Bell and James were an American soul group from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania! formed by LeRoy Bell (drums, guitar) and Casey James (guitar, bass, keyboards).
Career Both LeRoy Bell and Casey James had played in Special Blend before beginning to write songs together. Bell's uncle Thom Bell got them signed to Gamble & Huff as songwriters for Philadelphia International Records.[ Biography], Allmusic.com The duo wrote sings for Elton John, MFSB, The O'Jays, Gladys Knight & the Pips, Freda Payne, Phyllis Hyman, the Three Degrees, and others, before A&M Records took notice and signed the duo to a full album deal in 1978.
Three albums and several hit singles followed, including "Livin' It Up (Friday Night)", which hit No. 7 on the Billboard R&B singles chart and No. 15 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1979. It sold over one million copies in the U.S., plus the same track reached No. 59 in the UK Singles Chart.
Discography
Albums YearTitleLabelU.S. R&B Albums[ Billboard], Allmusic.comU.S. Pop Albums 1978 Bell & James A&M Records1731 1979 Only Make Believe36125 1981 In Black and White
Singles Year Title Chart positions[ Billboard Singles], Allmusic.com. U.S. Hot 100 U.S. R&B Singles 1979 "Livin' It Up (Friday Night)"157 1979 "Shakedown" -65 "You Never Know What You've Got" -54 1980 "Only Make Believe" -50
References