Kathleen "Kathy" McCord (February 18, 1952 – October 28, 2015) was an American singer and musician.

Biography

McCord was born on February 18, 1952, to Bill and Ann McCord. Both of them were in show business: Bill was a radio and television announcer at NBC, whilst Ann was a singer who sang backup on

Perry Como Pierino Ronald "Perry" Como (; May 18, 1912 – May 12, 2001) was an Italian-American singer, actor and television personality. During a career spanning more than half a century, he recorded exclusively for RCA Victor for 44 years, after signing ...

's TV show and hit records like "

Catch a Falling Star "Catch a Falling Star" is a song written by Paul Vance and Lee Pockriss. It is best known and was made famous by Perry Como's hit version, recorded and released in late 1957. Background and chart performance The song's melody is based on a them ...

", "Round and Round" and "

Magic Moments "Magic Moments" is a popular song with music by Burt Bacharach and lyrics by Hal David, one of the first compositions by that duo. The song was published in 1957. The song was recorded by Perry Como as the B-side of his "Catch a Falling Star". I ...

". Kathy attended school at Sacred Heart School and Woodlands High School in New York, showing interest for painting, poetry and singing. Before she was ten, she was already winning talent shows. She won a contest set at the Colonial Inn, in Miami, singing " School Days". Her influences were

Motown Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ''moto ...

soul artists, Dusty Springfield, Bob Dylan, The Beatles,

Joni Mitchell Roberta Joan "Joni" Mitchell ( Anderson; born November 7, 1943) is a Canadian-American musician, producer, and painter. Among the most influential singer-songwriters to emerge from the 1960s folk music circuit, Mitchell became known for her sta ...

and

Aretha Franklin Aretha Louise Franklin ( ; March 25, 1942 – August 16, 2018) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Referred to as the " Queen of Soul", she has twice been placed ninth in ''Rolling Stone''s "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". With ...

, among the others. She was introduced to Chip Taylor by her brother, Billy Vera, when she was 16 years old. Taylor wrote two songs for her, "I'll Give My Heart to You" and "I'll Never Be Alone Again", originally issued on the Rainy Day label. However, the sales were poor and nothing came of it. A year later, manager Murri Barber, impressed by McCord's singing and writing, suggested they should bring her to producer

Creed Taylor Creed Bane Taylor V (May 13, 1929 – August 22, 2022) was an American record producer, best known for his work with CTI Records, which he founded in 1967. His career also included periods at Bethlehem Records, ABC-Paramount Records (including ...

, who was starting CTI Records at the time. He finally chose her as his first artist, leading to the first CTI album, '' ''Kathy McCord'''' (CTI 1001), and the single "Take Away This Pain" (CTI 502). Eventually, business difficulties arose between Taylor and the McCords, and a few months later, Billy Vera's former manager, Al Schwartz, introduced her to singer Austin Grasmere: the two made some demos together, but nothing came of it. Thanks to promoter Michael Lang, she managed to record sixteen tracks in Woodstock, New York, which were not released back then, but that have been recently brought back to light and issued on the collection ''

New Jersey to Woodstock ''New Jersey to Woodstock'' is a compilation album by American singer Kathy McCord, released in 2010. It contains the album ''Kathy McCord (album), ''Kathy McCord' released on CTI Records in 1970, the single "I'll Give My Heart To You"/"I'll Ne ...

''. She never produced other notable recordings, but continued to sing background for saxophonist David Sanborn, his brother and others. By the late 1970s, she had moved to Atlanta, Georgia where, with singer Diane Scanlon, recorded some more demos, then moved back to Hartsdale to join a local cover band. Following a decade marked by disappointments and a few collaborations, she moved to Florida in 1987, "sick of banging her head against the wall", and retired from the music world. "It was a great fun, a grand journey", she recalls, "but I just got tired." In more recent times, she returned to painting.2010 liner notes to ''

'' by Kathy McCord She died of cancer on October 28, 2015, Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

Discography

References

Death: https://acerecords.co.uk/news/20151/kat-mccord-february-18-1952-october-28-2015 {{DEFAULTSORT:McCord, Kathy 1952 births 2015 deaths American women singers People from Hartsdale, New York CTI Records artists Manhattan Records artists 21st-century American women