Dance Children Dance

Description

Dance Children Dance is the solo debut album by the American singer, songwriter, and keyboardist Leon Patillo, released on Maranatha! Music in 1979, distributed by Word. The album was recorded and mixed by Chris Taylor at Maranatha! Studio in Santa Ana, California; with Leon Patillo producing. (It was recorded during nighttime as the studio was booked during daytime.) All songs written by Leon Patillo.

In the early seventies Leon Patillo had released a couple of albums with his funk/psyche-soul band called Leon’s Creation (This Is The Beginning released on Studio 10 in 1970, and Creation released on ATCO in 1974), before becoming the lead vocalist for the Santana Band during 1974-75.

Dance Children Dance, Leon Patillo – Maranatha MM0049A (Word).

A former member of Santana, Patillo’s debut gospel LP demonstrates the precise musical and lyrical sensitivity and excellence of a real pro. Cuts like «Born Again», «He Is Coming», «Temple To The Sky» and the title track offer a versatility in production that lends easily to crossover potential. Aside from horns, strings and harp, Patillo played all the instruments and produced it. [Record World, March 31, 1979 (Record World Gospel Album Picks)]

I’m not much of a concert goer but I did manage to catch this guy once. I was on my feet for his entire set and my hands were raw from clapping. Patillo is a keyboardist and singer who had previously spent time in the groups Creation and Santana. His debut solo LP is pretty much tops for black contemporary r&b/pop/ccm/jazz with that essential dance beat ingredient. Not quite as engaging as secular r&b, but gets fairly close on «Dance Children Dance», «High On You», «These Signs» and «Born Again» – all respectable funky groove-endowed workouts capable of lifting you off your duff to bust a few moves. «Temple To The Sky» is decent mellow pop with a Lou Rawls flair, while «Trinity» succeeds as a melodic jazz-fusion instrumental. Also some standard ccm. Piano, organ, synthesizer and melodica are some of the keyboards I detect in here. Fascinating cover painting inspired by Revelation 4 and 5. Patillo continued to release a number of additional albums on into the ‘80s. Smooth but irresistible. See also Hosanna USA. [Ken Scott, The Archivist, 4th Edition]

> Apple Music (https://music.apple.com/us/album/dance-children-dance/716535889)

LP tracklist:

Side One
A1. “Dance Children Dance” – 3:29
A2. “High On You” – 3:27
A3. “These Signs” – 3:31
A4. “Born Again” – 2:59

Side Two
B1. “Temple To The Sky” – 3:58
B2. “Trinity” (Instrumental) – 3:31
B3. “He Is Comin'” – 4:21
B4. “Come” – 3:15

Note: Simultaneously released on 8-track tape, cassette, and 12-inch vinyl LP (MM0049A) by Maranatha! Music.

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Live at Machaira’s House Episode 4, 14 April 2022
with special guest Leon Patillo

In this episode, Machaira welcomes former Santana lead singer and thee-time Grammy Award Nominee Leon Patillo to perform Leon’s song “Dance Children Dance” and Machaira’s version of “Amazing Grace,” arranged by Machaira & Phil Barbaccia. For the interview portions of the show, Leon connects with us via a Zoom call, and tells his story from the early days to Santana and forward to his current ministry works in Las Vegas. With Leon’s lively storytelling, and the visual aspect of pictures and video, it’s a fascinating “mini-documentary,” enjoyable for his fans as well as those just getting to know Leon.