The Edge of Daybreak is an American soul/funk band formed in Virginia in the late 1970s. The band released a single album, Eyes of Love, in 1979.[1][2][3]
Band members Jamal Jaha Nubi, James Carrington, Cornelius Cade, Harry Coleman, McEvoy Robinson (who had previously played with Otis Redding[2]), Willie Williams, and others[4] met and started playing music together while incarcerated at Powhatan Correctional Center in the late 1970s.[1]
Milton Hogue, a friend of Carrington's and the owner of Bohannon's record shop in Richmond, Virginia, took an interest in recording the band after hearing some of their music.[2][5] On September 14 1979, the band recorded 8 original songs live at Powhatan, in a single take, over the course of 5 hours.[1][2] The resulting album, titled Eyes of Love, was released later in 1979.[1] It was recorded on a budget of $3000,[4] and only 1000 copies were pressed.[1] The album received some local attention and radio airplay in the Richmond area,[2] but remained relatively obscure[4] until it was reissued in 2015.[2][4]
Within a year of recording Eyes of Love, some members of the band were moved to other facilities, effectively leading to the demise of the band.[4]
A short documentary about the band, entitled Edge of Daybreak: The Real Jailhouse Rock, was created by filmmaker Alix Lambert and published in The Atlantic.[3][5]
