Few bands can claim to have the kind of success The O'Jays did, or to have their songs live for so long at the top of the charts. But in the '70s, few bands could touch the kind of aural gold that seemed to leap from the group's throats. Their soothing Philadelphia soul earned them their solid fan base, and even today, they're beloved by music fanatics who can see the influence they bore on more modern artists.

The O'Jays formed in 1958 in Canton, OH. Initially, the band included five members--Eddie Levert, Walter Williams, William Powell, Bill Isles and Bobby Massey, who all attended the same high school. A succession of band names began with The Triumphs, then changed into The Mascots. They released a single, "Miracles," in 1961 that earned the attention and good favor of DJ Eddie O'Jay. They changed the name again to The O'Jays in honor of the sagely music lover.

Isles left in '65, and the band's debut album, Comin' Through, came later that year. They scored their first chart-topping single, "I'll Be Sweeter Tomorrow (Than I was Today)" in '67. Afterwards, they would team up with the songwriting duo of Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff, who helped the band become the jewel of the Philadelphia International label.

Throughout the '70s, they would continue to create smooth numbers that people wanted to get down to, but also found they couldn't ignore the social issues that seemed to be increasingly relevant. Their music touched on issues like "For the Love of Money," or the title track of their landmark album Ship Ahoy, about the passage of African slaves into America.

The group's popularity would wane as disco became more prevalent, but that didn't stop them from recording. Their most recent album was 2004's Imagination.