Kevin Raleigh is an American singer and

keyboardist A keyboardist or keyboard player is a musician who plays keyboard instruments. Until the early 1960s musicians who played keyboards were generally classified as either pianists or organists. Since the mid-1960s, a plethora of new musical instr ...

best known for his tenure with the

Michael Stanley Band Michael Stanley (born Michael Stanley Gee; March 25, 1948 – March 5, 2021) was an American singer-songwriter, musician, radio and television personality. Both as a solo artist and with the Michael Stanley Band (MSB), his brand of heartland r ...

History

Born in

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

, on February 27, 1952, Raleigh came to local prominence in 1969 with the band Paper Sun, later known as Freeport Express and Freeport. As Freeport, the band cut an album in Miami for

Mainstream Records Mainstream Records was an American record company and independent record label founded by producer Bob Shad in 1964. Mainstream's early releases were reissues from Commodore Records. Its catalogue grew to include Bob Brookmeyer, Maynard Fergu ...

. In 1973, Raleigh was recruited by former

Raspberries The raspberry is the edible fruit of a multitude of plant species in the genus ''Rubus'' of the rose family, most of which are in the subgenus '' Idaeobatus''. The name also applies to these plants themselves. Raspberries are perennial with w ...

members

Jim Bonfanti James Alexander Bonfanti (born December 17, 1948 in Windber, Pennsylvania) is a rock music, rock drummer who is best known for having been a member of the band Raspberries (band), Raspberries. Career Bonfanti's music career began in 1965 when h ...

and

Dave Smalley Dave Smalley is an American musician, best known as the lead singer for the hardcore punk bands DYS, Dag Nasty, and All and as lead singer/guitarist with Down by Law. He is known for his influence on pop punk music and his early contribution ...

to join them in the band Dynamite, who cut an album of Smalley-Raleigh originals which was never released. Raleigh would also be a member of Bonfanti's subsequent band, Pictures, formed in 1977. That same year he was in a band with Paper Sun/Freeport bandmate Roger Lewis and guitarist

Neil Giraldo Neil Thomas Giraldo (born December 29, 1955) is an American musician, record producer, arranger, and songwriter best known as the musical partner of Pat Benatar since 1979and spouse since 1982. He has also performed, written and produced for art ...

. Raleigh first performed with the Michael Stanley Band when they toured behind their 1978 album ''Cabin Fever''. His first recording with the band was ''Greatest Hints'' in 1978, on which he emerged—in tandem with

Stanley Stanley may refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Stanley'' (1972 film), an American horror film * ''Stanley'' (1984 film), an Australian comedy * ''Stanley'' (1999 film), an animated short * ''Stanley'' (1956 TV series) ...

—as one of the band's singers and songwriters. Remaining with MSB until its 1987 dissolution, Raleigh was responsible for several of MSB's most high-profile cuts, including "Someone Like You", "When I'm Holding You Tight" and the band's most successful single, "He Can't Love You" (featuring Raleigh on lead vocals), which peaked on the

Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streaming ...

at #33 in January 1981. Raleigh went on to record a solo album, ''Delusions of Grandeur'', released on

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over its first 20 years of operation, Atlantic earned a reputation as one of the most i ...

in the spring of 1989. The album included two tracks, "I Should've Known Better" and "The Art of War", produced by Neil Giraldo, who had gone on to become

Pat Benatar Patricia Mae Giraldo (''née'' Andrzejewski, formerly Benatar; born January 10, 1953), known professionally as Pat Benatar, is an American rock singer and songwriter. In the United States, she has had two multi-platinum albums, five platinum alb ...

's guitarist, songwriter and husband. The track "

Moonlight on Water "Moonlight on Water", also known as "Moonlight on Water (Sex on the Beach)", is a popular song written and composed by Steve Kipner, best known for writing Olivia Newton-John's " Physical", and Andy Goldmark. The song was originally recorded by K ...

"—one of only two of the album's ten tracks not written by Raleigh—was produced by Peter Coleman, who had also worked extensively with Benatar. Issued as a single, "Moonlight on Water" reached #60 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, but otherwise Raleigh's bid for a solo career was largely overlooked. (A 1990 version by

Laura Branigan Laura Ann Branigan (July 3, 1952 – August 26, 2004) was an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Her signature song, the platinum-certified 1982 single " Gloria", stayed on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100 for 36 weeks, then a record for ...

had a single release whose chart performance echoed that of Raleigh's original; Branigan took the song to #59.) Raleigh subsequently moved into the field of artist management and in 2008 he was listed as an owner of the L.A.-based Associated Talent Management (ATM).

Discography

Studio albums

*''Delusions of Grandeur'' (1989)

with Freeport

* ''Freeport'' (1970)

with Michael Stanley Band

* '' Greatest Hints'' (1979) * ''

Heartland Heartland or Heartlands may refer to: Businesses and organisations * Heartland Bank, a New Zealand-based financial institution * Heartland Inn, a chain of hotels based in Iowa, United States * Heartland Alliance, an anti-poverty organization i ...

'' (1980) * ''

North Coast North Coast or Northcoast may refer to : Antigua and Barbuda * Major Division of North Coast, a census division in Saint John Parish Australia *New South Wales North Coast, a region Canada *The British Columbia Coast, primarily the communiti ...

'' (1981) * '' MSB'' (1982) * ''

You Can't Fight Fashion ''You Can't Fight Fashion'' is the final major-label album by the rock band Michael Stanley Band. The album was the band's highest charting album reaching #64 on the Billboard Magazine Top 200 in late 1983 and staying there for almost three wee ...

'' (1983) * ''Inside Moves'' (1986)

Singles

* "Anyone With a Heart" (1989) * "

" (1989)

References

External links

*Adams, Deanna R. (2002). Rock 'n' Roll and the Cleveland Connection (Kent, Ohio: Kent State University Press). . pp. 314, 415 {{DEFAULTSORT:Raleigh, Kevin 1952 births American male singers American rock singers Musicians from Cleveland Living people