Top 10 Alert!
Song#: 3001 Date: 01/24/1987
Debut: 73
Peak: 5
Weeks: 19
Genre: Latin Freestyle, Dance-Pop
Pop Bits: This vocal trio was the brainchild of Miami DJ/producer/songwriter Lewis Martineé. In 1984, he found three women to front his brand of dance/freestyle music. He gave them the name X-Posed and then wrote and produced a debut single titled "Point of No Return," which was issued out on the small indie Pantera Records label. The song started to get attention and that led to Arista Records stepping in and signing the group, who then became Exposé. The single was put out by Arista and it became a big club hit reaching #1 on the Dance chart. A second single, "Exposed to Love," did fairly well getting to #19 Dance. With the good results, Arista called for a full album. Martineé and the trio delivered a debut album titled Exposure and this track was selected as the trio's next single. Once again, the clubs responded well to the tune and it hit #1 on the Dance chart. The same week it reached #1, the single debuted on the Pop chart. It would eventually reach the Top 10. While the album would only get to #16, thanks to three more hits it would have a long shelf live and eventually sell over three million copies.
ReduxReview: To me, this was the song that started the trend of female vocal groups doing Freestyle. Some others had charted already, but this was the mainstream breakthrough. Martineé had the exact right formula. This song and others on the album had the right combination of Freestyle, dance-pop, and hooks to make them irresistible. I always thought this song was fun and I liked the riff at the start with the keyboard building up the excitement by upping the notes in the progression. Actually, I always laugh and do a bit of mimicking when I hear it because it reminds me of music for some dance troop where each time the riff is played, a new dancer starts to move with the group. Perhaps like something you'd see at a local pageant where all the contestants have to participate in a number. It cracks me up. I bought the single back in the day and I still think its a fun listen.
ReduxRating: 8/10
Trivia: The original Exposé trio was made up of Sandra Casañas, Alé Lorenzo, and Laurie Miller. These are the voices heard on the original "Point of No Return" and "Exposed to Love" singles. However, when it came time to record the album, these three were out and a new trio was hired. What happened to cause the shift is hard to decipher as stories vary. One report says that Arista didn't think they original three had star quality and wanted them replaced. Another article says one girl quit and the other two got fired. Another source says that Lorenzo wanted to leave the group to pursue her own career and that Casañas was let go. Miller was supposed to stay on, but then decided to leave. Whatever happened, when it came time to record the album, there were three new vocalists: Jeanette Jurado, Gioia Bruno, and Ann Curless. These three women supplied the vocals on eight of the album's ten tracks. When initially released, the album included the original recordings of "Point of No Return" and "Exposed to Love." However, "Point of No Return" would be re-recorded by the new trio for single release and future printings of the LP include the new version. Each of the three original Exposé members would try for a solo career. Casañas, under the name Sandeé, had the best success. She got three singles on the Dance chart including the 1989 #9 "Notice Me" along with two R&B entries and one Pop chart single, 1991's #49 "Love Desire." Both Lorenzo and Casañas would supply backing vocals for another assembled Miami group Will to Power. Their debut album contained the #1 Pop hit "Baby, I Love Your Way/Freebird Medley."
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