A Taste of Honey (band)

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This article is about the band, there is a play and film with the same name. There is also a song, "A Taste of Honey".

A Taste of Honey was the name of an American recording act which scored one of the biggest hits of the disco era.

The group formed in Los Angeles, California, and originally consisted of Janice Marie Johnson (vocals, bass), Hazel Payne (vocals, guitar), Perry Kibble (keyboards) and Donald Johnson (drums).

Their first single, Boogie Oogie Oogie, from their self-titled debut album A Taste of Honey, tapped into the popular disco style and spent three weeks at number one (#1) on the Hot 100 in 1978. The group was awarded a platinum record for this single and album and went on the win the Grammy Award for Best New Artist. Their subsequent disco releases, such as Do It Good (#79 in 1979) from Another Taste and Rescue Me (1980) failed to attract attention, and by 1980 the group had reduced to a duo consisting of Janice Marie Johnson and Hazel Payne.

When recording their cover version of the Kyu Sakamoto song "Sukiyaki" (from their third album- Twice As Sweet, released in 1980) they resisted suggestions to turn it into a dance tune, and as a soft and simple ballad it brought them the second and final major hit of their careers in 1981, when it reached number one (#1) on the Billboard R&B and Adult Contemporary charts and number three (#3) on Hot 100. The group were awarded a gold record for this single.

A Taste of Honey released their final major album, Ladies of the Eighties in 1982. It featured their final Billboard Hot 100 charting single I'll Try Something New (#41). The Smokey Robinson and the Miracles cover also went to number nine (#9) on the R&B charts and Adult Contemporary #29 (their second and last AC charting hit).

After their popularity waned in the early 1980s Janice Marie Johnson went on to record as a solo artist and release the album One Taste Of Honey which produced the single Love Me Tonight and became a minor hit on the R&B charts. Hazel Payne went on to become an international stage actress, appearing in a number of theatre plays around the world including Oh! What A Night.

In February 1999, Perry Kibble (keyboards) died of heart failure, at the age of 49. The following year Janice released her second solo album, Hiatus Of The Heart to rave reviews. In 2004 the duo reunited for the first time in over 20 years to perform on the PBS specials Get Down Tonight: The Disco Explosion and My Music: Funky Soul Superstars.