Jonathan Edwards (born December 25, 1944), professionally known as John Edwards,
Retrieved 14 October 2016 is 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 who had a moderately successful solo career before becoming lead singer of
The Spinners between 1977 and 2000.
Biography
Born in
St Louis, Missouri, Edwards began his musical career by singing in clubs while stationed in Germany when in the
US 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, cla ...
. After returning to live in
Duluth, Georgia
Duluth is a city in Gwinnett County, Georgia, United States. Located north of Interstate 85, it is approximately northeast of Atlanta.
As of the 2020 census, Duluth had a population of 31,873, and the United States Census Bureau estimated the ...
, he appeared on bills with
Wilson Pickett
Wilson Pickett (March 18, 1941 – January 19, 2006) was an American singer and songwriter.
A major figure in the development of soul music, Pickett recorded over 50 songs which made the US R&B charts, many of which crossed over to the ''Bill ...
, and
James and Bobby Purify
James & Bobby Purify were an R&B singing duo, whose biggest hits were " I'm Your Puppet" in 1966, which reached number six in the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart and in a re-recorded version number 12 in the UK Singles Chart (in May 1976), and ...
, before moving to
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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in the late 1960s. There he met
Curtis Mayfield
Curtis Lee Mayfield (June 3, 1942 – December 26, 1999) was an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer, and one of the most influential musicians behind soul and politically conscious African-American music. , who introduced Edwards to producer
Jo Armstead
Josephine Armstead (born October 8, 1944), also known as "Joshie" Jo Armstead, is an American soul singer and songwriter. Armstead began her career singing backing vocals for blues musician Bobby "Blue" Bland before becoming an Ikette in the Ike ...
at
Weis Records. He recorded several singles for the label before moving to
Bell Records in 1972, and then to the
Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
-based
Aware label the following year.
[ Biography by Ron Wynn, ''Allmusic.com'']
Retrieved 14 October 2016
Retrieved 14 October 2016 Produced by
Floyd Smith
Floyd Robert Donald Smith (born May 16, 1935, in Perth, Ontario) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre and coach.
Biography
Smith grew up in Galt, Ontario, playing junior hockey with the Galt Black Hawks. He made his National Ho ...
, Edwards first achieved chart success when "Stop This Merry-Go-Round" reached number 45 on the ''
Billboard''
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 ...
in 1973. He followed it up with "Messing Up A Good Thing" and a self-titled album, and then his most successful record, "Careful Man", produced by Smith and written by
Jimmy Lewis, which reached number 8 on the R&B chart in 1974. It was followed by "Vanishing Love", which also made the R&B chart.
After the record company went out of business, Edwards did some shows with the Spinners, but also maintained a solo career on the
Cotillion
The cotillion (also cotillon or French country dance) is a social dance, popular in 18th-century Europe and North America. Originally for four couples in square formation, it was a courtly version of an English country dance, the forerunner ...
label, achieving two more R&B chart entries with "Baby, Hold On to Me" (1976) and ""Nobody But You" (1977). He then decided to join the Spinners on a full-time basis, and replaced
Philippé Wynne
Philippé Wynne (''aka'' Philippe Escalante Wynn; ''né'' Walker; April 3, 1941 – July 14, 1984) was an American singer, best known for his role as a lead vocalist of The Spinners (a role he shared with fellow group members Bobby Smith and H ...
as the group's lead singer in 1977.
[ He featured as the main vocalist on their later hit singles including "]Working My Way Back to You
"Working My Way Back to You" is a song made popular by The Four Seasons in 1966 and The Spinners in 1980.
Written by Sandy Linzer and Denny Randell, the song was originally recorded by The Four Seasons in 1966, reaching No. 9 on the U.S. ''B ...
", produced by Michael Zager
Michael Zager (born January 3, 1943) is an American record producer, composer, and arranger of original music for commercials, albums, network television, and theme music for films. He teaches music at Florida Atlantic University. Zager was a m ...
, which became one of the group's biggest hits, reaching number 2 on the Hot 100 in early 1980, and number 1 on the UK singles chart
The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...
.[ "The Spinners", ''Indianapolis Recorder'', August 2, 2012]
Retrieved 14 October 2016
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Edwards, John
1944 births
Living people
Musicians from St. Louis
Singers from Missouri
20th-century African-American male singers