Producer Recorded Soul Group at New Jersey Prison in 1970s

A former Motown producer recorded two albums by The Escorts inside Rahway State Prison in New Jersey during the 1970s. The project began after the producer attended a 1969 talent show open to the public at the facility. The producer wrote hundreds of letters to prison officials before they approved the recording plan.

He told officials that album proceeds could help cover the costs of the singers' incarceration.

The producer recorded instruments in outside studios and led vocal rehearsals inside the prison. Microphones were set up in a psychiatric ward whose padded walls provided soundproofing. The 1973 debut album titled "All We Need Is Another Chance" included covers and original songs that referenced the prison setting.

The album sold 310,000 copies according to a New York Times report. " — George Kerr, producer, in a recent interview.

After the first album, officials allowed a concert at Symphony Hall in Newark for members still incarcerated. A choreographer taught the performers dance routines for the show. A second album titled "3 Down 4 to Go" followed in 1974. It referenced the three members released after the first release.

The remaining four recorded inside the prison again. Personnel changes occurred as more members were released. The group later recorded and toured as free men.

Hip-hop producers sampled tracks from the prison albums in the 1990s. Songs from the releases continue to appear in advertisements, television shows, and films. A documentary about the group premiered at the Montclair Film Festival in 2017. Rumors of a Hollywood film version have circulated for years.

One original member told an interviewer in 2012 that the group rejected offers to make a movie with White actors instead of Black performers.