Biography
Church-bred Southern soul duo the Patterson Twins made their entrance during the early '70s. Natives of Magee, Mississippi, the pair cut sides for independent imprints including Nashville's King, the Jewel subsidiary Ronn, and Malaco, yet their lasting recognition rests on Let Me Be Your Lover (Commercial, 1978), an album elevated to cult status through repeated reissues.
Drawing from fellow Southern vocal pairs such as the Sims Twins, Sam & Dave, and Mel & Tim, biological twins Estus and Lester Patterson—recording as Soul Twins—issued their first material in 1972 on the small Mississippi-based Big Beat label, with Willie Mitchell handling production uncredited. Between 1973 and 1976 the Patterson Twins placed several singles on King (distinct from the Ohio imprint), Ronn, and Malaco; one of these, the Prince Phillip Mitchell composition "I Need Your Love," later resurfaced on numerous anthologies of rare R&B. In 1978, now signed to the modest Commercial label, Estus and Lester delivered Let Me Be Your Lover, collaborating with a production team that featured Sanchez Harvey from the short-lived Gordy/Motown act Bottom & Co.; the set included a refreshed version of that group's "Gonna Find a True Love."
The Pattersons later established Kon-Kord Records in their adopted California base. Throughout the mid-'80s they issued occasional singles under their own name while primarily using the label to produce and nurture other R&B and gospel acts. Estus and Lester regrouped for the 2006 release If I Could Live My Life Again, which benefited from contributions by Hense Powell and Richard "Dimples" Fields, followed by the gospel sequel Take Us Higher in 2007. By then the duo's debut LP had become a coveted item among deep-digging R&B collectors, with original pressings commanding prices that sometimes exceeded the original recording costs. Japan's Think! Records reissued the album across several formats in 2013; six years afterward, Acid Jazz and Miles Away joined forces to issue it again.
Drawing from fellow Southern vocal pairs such as the Sims Twins, Sam & Dave, and Mel & Tim, biological twins Estus and Lester Patterson—recording as Soul Twins—issued their first material in 1972 on the small Mississippi-based Big Beat label, with Willie Mitchell handling production uncredited. Between 1973 and 1976 the Patterson Twins placed several singles on King (distinct from the Ohio imprint), Ronn, and Malaco; one of these, the Prince Phillip Mitchell composition "I Need Your Love," later resurfaced on numerous anthologies of rare R&B. In 1978, now signed to the modest Commercial label, Estus and Lester delivered Let Me Be Your Lover, collaborating with a production team that featured Sanchez Harvey from the short-lived Gordy/Motown act Bottom & Co.; the set included a refreshed version of that group's "Gonna Find a True Love."
The Pattersons later established Kon-Kord Records in their adopted California base. Throughout the mid-'80s they issued occasional singles under their own name while primarily using the label to produce and nurture other R&B and gospel acts. Estus and Lester regrouped for the 2006 release If I Could Live My Life Again, which benefited from contributions by Hense Powell and Richard "Dimples" Fields, followed by the gospel sequel Take Us Higher in 2007. By then the duo's debut LP had become a coveted item among deep-digging R&B collectors, with original pressings commanding prices that sometimes exceeded the original recording costs. Japan's Think! Records reissued the album across several formats in 2013; six years afterward, Acid Jazz and Miles Away joined forces to issue it again.
Albums