Bobby Eli, co-composer of "Sideshow" and "Just Don't Want to Be Lonely", who worked as a guitarist on the album, stated in the liner notes of the 2007 reissue of the album that he believed that Harris was equally at home with uptempo material as with ballads and, citing the tracks "Look Me Up" and "Welcome to the Club" as classic examples of the proto- disco sound of 1973-74, expressed his opinion that Harris' expertise in this field gave Blue Magic the ability to deliver convincing uptempo tracks in a way which largely eluded other Philadelphia soul groups with whom they are usually bracketed, notably The Stylistics and The Delfonics. Music for the album was provided by Sigma Sound Studios' legendary house band MFSB. Another track on the album was the lengthy " Just Don't Want to Be Lonely", which Ronnie Dyson had taken into the R&B top 30 in July 1973, then became a bigger hit for New York group The Main Ingredient, whose version reached both the R&B and pop top 10 at around the same time Blue Magic was released. The album was released on January 9, 1974, followed shortly thereafter by a fourth single, " Sideshow", the lush, dreamy and loss-filled atmosphere of which immediately caught on and became a major hit, topping the R&B chart and reaching No. Blue Magic were partially comprised of the group the Shades of Love, which featured Keith Beaton, Richard Pratt, Vernon Sawyer and his brother Wendell. Two more singles, "Look Me Up" and " Stop to Start" were released during 1973 all performed respectably on the R&B chart with "Stop to Start" also crossing over into the lower reaches of the pop chart.
Blue Magic's debut single "Spell" was released in November 1972 and work on the album began in early 1973. Over the next three years Blue Magic became know mostly for smooth ballads, and the group stayed high on the Soul charts with 'Three Ring Circus,' 'Stop to Start,' and 'Chasing Rainbows,' before landing a big hit with the dance tune 'Magic of the Blue.' Blue Magic's fortunes faded as the 70s came to an end, and Richard Pratt left in the early.
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