Joy (Teddy Pendergrass album)

Joy is a studio album by the American singer Teddy Pendergrass, released in 1988 on Elektra Records.^[1][2] It was nominated for a Grammy Award, in the "Best R&B Vocal Performance, Male" category.^[3]

Joy
Studio album by Teddy Pendergrass
Released	1988
Recorded	QCA Studios, Cincinnati, Ohio; Kajem/Victory Studios, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Cherokee Studios, Los Angeles, California
Genre	Soul
Length	45:18
Label	Elektra
Producer	Teddy Pendergrass, Miles Jaye, Nick Martinelli, Reggie Calloway, Vincent Calloway
Teddy Pendergrass chronology
Workin' It Back (1985) Joy (1988) Truly Blessed (1991)

Joy peaked at No. 54 on the Billboard 200 and No. 2 on the R&B chart, Pendergrass's highest placing on the chart since 1979's No. 1 album Teddy.^[4] It peaked at No. 45 on the UK Albums Chart.^[5]

Production

The album was produced by Reggie and Vincent Calloway, Nick Martinelli, Miles Jaye, and Pendergrass.^[6] It was mostly recorded at Victory Studios, in Philadelphia.^[7]

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[8]
Los Angeles Times	[9]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide	[10]

The Chicago Tribune called the album "an accomplished meditation on romantic love and perhaps an exercise in imagination."^[11] The Washington Post praised the "dusky purr on slow-groove songs like '2 A.M.' and 'Love Is the Power'."^[12] The Los Angeles Times wrote that Pendergrass's "smoldering style has been replaced by a sleek, sophisticated sound that recalls the urbane elegance of Luther Vandross' best work."^[9]

Track listing

1. "Joy" (Reggie Calloway, Vincent Calloway, Joel Davis) - 6:18
2. "2 A.M." (James S. Carter, Kevin J. Askins, Marvin Hammett) - 5:25
3. "Good to You" (Miles Jaye) - 5:13
4. "I'm Ready" (Jaye) - 5:12
5. "Love Is the Power" (R. Calloway, V. Calloway, Davis) - 6:16
6. "This Is the Last Time" (Gabriel Hardeman, Annette Hardeman) - 6:27
7. "Through the Falling Rain (Love Story)" (Carter, Askins, Hammett) - 4:58
8. "Can We Be Lovers" (Carter, Freddie Williams) - 5:29

Personnel

• Teddy Pendergrass - lead vocals
• Charlene Hollaway, Cynthia Biggs, Annette Hardeman, Elizabeth Hogue, Tenita Jordan - backing vocals
• Gene Robinson, Jeff Lee Johnson, Randy Bowland, William "Doc" Powell - guitar
• Miles Jaye - bass guitar, percussion, synthesizers, violin
• Joel Davis - keyboards
• Jerry Hey, Gary Grant - trumpet
• Bill Reichenbach Jr. - trombone
• Marc Russo - saxophone
• Daryl Burgee, J.T. Lewis - drums
• Randy Cantor - synthesizers, strings
• Douglas Grigsby III, Tom Barney - bass guitar
• Donald Robinson - Rhodes, piano
• John "Skip" Anderson - electric piano