Arthur Lee Conley (January 4, 1946 – November 17, 2003), also known in later years as Lee Roberts, was an American
soul
In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being".
Etymology
The Modern English noun '' soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest atte ...
singer, best known for the 1967 hit "
Sweet Soul Music".
Early life
Conley was born in
McIntosh County,
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...
, U.S., and grew up in Atlanta. He first recorded in 1959 as the lead singer of Arthur & the Corvets. With this group, he released three singles in 1963 and 1964—"Poor Girl", "I Believe", and "Flossie Mae"—on the Atlanta-based record label,
NRC Records.
Biography and career
In 1964, he moved to a new label (Baltimore's
Ru-Jac Records) and released "I'm a Lonely Stranger". When
Otis Redding
Otis Ray Redding Jr. (September 9, 1941 – December 10, 1967) was an American singer and songwriter. He is considered one of the greatest singers in the history of American popular music and a seminal artist in soul music and rhythm and blues. ...
heard this, he asked Conley to record a new version, which was released on Redding's own fledgling label
Jotis Records, as only its second release. Conley met Redding in 1967. Together they rewrote the
Sam Cooke song "Yeah Man" into "
Sweet Soul Music", which, at Redding's insistence, was released on the
Atco Atco or ATCO may refer to:
Businesses
* ATCO, a Canadian diversified company involved in manufacturing, utilities, energy and technologies
** ATCO Electric, a subsidiary of the above company
* Atco (British mower company), a mower manufacturing ...
-distributed label
Fame Records
Fame is the quality of being well-known and in the public eye. Celebrities are famous by definition.
Fame may also refer to:
Books
* '' Fame: an art project'', a 2013 book and series of paintings by Robert Priseman
* ''Fame'' (novel) (German ''R ...
, and was recorded at FAME studios in
Muscle Shoals, Alabama. It proved to be a massive hit, going to the number two position on the U.S. charts and the Top Ten across much of Europe. "Sweet Soul Music" sold over one million copies, and was awarded a
gold disc
Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...
.
After several years of hit singles in the early 1970s, he relocated to England in 1975, and spent several years in Belgium, settling in Amsterdam (Netherlands) in spring 1977. At the beginning of 1980 he had some major performances as Lee Roberts and the Sweaters in the Ganzenhoef,
Paradiso,
De Melkweg and the
Concertgebouw
The Royal Concertgebouw ( nl, Koninklijk Concertgebouw, ) is a concert hall in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The Dutch term "concertgebouw" translates into English as "concert building". Its superb acoustics place it among the finest concert halls in ...
, and was highly successful. At the end of 1980 he moved to the Dutch town of
Ruurlo legally changing his name to Lee Roberts—his middle name and his mother's maiden name. He promoted new music via his Art-Con Productions company. Amongst the bands he promoted was the heavy metal band Shockwave from
The Hague
The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital o ...
. A live performance on January 8, 1980, featuring Lee Roberts & the Sweaters, was released as an album entitled ''Soulin'' in 1988.
Personal life
Conley was gay, and several music writers have said that his homosexuality was a bar to greater success in the United States and one of the reasons behind his move to Europe and his eventual name change. In 2014, rock historian
Ed Ward wrote, "
onleyheaded to Amsterdam and changed his name to Lee Roberts. Nobody knew 'Lee Roberts,' and at last Conley was able to live in peace with a secret he had hidden—or thought he had—for his entire career: he was gay. But nobody in The Netherlands cared."
Death
Conley died at the age of 57 from
intestinal cancer
Colorectal cancer (CRC), also known as bowel cancer, colon cancer, or rectal cancer, is the development of cancer from the colon or rectum (parts of the large intestine). Signs and symptoms may include blood in the stool, a change in bowel ...
in
Ruurlo, The Netherlands in November 2003. He was buried in
Vorden.
Discography
Albums
* ''Sweet Soul Music'' (Atlantic, 1967)
* ''Shake, Rattle & Roll'' (Atlantic, 1967)
* ''Soul Directions'' (1968)
* ''More Sweet Soul'' (1969)
Singles
*"I Believe" (1963, as Arthur & the Corvets)
*"Flossie Mae" (1963, as Arthur & the Corvets)
*"Poor Girl" (1963, as Arthur & the Corvets)
*"Where He Leads Me" / "I'm A Lonely Stranger" (1965)
*"Who's Fooling Who" / "There's A Place For Us" (1966)
*"I Can't Stop (No, No, No)" / "In The Same Old Way" (1966)
*"I'm Gonna Forget About You" (1966)
*"Sweet Soul Music" / "Let's Go Steady" (1967, co-written with Otis Redding, #2 R&B, #2 pop)
*"Whole Lotta Woman" / "Love Comes And Goes" (1967, #73 Pop)
*"Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha!" (1967)
*"Shake, Rattle & Roll" (1967, #31 pop, #20 R&B)
*"Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da" / "Otis Sleep On" (1968, #51 pop, #41 R&B, Beatles cover featuring guitar by
Duane Allman
Howard Duane Allman (November 20, 1946 – October 29, 1971) was an American rock guitarist, session musician, and the founder and original leader of the Allman Brothers Band, for which he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame i ...
)
*"Aunt Dora's Love Soul Shack" (1968)
*"Funky Street" / "Put Our Love Together" (1968)
*"People Sure Act Funny" (1968, Top 20 R&B)
*"Burning Fire" (1968)
*"Is That You Love" (1968)
*"Run On (1968)
*"Star Review" (1969, with
Tom Dowd, written by
Allen Toussaint)
*"They Call the Wind Maria" (1969)
*"Day-O" (1969, made famous by
Harry Belafonte
Harry Belafonte (born Harold George Bellanfanti Jr.; March 1, 1927) is an American singer, activist, and actor. As arguably the most successful Jamaican-American pop star, he popularized the Trinbagonian Caribbean musical style with an interna ...
)
*"God Bless" (1970, Top 40 R&B)
*"I'm Living Good" (1971)
*"Walking on Eggs" / "More Sweet Soul Music" (1972)
*"Rita" (1972)
*"It's So Nice (When It's Someone Else's Wife)" (1974)
References
External links
Memorial website(in
Dutch
Dutch commonly refers to:
* Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands
* Dutch people ()
* Dutch language ()
Dutch may also refer to:
Places
* Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States
* Pennsylvania Dutch Country
People E ...
) Photos from Arthur's last live performance, 9 June 2002 in Netherlands.
Arthur Conley Sweet Soul Music Home Page w/ CD Liner Notes, Discography and Latest Releases*
*
ttps://archive.today/20060318205843/http://www.otisredding.com/biography.html Otis Redding's biography contains history of Jotis RecordsAnswers.com article on Arthur ConleyArthur Conley Dies
{{DEFAULTSORT:Conley, Arthur
1946 births
2003 deaths
American soul musicians
American expatriates in Belgium
American expatriates in the Netherlands
American expatriates in England
Deaths from colorectal cancer
Deaths from cancer in the Netherlands
Atlantic Records artists
Atco Records artists
LGBT people from Georgia (U.S. state)
LGBT singers from the United States
American gay musicians
Musicians from Atlanta
People from McIntosh County, Georgia
LGBT African Americans
20th-century LGBT people
21st-century LGBT people
20th-century African-American male singers