They spent so much time writing song after song and pursuing perfection, they didn't stop to check themselves in the fine points of business futures and image.
"We did our own thing," says Huff. "We didn't need help with that. We weren't thinking about agents or books about us. It is only with age that looking back is a business decision."
Huff echoes some of Gamble's sentiments about the sound of The Sound of Philadelphia: "We were worried about the music. That was it. Writing five or six songs a day, working with a live piano player in the studio, a live drummer, a live violin. ... Today you push a button and you can sing as clear as a bell with a full band backing you. We might have had a little more time to handle our business if all we had to do to be autonomous was to push one button," he laughs. "We were in that studio 24/7. Happily, too."
With the old songs secure and their history rebranded, they can work on new music if they feel like it. Take Groovy People, Huff's album of jazz, rock and soul — his first solo effort since 1980's Here to Create Music. "I've been listening to this record in my house for so long, it's time to get it out there," says Huff with a smile.
"There's always a song in my heart," Huff says. "Gamble's, too, even though we aren't writing anything new at present. Thank God I hear my music every day. I could be in the market with my wife. I hear it. My music is alive and new every time I turn around. Gamble feels that, as well. Look, I turned a hobby in to a stellar career, so I can't complain."
