Earl Lee Nelson (September 8, 1928 – July 12, 2008), who also performed as Jackie Lee, 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 attes ...

singer and songwriter. He started his career in the doo-wop group

the Hollywood Flames The Hollywood Flames were an American R&B vocal group in the 1950s, best known for their No. 11 hit "Buzz-Buzz-Buzz" in 1957. Early years They formed as The Flames in 1949, in the Watts neighborhood of Los Angeles, at a talent show where memb ...

in the 1950s before founding the R&B duo

Bob & Earl Bob & Earl were an American music singing duo in the 1960s, best known for writing and recording the original version of " Harlem Shuffle". Career The original duo were Bobby Byrd and Earl Nelson. They had both been members of The Hollywood Fl ...

with

Bobby Byrd Bobby Howard Byrd (August 15, 1934 – September 12, 2007) was an American rhythm and blues, soul and funk singer, songwriter, musician, record producer, bandleader and talent scout, who played an integral and important part in the development ...

. As Jackie Lee, he's best known for his hit song "The Duck" (#14 Pop, #4 R&B).

Biography

Earl Lee Nelson was born in

Lake Charles, Louisiana Lake Charles (French: ''Lac Charles'') is the fifth-largest incorporated city in the U.S. state of Louisiana, and the parish seat of Calcasieu Parish, located on Lake Charles, Prien Lake, and the Calcasieu River. Founded in 1861 in Calcasieu ...

on September 8, 1928. He sang in his church's gospel choir in his youth before his family relocated to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

in 1937. Nelson enlisted in the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...

at the age of 17, working on the construction of the

Panama Canal The Panama Canal ( es, Canal de Panamá, link=no) is an artificial waterway in Panama that connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Pacific Ocean and divides North and South America. The canal cuts across the Isthmus of Panama and is a conduit ...

. In the 1950s he began singing

doo-wop Doo-wop (also spelled doowop and doo wop) is a genre of rhythm and blues music that originated in African-American communities during the 1940s, mainly in the large cities of the United States, including New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Chica ...

and joined

. He sang lead on the 1957 single " Buzz Buzz Buzz" which reached #11 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and #5 on the

R&B chart The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by ''Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 p ...

. Nelson and

, not

the Famous Flames The Famous Flames were an American Rhythm and blues, Soul vocal group founded in Toccoa, Georgia, in 1953 by Bobby Byrd. James Brown first began his career as a member of the Famous Flames, emerging as the lead singer by the time of their first ...

, collaborated as Bobby "Baby Face" Byrd & the Birds as well as Bobby Day & the Satellites. In 1957, Nelson released his first solo single, "Oh Gee Oh Golly" / "I Bow To You," on

Class Records Class Records was an American record label established in Los Angeles, California in 1951 by songwriter and record producer Leon René. Leon René and his brother Otis had previously established and run the independent rhythm and blues labels E ...

. That year, Nelson and Byrd released their first single as

, "You Made a Boo-Boo," on Class. In 1958, Nelson sang background vocals on Day's single "Rockin' Robin" (#2 Pop, #1 R&B). Afterwards, they left the Hollywood Flames, but after a few years, Byrd left Bob & Earl to focus on his solo career. Bob Relf from the Laurels replaced Byrd, and the new Bob & Earl recorded for different labels before releasing "

Harlem Shuffle "Harlem Shuffle" is an R&B song written and originally recorded by the duo Bob & Earl in 1963. In 1986, it was covered by the British rock band The Rolling Stones on their album '' Dirty Work''. Bob & Earl The original single, arranged by Ge ...

" on Marc Records in 1963. The single reached the Top 50 in the US and years later the Top 10 in the UK. Their follow up singles weren't as successful. In 1965, Nelson relaunched a solo career on Mira Records with the single "Ooh Honey Baby," credited to Earl Cosby. Later that year, Nelson signed to

Mirwood Records Mirwood Records was an American record label founded by former Vee-Jay executive Randy Wood in Los Angeles in 1965. The Mirwood label was a sister label to Mira Records. It primarily released rhythm and blues and jazz recordings,< ...

recorded as Jackie Lee. Jackie was Nelson's wife's name and Lee his own middle name. He released his biggest single "The Duck" in November 1965 and by January it peaked at #14 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and #4 on the R&B chart. In 1966, he released his only album, The Duck, which reached #85 on the ''Billboard'''s Top Lp's chart and #8 on the R&B chart. Though Nelson didn't have further chart success, his later singles on Mirwood are popular in Northern soul circles. Nelson later recorded for ABC-Paramount and Uni Records. Barry White produced his 1974 Warner Bros. single "Strange Funky Games and Things" (credited to Jay Dee). Nelson continued to perform around Los Angeles, but he was later diagnosed with

Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegeneration, neurodegenerative disease that usually starts slowly and progressively worsens. It is the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in short-term me ...

. Nelson died at the age of 79 in Los Angeles on July 12, 2008. At the time of his death, Nelson had been married three times and he had seven surviving children (two deceased).

Discography

Albums

* 1966: ''The Duck'' (Mirwood Records) – peaked at #85 Pop, #8 R&B

Singles

Earl Nelson and The Pelicans * 1957: "Oh Gee Oh Golly" / "I Bow To You" (Class 209) Earl Nelson * 1959: "No Time To Cry" / "Come On" (Ebb 164) Chip Nelson * 1960: "Honey For Sale" / "Quiet As It's Kept" (Edsel 783) Earl Cosby * 1965: "Ooh Honey Baby" / "I'll Be There" (Mira 204) *1966: " Land Of A 1,000 Dances" / "Ooh Honey Baby ( Mirwood 5515) Jackie Lee * 1965: "The Duck" / "Let Your Conscience Be Your Guide" (Mirwood 5502) – peaked at #14 Pop, #4 R&B * 1966: "Your P-E-R-S-O-N-A-L-I-T-Y" / "Try My Method" (Mirwood 5509) * 1966: "The Shotgun And The Duck" / "Do The Temptation Walk" (Mirwood 5510) *1966: "Would You Believe" / "You're Everything" (Mirwood 5519) *1966: "Oh, My Darlin'" / "Don't Be Ashamed" (Mirwood 5527) *1967: "Glory Of Love" / "Bring It Home" (Keymen 109) *1968: "African Boo-Ga-Loo" / "Bring It Home" (Keymen 114) – peaked at #43 R&B *1968: "Darkest Days" / "One For The Road" (

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

11146) *1970: "The Chicken" / "I Love You" (Uni 55206) – peaked at #47 R&B *1970: "Your Sweetness Is My Weakness" / "You Were Searching For A Love" (

Uni Uni or UNI may refer to: Entertainment *Uni Records, a division of MCA, formally called Universal City Records *"U.N.I.", a song by Ed Sheeran from ''+'' (''Plus'') *Uni, a species in the Neopets Trading Card Game *Uni, a character in the anim ...

55259) *1971: "Pershing Square" / "Twenty-Five Miles To Louisiana" (

Capitol A capitol, named after the Capitoline Hill in Rome, is usually a legislative building where a legislature meets and makes laws for its respective political entity. Specific capitols include: * United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. * Numerous ...

3145) Jackie Lee and Delores Hall * 1966: "Whether It's Right Or Wrong" / "Baby I'm Satisfied" (Mirwood 5528) Jay Dee * 1974: "Strange Funky Games And Things" / "Strange Funky Games And Things (Instrumental)" (

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...

7798) – peaked at #88 R&B

References

External links

Earl Nelson
on

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nelson, Earl 1928 births 2008 deaths African-American male singer-songwriters American soul singers Musicians from Lake Charles, Louisiana Singer-songwriters from Louisiana Singers from Los Angeles Class Records artists Mirwood Records artists Uni Records artists ABC Records artists Capitol Records artists Warner Records artists United States Army soldiers People with Alzheimer's disease 20th-century African-American male singers Singer-songwriters from California