McFadden & Whitehead

McFadden & Whitehead
Gene McFadden (left) and John Whitehead (right)
Background information
Origin	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Genres	R&B, funk, disco
Years active	1970-2004-2006 (John Whitehead 2004) (Gene McFadden 2006)
Labels	Philadelphia International
Associated acts	Teddy Pendergrass, Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes, The O'Jays, MFSB
Past members	Gene McFadden (deceased) John Whitehead (deceased)

McFadden and Whitehead were an American songwriting, production, and recording duo, best known for their signature tune "Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now". They wrote and produced some of the most popular R&B hits of the 1970s, and were primarily associated with Gamble and Huff's Philadelphia International soul music record label.

When they were teenagers, Gene McFadden and John Whitehead formed a group called The Epsilons. The personnel included Allen Beatty, James Knight, and future Blue Notes member Lloyd Parks. They were discovered by Otis Redding and toured with him during the late 1960s until Redding's death in a plane crash in 1967.

They signed with Stax and had a moderate success in 1970 with "The Echo. The duo later joined Philly International Records, where they wrote several hits songs, the first being "Back Stabbers" in 1972 for the The O'Jays. It reached #3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #1 on Billboard's Hot Soul Singles chart.

McFadden and Whitehead also wrote songs such as "I'll Always Love My Momma", "Bad Luck", "Wake Up Everybody", "Where Are All My Friends", "The More I Get, The More I Want", and "Cold, Cold World". The production team also worked with Melba Moore, Freddie Jackson, producer Rahni Song and Gloria Gaynor, Teddy Pendergrass, Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes, Gladys Knight, The Jackson 5, James Brown, Stevie Wonder, Lou Rawls, Archie Bell & the Drells, Jerry Bell and The Intruders.