THE LEWIS CONNECTION - Standing at the Door of the Minneapolis Sound

The following was excerpted from the liner notes of our Twin Cities Funk & Soul compilation. Writers: Will Gilbert, Eric D. Foss, Danny Sigelman.

The Lewis Connection’s self-titled LP was released in 1979. All but one of the songs were recorded over a series of months spanning 1978 and 1979. They made use of several studios along the way including ASI, Sound 80, and Moonsound. The record was the brainchild of brothers Pierre and André Lewis, who are credited as producers and arrangers for all six songs on the album and have either sole or co-writing credits for five of the six.

David Rivkin engineered sessions for the Lewis Connection and remembers, “Pierre was great. Just a really, really good player and there were a lot of other good players in the group, too.” According to Pierre Lewis, the one song on the album they did not write, “Got To Be Something Here,” has quite a story.

Unlike the other songs, it was recorded around 1976 by The Family. The personnel for this recording session included Sonny Thompson on bass and lead vocals, Pierre Lewis on keyboards and flute, Joe Lewis on drums, Bill Perry on tenor sax, Jeffrey Tresvant on trumpet, Randy Barber on background vocals, and a very young Prince Rogers Nelson on background vocals and guitar.

Pierre and André Lewis, along with Sonny Thompson, were friends with Prince growing up. Pierre recalls that Prince even borrowed his keyboard for some of his early recordings. Though Prince was not a regular member of the group, he was invited to play on the session because a label was paying The Family to record and the band knew he was looking for a paying gig.

“Got To Be Something Here” combines a slow groove with Sonny Thompson’s Donny Hathaway-esque vocals. It was never released by The Family, although the group did release a 45 called “Stone Lover.” In 1985, a different group assembled by Prince—also called The Family—released a self-titled debut featuring the Prince-penned “Nothing Compares 2 U.” There were no shared members between the two groups, though the inspiration for the name is clear.

When Pierre and André were preparing to release the Lewis Connection record, they found themselves one track short. Remembering “Got To Be Something Here” was still unreleased, they included it on the album.

The sole Lewis Connection track featured on the Twin Cities Funk & Soul compilation was “Get Up.” As the opening track on the album, it’s an upbeat jam with Pierre Lewis playing bass and lead parts on synthesizers. André plays guitar and Richard Lowe plays drums, with all three contributing background vocals and handclaps. Barbara Bolar sings lead vocals and adds handclaps as well.

 

The groove becomes contagious from the opening bars, driven by the call-and-response between Barbara and the background singers. The A-side tracks—“Get Up,” “Higher,” and “Feel Good To Ya”—are classic dance-floor fillers. On the B-side, “Got To Be Something Here” slows things down, while “Dynamic Duo” and “Mr. G” stretch into spaced-out instrumental fusions of jazz and funk.

These latter tracks highlight the influence of saxophonist Morris Wilson. During the 1970s and 1980s, the Lewis brothers and Richard Lowe frequently collaborated with Wilson, including recording on his Fantasy Island album. Wilson has mentored numerous musicians and remains one of the Twin Cities’ most important jazz figures.

The record was privately pressed in limited quantities, with the group’s name misspelled on the cover as “Lewis Conection.” Its raw funk, instrumental experimentation, and early appearance by Prince have made it a prized record among collectors. Copies are rarely available, but when they do surface, they often sell for around $500.

“Get Up” was the only track on Twin Cities Funk & Soul with prominent use of synthesizers. Its blend of jazz, funk, and dance music—and its overall energy—make it a fitting closing track for the compilation, pointing directly toward the emergence of the “Minneapolis Sound.”

The entire Lewis Connection LP was eventually reissued by Numero Group.