Pure Essence

Pure Essence were an American R&B band from Cincinnati, Ohio, originally consisting of Steve "Tuck" Walters, Jerome "Mouse" Richmond, Toby Rivers, Tony Coats, Dwight Trible, Larry Middleton, Antonio "L.A." Reid, and Kevin "Kayo" Roberson.

[1] When Steve "Tuck" Walters and Jerome "Mouse" Richmond joined Cincinnati band Mother's Pride in the early-mid 1970s, they helped lead the group into a different musical direction, as well as a name change, to Pure Essence.

Pure Essence was influenced by such acts as Sly And The Family Stone, Curtis Mayfield, Yes, and contemporary local artists including Jimi Macon and Bootsy Collins.

[6] It was not long before the band again dissolved, but Reid and Roberson re-emerged in 1983 to form The Deele, whose lineup included Indianapolis native Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds on guitar.

Tompkins characterized Jerome Richmond's vocals as being "quiet as a skull balloon and making buildings woozy before purging the Joe Cocker werewolf from his larynx, a release to hold, tightly by the yowl, when flying through a tragic summer that's still not done with us.