City honours 1970s chart-topping soul stars

The Real Thing became the first all-black British band to have a UK number one single

One of the UK's most successful soul acts of the 1970s and 80s are being honoured in their home city.

The Real Thing, who were critically acclaimed for a string of pop hits, have received the Roll of Citizen of Honour of the City of Liverpool in a ceremony at St George's Hall.

Founders Chris Amoo and Dave Smith - the only two surviving members of the four-strong group from Toxteth - have been handed scrolls to mark the accolade.

The other band members, Amoo's elder brother Eddie, who died six years ago, and Ray Lake, who died in 2000, were represented by their families.

The Merseyside band scored a global hit with their anthem You To Me Are Everything, which saw them become the first all-black British band to have a UK number one single.

Amoo told BBC Radio Merseyside: "When me and Dave formed the band and we were singing in our front rooms over our favourite records we never dreamt along with Eddie and Ray we would ever see a day like this.

"We just wanted to sing, that’s all we wanted to do, and here we are receiving this award which we are so proud of."

The Real Thing once appeared on the same bill as The Jackson Five not long before Michael Jackson went solo

The singer added: "We are very proud we are from Liverpool.

"Lots of people used to think we were from America. Now they know we are Toxteth guys."

Among their best known works, You To Me Are Everything topped the charts in 1976 and also charted 10 years later when it reached number five.

It was followed by other best-selling songs including Can You Feel The Force and Can't Get By Without You.

French house duo The Freeloaders then took them back into the charts in 2005 by sampling their song Love's Such a Wonderful Thing.

Another of their tunes, Children of the Ghetto, was covered by artists including ex- Earth, Wind and Fire singer Philip Bailey and R&B superstar Mary J Blige.