The disc
featured two hits on the charts
: "Honey Dip" reached #18 on the R&B charts. The group's second single
, "Here We Go Again!" featured similar sounds and reached #3 on the Billboard Hot 100
in 1992.
Throughout 1993 and 1994, Portrait could be heard lending their voices
to various projects, appearing on the soundtrack
s to the movies
, Addams Family Values
and Blankman
, as well as singing on the Black Men United
song
, "U Will Know" for the Jason's Lyric Soundtrack
. Portrait also provided backing vocals
on the Quincy Jones
single "Slow Jam", which featured Babyface and Tamia
on lead vocals, in 1995. The song reached #68 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Also in 1995, the group released their second album, All That Matters. The album had a few minor hits, with "I Can Call You" reaching #22 on the R&B charts and "How Deep Is Your Love
," a cover
of the Bee Gees
song, briefly appearing on the Hot 100. However, the album itself suffered from poor sales, spelling what was essentially the beginning of the end of the group.
Despite this, a year after the release of All That Matters, the group recorded an album exclusively for release in the Asia
n market. The album, entitled Picturesque, featured Portrait's previously released cover of "How Deep Is Your Love" as well as several other covers of popular songs.
The group faded from the scene after the release of Picturesque, only to resurface with their fourth album entitled Share My Love, which they independently released in 2005.
The group was featured in an episode of Family Matters, titled "Stormy Weather", performing "Here We Go Again!".
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
R&B
Rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues, often abbreviated to R&B, is a genre of popular African American music that originated in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly to urban African Americans, at a time when "urbane, rocking, jazz based music with a...
vocal
Human voice
The human voice consists of sound made by a human being using the vocal folds for talking, singing, laughing, crying, screaming, etc. Its frequency ranges from about 60 to 7000 Hz. The human voice is specifically that part of human sound production in which the vocal folds are the primary...
quartet
Quartet
In music, a quartet is a method of instrumentation , used to perform a musical composition, and consisting of four parts.-Western art music:...
, consisting of members Michael Angelo Saulsberry, Irving Washington III, Eric Kirkland and Philip Johnson.
Career
The group, which hailed from Los AngelesLos Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
debuted in 1992 with a self-titled album
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
riding on the end of the New Jack Swing
New jack swing
New jack swing or swingbeat is a fusion genre spearheaded by Teddy Riley and Bernard Belle which became extremely popular from the late-1980s into the mid-1990s. Its influence, along with hip-hop, seeped into pop culture and was the definitive sound of the inventive Black New York club scene...
era. The disc
Compact Disc
The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...
featured two hits on the charts
Record chart
A record chart is a ranking of recorded music according to popularity during a given period of time. Examples of music charts are the Hit parade, Hot 100 or Top 40....
: "Honey Dip" reached #18 on the R&B charts. The group's second single
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
, "Here We Go Again!" featured similar sounds and reached #3 on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
in 1992.
Throughout 1993 and 1994, Portrait could be heard lending their voices
Human voice
The human voice consists of sound made by a human being using the vocal folds for talking, singing, laughing, crying, screaming, etc. Its frequency ranges from about 60 to 7000 Hz. The human voice is specifically that part of human sound production in which the vocal folds are the primary...
to various projects, appearing on the soundtrack
Soundtrack
A soundtrack can be recorded music accompanying and synchronized to the images of a motion picture, book, television program or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack of a film or TV show; or the physical area of a film that contains the...
s to the movies
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
, Addams Family Values
Addams Family Values
Addams Family Values is a 1993 sequel to the 1991 comedy The Addams Family. The film was written by Paul Rudnick and directed by Barry Sonnenfeld, and many cast members from the original returned for the sequel, including Raúl Juliá, Anjelica Huston, Christopher Lloyd, and Christina Ricci...
and Blankman
Blankman
Blankman is a 1994 superhero parody film starring Damon Wayans and David Alan Grier, who are both of In Living Color fame. The film was directed by Mike Binder and written by Damon Wayans and J. F. Lawton, whose biggest success was writing Pretty Woman.-Plot:Darryl Walker is a clumsy nerdy...
, as well as singing on the Black Men United
Black Men United
Black Men United was a collaboration of many African American male R&B, hip hop and soul music artists. The sole song "U Will Know", written by a young D'Angelo, was released in 1994. It was featured in the movie Jason's Lyric and on the movie's soundtrack.-Artists involved:Many artists...
song
Song
In music, a song is a composition for voice or voices, performed by singing.A song may be accompanied by musical instruments, or it may be unaccompanied, as in the case of a cappella songs...
, "U Will Know" for the Jason's Lyric Soundtrack
Jason's Lyric (soundtrack)
Jason's Lyric is the original soundtrack to the 1994 film Jason's Lyric. Released in the fall of 1994, it topped the Top R&B Albums chart and was a Top 20 Billboard 200 ranking album...
. Portrait also provided backing vocals
Backing vocalist
A backing vocalist or backing singer is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists...
on the Quincy Jones
Quincy Jones
Quincy Delightt Jones, Jr. is an American record producer and musician. A conductor, musical arranger, film composer, television producer, and trumpeter. His career spans five decades in the entertainment industry and a record 79 Grammy Award nominations, 27 Grammys, including a Grammy Legend...
single "Slow Jam", which featured Babyface and Tamia
Tamia
Tamia Hill , and known professionally as Tamia, is a four-time Grammy-nominated Canadian R&B and soul singer, songwriter, record producer, composer, model, entrepreneur and philanthropist, as well as an occasional actress.She is best known for her 2000 hit "Stranger In My House" and Fabolous' 2003...
on lead vocals, in 1995. The song reached #68 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Also in 1995, the group released their second album, All That Matters. The album had a few minor hits, with "I Can Call You" reaching #22 on the R&B charts and "How Deep Is Your Love
How Deep Is Your Love
"How Deep Is Your Love" is a pop song recorded by the Bee Gees in 1977 and released as a single in September. Originally intended for Yvonne Elliman, it was ultimately used as part of the soundtrack to the film Saturday Night Fever. It was a number three hit in the United Kingdom and Australia...
," a cover
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
of the Bee Gees
Bee Gees
The Bee Gees are a musical group that originally comprised three brothers: Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb. The trio was successful for most of their 40-plus years of recording music, but they had two distinct periods of exceptional success: as a pop act in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and as a...
song, briefly appearing on the Hot 100. However, the album itself suffered from poor sales, spelling what was essentially the beginning of the end of the group.
Despite this, a year after the release of All That Matters, the group recorded an album exclusively for release in the Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
n market. The album, entitled Picturesque, featured Portrait's previously released cover of "How Deep Is Your Love" as well as several other covers of popular songs.
The group faded from the scene after the release of Picturesque, only to resurface with their fourth album entitled Share My Love, which they independently released in 2005.
The group was featured in an episode of Family Matters, titled "Stormy Weather", performing "Here We Go Again!".
Discography
| Year | Album title | Chart position | Sales status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | Portrait Portrait (Portrait album) Portrait is the debut album of the R&B group Portrait, released in 1992 on Capitol Records. Several of the album's tracks are considered New Jack Swing classics.The album reached #70 on the Billboard 200 and #16 on the R&B album charts.-Track listing:... |
70 | |
| 1995 | All That Matters | 131 | |
| 1996 | Picturesque | N/A | |
| 2000 | Greatest Hits | N/A | |
| 2005 | Share My Love | N/A |