Harry Wayne Casey (born January 31, 1951), better known by his stage name KC, is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He is best known for his band,

KC and the Sunshine Band KC and the Sunshine Band is an American disco and funk band that was founded in 1973 in Hialeah, Florida. Their best-known songs include the hits "That's the Way (I Like It)", "(Shake, Shake, Shake) Shake Your Booty", "I'm Your Boogie Man", "K ...

, as a producer of several hits for other artists, and as a pioneer of the

disco Disco is a genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the 1970s from the United States' urban nightlife scene. Its sound is typified by four-on-the-floor beats, syncopated basslines, string sections, brass and horns, electric pia ...

genre of the 1970s.

Career

Harry Wayne Casey formed

in 1973. He was introduced to Richard Finch, who was doing engineering work on records for

TK Records TK Records was an American independent record label founded by record distributor Henry Stone and Steve Alaimo in 1972. and based in Hialeah, Florida. The record label went bankrupt in 1981. "TK" was inspired by the initials of sound engineer Te ...

. Thus began the Casey-Finch musical collaboration. The initial members were just Casey and Finch. They later added guitarist Jerome Smith (1953–2000) and drummer Robert Johnson, both TK studio musicians. The first few songs, "Blow Your Whistle" (September 1973) and "Sound Your Funky Horn" (February 1974), were released as singles, and did well enough on the U.S. R&B chart and overseas that TK wanted a follow-up single and album. However, while working on demos for KC & the Sunshine Band the song, "

Rock Your Baby "Rock Your Baby" is the debut single by George McCrae. Written and produced by Harry Wayne Casey and Richard Finch of KC and the Sunshine Band, "Rock Your Baby" was one of the landmark recordings of early disco music. A massive international hi ...

" (

George McCrae George Warren McCrae Jr. (born October 19, 1944) is an American soul music, soul and disco singing, singer who is most famous for his 1974 hit "Rock Your Baby". Biography and career McCrae was the second of nine children, born in West Palm Bea ...

) was created. The band's "Queen of Clubs" was a hit in the UK, peaking at No. 7, and they went on tour there in 1975. KC and the Sunshine Band became prominent in the United States in 1975 with "

Get Down Tonight "Get Down Tonight" is a song released in 1975 on the self-titled album by the disco group KC and the Sunshine Band. The song became widely successful, becoming the first of their five No. 1 hits on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. It also reached th ...

" and "

That's the Way (I Like It) "That's the Way (I Like It)" is a song by American disco and funk band KC and the Sunshine Band from their self-titled second studio album (1975). The single became the band's second No. 1 hit in the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, and it is one of the ...

". Other Casey-Finch favorites include "

(Shake, Shake, Shake) Shake Your Booty "(Shake, Shake, Shake) Shake Your Booty" is a song recorded and released in 1976 by KC and the Sunshine Band for the album '' Part 3''. The song became their third number-one hit on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, as well as their third number-one on ...

", "

I'm Your Boogie Man "I'm Your Boogie Man" is a song written and produced by Harry Wayne Casey and Richard Finch, and performed by Casey's band KC and the Sunshine Band, from their fourth album ''Part 3'' (1976). Background Richard Finch said that the song was writt ...

", "

Keep It Comin' Love "Keep It Comin' Love" is a song by KC and the Sunshine Band, released as a single in 1977. It appeared on their 1976 album, ''Part 3''. The song, like its predecessor "That's the Way (I Like It)", became widely successful due to its sexual double ...

" and " Please Don't Go". "

Boogie Shoes "Boogie Shoes" is a funk/disco song by KC and the Sunshine Band, which first appeared on their 1975 self-titled album. The song became a hit after it appeared on the ''Saturday Night Fever'' soundtrack in 1977. It was subsequently released as ...

" appeared on the soundtrack album for ''

Saturday Night Fever ''Saturday Night Fever'' is a 1977 American dance drama film directed by John Badham and produced by Robert Stigwood. It stars John Travolta as Tony Manero, a young Italian-American man from the Brooklyn borough of New York. Manero spends his ...

''. He also joined

Teri DeSario Teri is a given name directly from Teresa. Notable people with the name include: * Teri Ann Linn (born 1961), American actress and singer * Teri Anulewicz, American politician * Teri Austin (born 1957), Canadian actress * Teri Byrne (born 1972), ...

on her hit "

Yes, I'm Ready "Yes, I'm Ready" is a song by Barbara Mason from her album '' Yes, I'm Ready'' (1965). It has been covered by numerous artists, and was a hit single for Teri DeSario and K.C. when they recorded a duet version in 1980. Barbara Mason Mason, a sou ...

" in 1979. Casey also part-wrote "I Ain't Lyin'" (a UK hit for George McCrae in late 1975). As a result of the soaring popularity of new wave and

synthpop Synth-pop (short for synthesizer pop; also called techno-pop; ) is a subgenre of new wave music that first became prominent in the late 1970s and features the synthesizer as the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s a ...

in the early 1980s, Casey dissolved the Sunshine Band and recorded several pop-oriented solo albums. In January 1981, he survived a serious car accident — another car hit his car head-on. He was left partially paralyzed for six months, and had to re-learn how to walk, dance, and play the piano, but by the end of the year he was back in the recording studio. " Give It Up", was released as a solo hit, shot to Number One in the UK (but his U.S. label, Epic, refused to release it). However, it became a Top 20 hit in the United States (1984) when issued on the independent Meca label. In the mid-1990s, due to the revived interest in the music and fashions of the 1970s, Casey re-formed the Sunshine Band.

Personal life

Casey was born on January 31, 1951, at the Naval Hospital in

Opa-locka, Florida Opa-locka is a city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 16,463, up from 15,219 in 2010. The city was developed by Glenn Curtiss. Developed based on a ''One Thousand and One Nights'' theme, Op ...

. He grew up in

Hialeah Hialeah ( ; ) is a city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. With a population of 223,109 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, Hialeah is the sixth-largest city in Florida. It is the second largest city by population in the Mi ...

and graduated from Hialeah High School. In the 1990s and 2000s he split his time between

Miami Lakes, Florida Miami Lakes is a suburb of Miami, an incorporated town and former census-designated place in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. US Census, 31,628 people live in Miami Lakes. History The development was constructed by Sengra (now the ...

and

Durham, North Carolina Durham ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the county seat of Durham County, North Carolina, Durham County. Small portions of the city limits extend into Orange County, North Carolina, Orange County and Wake County, North Carol ...

.Calorielab.com
/ref> He now lives in

Miami Lakes Miami Lakes is a suburb of Miami, an incorporated town and former census-designated place in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. US Census, 31,628 people live in Miami Lakes. History The development was constructed by Sengra (now the ...

. Casey appeared in season 25 of ''

Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives ''Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives'' (often nicknamed ''Triple D'' and stylized as ''Diners, Drive-Ins, Dives'') is an American food reality television series that premiered on April 23, 2007, on the Food Network. It is hosted by Guy Fieri. The show o ...

''.

Discography

*'' Do It Good'' (1974) *''

'' (1975) *''

The Sound of Sunshine ''The Sound of Sunshine'' is the third studio album by the American funk and disco group The Sunshine Band. The album was produced by its vocalist Harry Wayne Casey, who did not perform vocals for the album, and Richard Finch. It was released ...

'' (1975) *''

Part 3 Part, parts or PART may refer to: People *Armi Pärt (born 1991), Estonian handballer *Arvo Pärt (born 1935), Estonian classical composer *Brian Part (born 1962), American child actor *Dealtry Charles Part (1882–1961), sheriff (1926–1927) an ...

'' (1976) *'' Who Do Ya Love'' (1978) *''

Do You Wanna Go Party ''Do You Wanna Go Party'' is the sixth studio album by the funk and disco group KC and the Sunshine Band. The album was produced by Harry Wayne Casey and Richard Finch and was released in June 1979 on the TK label. History ''Do You Wanna Go Par ...

'' (1979) *''

Space Cadet Solo Flight ''Space Cadet Solo Flight'' is the seventh studio album by the funk and disco group KC and the Sunshine Band. The album was produced by Harry Wayne Casey and Richard Finch and was released in 1981 on the TK label. History ''Space Cadet Solo Fli ...

'' (1981) *'' The Painter'' (1981) *''

All in a Night's Work ''All in a Night's Work'' is the ninth studio album by the funk and disco group KC and the Sunshine Band. The album was produced by Harry Wayne Casey and Richard Finch and was released in August 1982 on the Epic label. History ''All in a Night ...

'' (1982) *''

KC Ten ''KC Ten'' is the tenth studio album by the funk and disco group KC and the Sunshine Band. The album was produced by Harry Wayne Casey, Robert Walker, and Ron Taylor and was released in December 1983 on the Meca label. History ''KC Ten'' was cred ...

'' (1983) *'' Oh Yeah!'' (1993) *'' I'll Be There for You'' (2001) *''Yummy'' (2007)

Selected compilations

*''Greatest Hits, Vol. 1'' (1980) (compilation) *''

The Best of KC and the Sunshine Band ''The Best of KC and the Sunshine Band'' is a compilation album by KC and the Sunshine Band, released in 1990. The album contained hits from 1974 to 1979, including every track included in their 1980 ''Greatest Hits'' compilation (which had gone ...

'' (1990) (compilation) *''Greatest Hits Vol. 2'' (1990) (compilation) *''KC and the Sunshine Band...and More'' (1994) *''Part 3... and More'' (1995) *''

Get Down Live! ''Get Down Live!'' is the first live album by KC and the Sunshine Band, released in 1995. It is a compilation of several shows that were recorded at/in Fountain Blue, Miami Beach, New Year's Eve '93/'94, Houston, Texas '94, Australia '94, Peru, ...

'' (1995) (live) *''Shake, Shake, Shake and Other Hits'' (1997) *''I'm Your Boogie Man and Other Hits'' (1997) *''Yummy in My Tummy'' (1998) (live)

References

External links

Official websiteHarry Casey Interview
NAMM Oral History Library (2017) {{DEFAULTSORT:Casey, Harry Wayne 1951 births American disco singers American funk singers American male pop singers American male singer-songwriters Record producers from Florida American rhythm and blues singer-songwriters Epic Records artists Grammy Award winners KC and the Sunshine Band members Living people Miami Dade College alumni People from Opa-locka, Florida Singer-songwriters from Florida Hialeah Senior High School alumni