Vandross bought back the rights to those albums after Cotillion dropped the group, preventing them from being re-released. Although the singles "It's Good for the Soul", "Funky Music (Is a Part of Me)", and "The Second Time Around" were relatively successful, their two albums, the self-titled Luther (1976) and This Close to You (1977), which Vandross produced, did not sell enough to make the charts. Reed, and Christine Wiltshire, signed to Cotillion Records. The quintet consisted of former Shades of Jade members Anthony Hinton and Diane Sumler, as well as Theresa V. King, Bette Midler, Diana Ross, Carly Simon, Barbra Streisand, David Bowie, Cat Stevens, Gary Glitter, Ringo Starr, Sister Sledge, and Donna Summer, and for the bands Mandrill, Chic and Todd Rundgren's Utopia.īefore his solo breakthrough, Vandross was part of a singing quintet named Luther in the late 1970s. Vandross also sang backing vocals for artists, including Roberta Flack, Chaka Khan, Ben E. Vandross wrote "Everybody Rejoice/A Brand New Day" for the 1975 Broadway musical The Wiz. After his song "Funky Music (Is a Part of Me)" was re-written as "Fascination" with David Bowie for the latter's Young Americans (1975) album, Vandross went on to tour with him as a back-up vocalist in September 1974. He sang with her on the song "Who's Gonna Make It Easier for Me", which he wrote, and he contributed another song, "In This Lonely Hour". Vandross added backing vocals to Roberta Flack & Donny Hathaway in 1972, and worked on Delores Hall's Hall-Mark album (1973). Directly afterward, he appeared with the group in the pilot episode and other episodes of the first season of Sesame Street during 1969–1970. The group performed in front of tens of thousands at the Harlem Cultural Festival in late August 1969. While he was a member of a theater workshop, Listen My Brother, he was involved in the singles "Only Love Can Make a Better World" and "Listen My Brother". ![]() During his early years in show business, he appeared several times at the Apollo's famous amateur night. He also performed in a group, Shades of Jade, that once played at the Apollo Theater. ![]() While in high school, Vandross founded the first Patti LaBelle fan club, of which he was president. ![]() Vandross graduated from William Howard Taft High School in the Bronx in 1969, and attended Western Michigan University for one and a half semesters before dropping out to continue pursuing a career in music. Patricia sang with the vocal group The Crests and was featured on the songs "My Juanita" and "Sweetest One". His sisters, Patricia "Pat" and Ann, began taking Vandross to the Apollo Theater and to a theater in Brooklyn to see Dionne Warwick and Aretha Franklin. His family moved to the Bronx when he was nine. In 2003, Vandross wrote the song "Dance with My Father" and dedicated it to him the title was based on his childhood memories and his mother's recollections of the family singing and dancing in the house. Vandross' father died of diabetes when Vandross was eight years old. Duets such as "The Closer I Get to You" with Beyoncé, "Endless Love" with Mariah Carey and "The Best Things in Life Are Free" with Janet Jackson were all hit songs in his career. Many of his songs were covers of original music by other artists such as "If This World Were Mine" (duet with Cheryl Lynn), "Since I Lost My Baby", "Superstar", "I (Who Have Nothing)" and "Always and Forever". His hit songs include "Never Too Much", "Here and Now", "Any Love", "Power of Love/Love Power", "I Can Make It Better" and "For You to Love". After Vandross left the group, he was signed to Epic Records as a solo artist and released his debut solo album, Never Too Much, in 1981. ![]() He later became a lead singer of the group Change, which released its Gold-certified debut album, The Glow of Love, in 1980 on Warner/RFC Records. Vandross worked as a backing vocalist in the 1970s, and appeared on albums by artists such as Roberta Flack, Donny Hathaway, Todd Rundgren, Judy Collins, Chaka Khan, Bette Midler, Diana Ross, David Bowie, Ben E. In 2004, Vandross won a total of four Grammy Awards, including the Grammy Award for Song of the Year for a song recorded not long before his death, "Dance with My Father". He achieved eleven consecutive Platinum albums and eight Grammy Awards, including Best Male R&B Vocal Performance four different times. Known for his sweet and soulful vocals, Vandross has sold over 40 million records worldwide. (Ap– July 1, 2005) was an American singer, songwriter, and record producer.
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