The Seven

The Seven were a rock group from Syracuse, New York. They had regional hits with "Heat Wave" and "Tell Her No". They were a rock group with elements of jazz and funk. Background An Upstate New York act, the group's roots go back to an outfit called The Upsetters. They were made up of members from Jeff & The Notes and Jimmy Cavallo & The Houserockers, etc.. Guitarist John Latocha left the group and was replaced by Bob Canastraro. They then changed their name to The Magnificent Seven and carried on for about a year until Canastraro was replaced by Chuck Wheeler from a group called Surprise Package. The group then just went by the name, The Seven. Between 1969 & 1972 they were a very popular and well listened to group. The venues the played at included The Place, Campus Inn, Captain Mac's, Ungano's, The Bitter End and The Shack. Their sound has been described as one with heavy rhythm, blasting brass, Latin undercurrents and similar to Blood Sweat & Tears through to Santana. Career By the beginning of 1970, the group had already played at the Bitter End in New York, Gilligan's in Buffalo, the Aerodrome in Schenectady and The Club in Rochester. An article in the January 3 issue of Record World said that the band was in town to cut their first single. The four songs to be recorded were "Song" and "Rachel, both of them originals. The other two were "Heat Wave" which was a hit for Martha and the Vandellas and "Tell Her No" which was a hit for The Zombies. In January 1970, their single, "The Song" was released on Thunderbird TH 534. It was the B side "Heat Wave" which became the hit and that charted for seven weeks on WOLF Radio.