A Taste of Honey - Sweet Memories Quiz

Answer: 4

When A Taste of Honey debuted on the "Billboard" Top 40 Pop chart around the summer of 1978, the group had four members: Janice Marie Johnson (bass, vocals); Hazel Payne (guitar, vocals); the late Perry Kibble (keyboards); and Donald Johnson (drums).

Naturally, from the beginning much of the focus was on the ladies since they 'fronted' the band. However, the group was a foursome until 1980, when they re-formed as a duo with just the ladies.

Answer: True

The group took its name from the song, "A Taste of Honey", an instrumental tune which won three Grammy awards in 1965: "Record of the Year"; "Best Instrumental Arrangement"; and "Best Instrumental Performance - Non-Jazz".

Answer: Princess

An audtion for Princess Cruise Lines is credited as being the starting point for the group. Janice Marie Johnson and Perry Kibble met and decided to play together. Along the way, they met Hazel Payne and Donald Johnson, who would complete the group.

Answer: Capitol

Capitol Records was the label to which A Taste of Honey was signed during this period. The group recorded four albums: "A Taste of Honey", which was certified both gold and platinum; "Another Taste"; "Twice as Sweet"; and "Ladies of the Eighties".

Answer: True

The group were the second African-American artists and the first African-American group to win the coveted statue. (Natalie Cole was the first African-American artist to win back in 1975.) By the way, A Taste of Honey's competition for 1978 included Elvis Costello, The Cars and Toto.

Answer: Burger King

"Boogie Oogie Oogie", with its hot guitar solo prominently featured, was showcased in a Burger King ad. The ad focused on the chain's sizzling, flame-broiled burger patties.

Answer: Rescue Me

"Rescue Me", an up-tempo disco jam, is featured on the group's 1980 album, "Twice as Sweet", which was produced by funkmaster, George Duke. The song peaked at # 16 on the R&B chart. Over the years it has been 'sampled' by various hip-hop/rap artists. In 1993, rapper Positive K used the sample for his memorable hit, "I Got a Man". That song peaked at # 14 on the R&B chart.

Answer: I'll Try Something New

"I'll Try Something New" was written by legendary songwriter/singer/performer/producer, William "Smokey" Robinson. The song was originally performed by Robinson and his group, The Miracles. A Taste of Honey's version, which is featured on their album, "Twice as Sweet", has a distinctive Asian/Oriental flavor similar to the song, "Sukiyaki". "I'll Try Something New" peaked at # 18 on the "Cashbox Magazine" survey chart in Spring, 1981.

Answer: Boogie Oogie Oogie

"Boogie Oogie Oogie", of course, was A Taste of Honey's first Top 40 Pop hit. The highly infectious disco hit spent three weeks at the top of the Top 40 Pop chart, and it also hit # 1 on the R&B chart. Additionally, "Boogie Oogie Oogie" was the first platinum single for Capitol Records.

Answer: Sukiyaki

"Sukiyaki", which was written by Hachidai Nakamura and Rokusuke Ei and performed by Kyu Sakamoto, was one of Janice Marie's favorite songs. She sang the lyrics in Japanese: their original form! When she decided that A Taste of Honey needed to do a 'cover' song (their version of someone else's song), she decided they should do "Sukiyaki".

She decided to write new English lyrics, and she asked for and received permission to do so from the original writers. Unfortunately, the original writers could not give such permission: they had signed their rights away years earlier.

The end result was that Janice Marie would have to give up her writing/publishing rights to the song before Capitol Records could release it. Reluctantly, she did so. As a result, A Taste of Honey had another smash hit: "Sukiyaki" hit # 3 on the Pop chart and # 1 on the R&B chart in March, 1981.

The song also gave the group an important distinction. It gave them two Top 5 Pop hits: both distinctive yet diverse.