1974 Tavares – Hard Core Poetry

Hard Core Poetry is the second album by American soul/R&B group Tavares, released in 1974 on the Capitol label. This album brought Tavares together with songwriters and producers Dennis Lambert and Brian Potter for what would prove to be a productive musical relationship on this and the group’s following album, In the City.

Hard Core Poetry reached #11 on the R&B chart and was critically praised for its strong and diverse selection of songs and sophisticated but soulful production; the album remains one of the group’s most highly regarded. Its best-known single is “She’s Gone”, a cover of the Daryl Hall and John Oates track from their 1973 album Abandoned Luncheonette. The Tavares version peaked higher on the Billboard Hot 100 than the original on its first chart run earlier in 1974 (#50 against #60), and became the first of their three R&B chart toppers.