''Dedicated'' was Barry White's fifteenth studio album. Released in March 1983. White's popularity and record sales were at an all-time low and, as a consequence, his relationship with

CBS Records CBS Records may refer to: * CBS Records or CBS/Sony, former name of Sony Music, a global record company * CBS Records International, label for Columbia Records recordings released outside North America from 1962 to 1990 * CBS Records (2006), founde ...

had soured. ''Dedicated'' and his album ''Rise'' with the

Love Unlimited Orchestra The Love Unlimited Orchestra was a 40-piece string-laden orchestra formed by American singer Barry White, and serving as a backing unit for White and for female vocal trio Love Unlimited. From the early 1970s on, they also recorded several sing ...

, released around the same time, sold abysmally and, like its singles, failed to chart anywhere. All the tracks were recorded at White's R.I.S.E. studio in the grounds of Sherman Oaks, with White & Jack Perry playing all instruments of the rhythm section themselves.

Gene Page Eugene Edgar Page Jr. (September 13, 1939 – August 24, 1998) was an American conductor, composer, arranger and record producer, most active from the mid-1960s through the mid-1980s. His sound can be heard in the arrangements he did for Jeffer ...

added the strings. White wrote on the back cover: ''This album is personally DEDICATED to my mother, Miss Sadie Marie Carter, for she dedicated her life to the children with the knowledge of peace, harmony and goodwill toward man. With my deepest love and love forever, your son.'' This was the fourth consecutive album where the UK label passed on releasing any singles.

Cover versions

"All in the Run of One Day" was a new recording of one of White's early recordings from 1967. "Dreams" was a revamp of a track from the Love Unlimited Orchestra's 1981 album with

Webster Lewis Webster Samuel Lewis (September 1, 1943 – November 20, 2002) was an American jazz and disco composer, arranger and keyboardist. Career Lewis was born in 1943 in Baltimore, Maryland. At a young age, his family encouraged him to take up music. L ...

. "Love Song" was a cover of an early

Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, pianist and composer. Commonly nicknamed the "Rocket Man" after his 1972 hit single of the same name, John has led a commercially successful career a ...

-song, written by

Lesley Duncan Lesley Cox (née Duncan; 12 August 1943 – 12 March 2010) was an English singer-songwriter, best known for her work during the 1970s. She received much airplay on British radio stations such as BBC Radio 1 and BBC Radio 2, but never achieved ...

Recording hiatus

CBS released White of his contract in 1984. Since 1977, 14 albums had been released in total on his Unlimited Gold label, five by himself, one duet album with his wife Glodean, one album by

Love Unlimited Love Unlimited was a female vocal trio that provided backing vocals for American singer-songwriter Barry White on his albums and concert tours. They also found success with their own recordings. Career Formed in 1969, the group included Barry ...

, three by the

, and one each by his signings Danny Pearson and Jimmie & Vella Cameron. Its biggest success had been a 1980 2-LP set of his greatest hits from his 20th Century-years. White had lost an estimated $10M over those 7 years. CBS was that keen to get out of their deal that they even returned all the mastertapes to White. In April 1984, White received a phone call from

Marvin Gaye Marvin Pentz Gay Jr., who also spelled his surname as Gaye (April 2, 1939 – April 1, 1984), was an American singer and songwriter. He helped to shape the sound of Motown in the 1960s, first as an in-house session player and later as a solo ar ...

who wanted him to produce his next album. Only the next day, he woke up to the news that Gaye had been killed by his dad. For the next three years, White survived on royalty checks from his glory years and the occasional touring, before finding new spirit when he signed with

A&M Records A&M Records was an American record label founded as an independent company by Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss in 1962. Due to the success of the discography A&M released, the label garnered interest and was acquired by PolyGram in 1989 and began distr ...

and started recording again.

CD reissues

The album would see a CD release in 1993. In 1996, Japan re-issued the album on a gatefold miniature LP-replica compact disc.

Track listing

# "America" (Barry White) - 5:47 # "Free" (Barry White, Carl Taylor, Ricky Robertson) - 5:45 # "Don't Forget ... Remember" (White) - 5:45 # "Life" (Barry White, Jack Perry) - 3:40 # "Love Song" (

) - 5:50 # "All in the Run of a Day" (Barry White, Robert Staunton) - 6:55 # "Don't Let 'Em Blow Your Mind" (White, Perry) - 6:48 # "Dreams" (Barry White, Webster Lewis) - 4:20

Singles

* "America" (3:39) / "Life" (4:30) (Unlimited Gold, ZS4 03957) * "Don't Let Them Blow Your Mind" (4:32) / "Dreams" (4:06) (Unlimited Gold, ZS4 04098)

References

{{Authority control Barry White albums 1983 albums