How the Chicago band Ask Rufus found Chaka Khan

Rufus got its name from a column in Mechanix Illustrated. Its roots lie in the American Breed, which had a top-ten hit with “Bend Me, Shape Me” in 1968. Afterwards, Chuck Colbert and Lee Graziano formed a new group, Smoke, with Kevin Murphy and Paulette McWilliams, among others. In 1970, with managers Bob Monaco and Bill Traut, they became Ask Rufus after the advice column. They signed to Epic Records in 1971 and recorded an album that was never released before Epic dropped them in early 1972.

The turning point was the arrival of Chaka Khan. When McWilliams decided to leave, she told the band she knew the perfect replacement, and she taught Khan the material in the weeks she stayed. Khan had often attended Ask Rufus gigs in Chicago. The band agreed, hesitantly.

Bob Monaco secured them a deal with ABC Dunhill, and the group recorded eleven songs in two days at Paragon Studios in Chicago. Ike Turner also flew them to Los Angeles to record at his Bolic Sound studio; he wanted Khan to become an Ikette, but she declined. Their self-titled album in 1973 had minimal sales, though “Whoever's Thrilling You (Is Killing Me)” and “Feel Good” won some attention from R&B radio, and the follow-up, Rags to Rufus, came quickly.

The lineup shifted again, with Ciner, Belfield and Stockert leaving and keyboardist Nate Morgan, guitarist Tony Maiden and bassist Bobby Watson arriving. That trio brought a stronger funk and jazz flavour that suited Khan's increasingly powerful lead voice. The results were four consecutive number-one R&B albums, ten top-40 pop hits and five number-one R&B singles, with songs including “Tell Me Something Good”, “Sweet Thing” and “Do You Love What You Feel”. “Ain't Nobody” remains the one most people recognise.