Louis Allen Rawls (December 1, 1933 – January 6, 2006) was an American record producer, singer, composer and actor. Rawls released more than 60 albums, sold more than 40 million records, and had numerous charting singles, most notably his song "

You'll Never Find Another Love like Mine "You'll Never Find Another Love Like Mine" is a song written by Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff and performed by R&B singer Lou Rawls on his 1976 album '' All Things in Time''. The song proved to be Rawls' breakthrough hit, reaching number one on bot ...

". He worked as a film, television, and voice actor. He was also a three-time

Grammy The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pre ...

-winner, all for

Best Male R&B Vocal Performance The Grammy Award for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance was awarded between 1968 and 2011. The award has had several minor name changes: *In 1968 it was awarded as Best R&B Solo Vocal Performance, Male *From 1969 to 1994 it was awarded as Best R&B V ...

Early life

Rawls was born in Chicago on December 1, 1933, and raised by his grandmother in the

Ida B. Wells Ida B. Wells (full name: Ida Bell Wells-Barnett) (July 16, 1862 – March 25, 1931) was an American investigative journalist, educator, and early leader in the civil rights movement. She was one of the founders of the National Association for ...

projects A project is any undertaking, carried out individually or collaboratively and possibly involving research or design, that is carefully planned to achieve a particular goal. An alternative view sees a project managerially as a sequence of even ...

on the city's South Side. He began singing in the Greater Mount Olive Baptist Church choir at the age of seven and later sang with local groups through which he met Sam Cooke, who was nearly three years older, and

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.

Career

After graduating from Dunbar Vocational High School, he sang briefly with Cooke in the Teenage Kings of Harmony, a gospel group, and then with the Holy Wonders. In 1951, he replaced Cooke in the

Highway QC's The Highway Q.C.'s is an American gospel group that has been active for over 70 years. Its members sing in the tradition of jubilee quartets, though they have also added instrumental accompaniment. The group helped launch the careers of several sec ...

after Cooke departed to join

The Soul Stirrers The Soul Stirrers were an American gospel music group, whose career spans over eighty years. The group was a pioneer in the development of the quartet style of gospel, and a major influence on soul, doo wop, and Motown, some of the secular musi ...

in Los Angeles. Rawls was hired by the Chosen Gospel Singers and moved to Los Angeles, where he joined the

Pilgrim Travelers The Pilgrim Travelers were an American gospel group, popular in the late 1940s and early 1950s. Musical career Formed in 1936 in Houston, Texas, United States, they were influenced by another Texas-based quartet, the Soul Stirrers. They achieved ...

. In 1955, Rawls enlisted in the

United States 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 ...

as a paratrooper in the

82nd Airborne Division The 82nd Airborne Division is an Airborne forces, airborne infantry division (military), division of the United States Army specializing in Paratrooper, parachute assault operations into denied areasSof, Eric"82nd Airborne Division" ''Spec Ops ...

. He served in B Co 2/505th Parachute Infantry and made 26 jumps. He left the Army three years later as a Sergeant and rejoined the Pilgrim Travelers (then known as the Travelers). In 1958, while touring the South with the Travelers and Sam Cooke, Rawls was in a car crash. He was pronounced dead before arriving at the hospital, where he stayed in a coma for five and a half days. He spent a year recuperating and it was several months before his memory returned. He considered the crash a life-changing event. With

Dick Clark Richard Wagstaff Clark (November 30, 1929April 18, 2012) was an American radio and television personality, television producer and film actor, as well as a cultural icon who remains best known for hosting '' American Bandstand'' from 1956 to 19 ...

as master of ceremonies, Rawls was able to perform at the

Hollywood Bowl The Hollywood Bowl is an amphitheatre in the Hollywood Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. It was named one of the 10 best live music venues in America by ''Rolling Stone'' magazine in 2018. The Hollywood Bowl is known for its distin ...

in 1959. His first two singles were "Love, Love, Love" and "Walkin' (For Miles)" for Shar-Dee Records, a label owned by

Herb Alpert Herb Alpert (born March 31, 1935) is an American trumpeter who led the band Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass in the 1960s. During the same decade, he co-founded A&M Records with Jerry Moss. Alpert has recorded 28 albums that have landed on the ...

. "In My Little Black Book" and "80 Ways" were released a year later by Candix Records. In 1962 he signed a contract with

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007) is an American record label distributed by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-based record label of note ...

and sang backing vocals on " Bring It On Home to Me" and " That's Where It's At", both written by Cooke. Rawls charted with a

cover Cover or covers may refer to: Packaging * Another name for a lid * Cover (philately), generic term for envelope or package * Album cover, the front of the packaging * Book cover or magazine cover ** Book design ** Back cover copy, part of co ...

of "Bring It On Home to Me" in 1970 (with the title shortened to "Bring It On Home"). ''

Stormy Monday "Call It Stormy Monday (But Tuesday Is Just as Bad)" (commonly referred to as "Stormy Monday") is a song written and recorded by American blues electric guitar pioneer T-Bone Walker. It is a slow twelve-bar blues performed in the West Coast blu ...

'', a jazz album with Les McCann, was released in 1962. The next two Capitol albums (''Black and Blue'', ''Tobacco Road'') sold well and employed

Onzy Matthews Onzy Durrett Matthews, Jr. (January 15, 1930 – November 13, 1997) was an American jazz pianist, singer, arranger and composer as well as a television and movie actor. He is best known for the big band arrangements done for the Lou Rawls albums ' ...

as musical director and a 17-piece

big band A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s an ...

. Both albums reached the ''Billboard'' magazine charts and propelled his career. Although his 1966 album ''Live!'' was certified

gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile met ...

, Rawls would not have a star-making hit until he made a soul album, named ''Soulin' '', later that year. The album contained " Love Is a Hurtin' Thing", his first R&B No.1 single. In 1967, he won a

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

for Best R&B Vocal Performance for the single "Dead End Street". In 1967, he performed at the first evening of the

Monterey International Pop Music Festival The Monterey International Pop Festival was a three-day music festival held June 16 to 18, 1967, at the Monterey County Fairgrounds in Monterey, California. The festival is remembered for the first major American appearances by the Jimi Hendri ...

In 1969, Rawls was co-host of NBC's summer replacement series for the '' Dean Martin Show'' with Martin's daughter, singer Gail Martin. After leaving Capitol in 1971, he signed with

MGM Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded on April 17, 1924 a ...

and released the single "Natural Man" written for him by comedian

Sandy Baron Sandy Baron (born Sanford Irving Beresofsky; May 5, 1936 – January 21, 2001) was an American actor and comedian who performed on stage, in films, and on television. Early life Sanford Beresofsky was born in Brooklyn, New York, and grew up in th ...

and singer

Bobby Hebb Robert Von Hebb (July 26, 1938 – August 3, 2010) was an American R&B and soul singer, musician, songwriter, recording artist, and performer known for his 1966 hit entitled " Sunny". Biography Hebb was born in Nashville, Tennessee. His par ...

. For Bell Records in 1974 he recorded a cover version of " She's Gone" by Hall & Oates. Two years later with his new manager Martin Pichinson, he signed with

Philadelphia International Philadelphia International Records (PIR) was an American record label based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1971 by songwriting and production duo Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff along with their longtime collaborator Thom Bell. ...

and recorded '' All Things in Time'', which sold a million copies. "

You'll Never Find Another Love Like Mine "You'll Never Find Another Love Like Mine" is a song written by Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff and performed by R&B singer Lou Rawls on his 1976 album '' All Things in Time''. The song proved to be Rawls' breakthrough hit, reaching number one on bot ...

" became his biggest selling single, selling a million copies, topping the R&B and Adult Contemporary charts, and reaching No. 2 on the pop chart. The hit single " Lady Love" followed, from the 1977 album ''

When You Hear Lou, You've Heard It All ''When You Hear Lou, You've Heard It All'' is a 1977 album by American R&B singer Lou Rawls, released on the Philadelphia International Records label. On this album, only four tracks were produced by Gamble & Huff with the remainder shared amo ...

''.

Charity

In 1980, Rawls began the ''Lou Rawls Parade of Stars Telethon'' which benefits the

United Negro College Fund UNCF, the United Negro College Fund, also known as the United Fund, is an American philanthropic organization that funds scholarships for black students and general scholarship funds for 37 private historically black colleges and universities ...

. The annual event, known since 1998 as "An Evening of Stars: A Celebration of Educational Excellence", consists of stories of successful black students who have benefited from and/or graduated from one of the many

historically black colleges and universities Historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) are institutions of higher education in the United States that were established before the Civil Rights Act of 1964 with the intention of primarily serving the African-American community. ...

who receive support from the UNCF, along with musical performances from various recording artists in support of the UNCF's and Rawls' efforts. The event raised over US$250 million for the fund at the time of Rawls' death in 2006.

Television and film

Rawls appeared in a segment aired during the first season of ''

Sesame Street ''Sesame Street'' is an American educational children's television series that combines live-action, sketch comedy, animation and puppetry. It is produced by Sesame Workshop (known as the Children's Television Workshop until June 2000) a ...

'' to sing the alphabet. He dismissed the suggestion to use cue cards for the performance but reversed his decision when he forgot the order of the letters. He was a guest during the second season of ''

The Muppet Show ''The Muppet Show'' is a sketch comedy television series created by Jim Henson and featuring the Muppets. The series originated as two pilot episodes produced by Henson for ABC in 1974 and 1975. While neither episode was moved forward as a s ...

''. His first acting credit was in the

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

television series ''

The Big Valley ''The Big Valley'' is an American Western drama television series that originally aired from September 15, 1965, to May 19, 1969 on ABC. The series is set on the fictional Barkley Ranch in Stockton, California, from 1884 to 1888. The one-hour e ...

'' (starring

Barbara Stanwyck Barbara Stanwyck (; born Ruby Catherine Stevens; July 16, 1907 – January 20, 1990) was an American actress, model and dancer. A stage, film, and television star, during her 60-year professional career she was known for her strong, realistic sc ...

, along with

Lee Majors Lee Majors (born Harvey Lee Yeary; April 23, 1939) is an American actor. Majors portrayed the characters of Heath Barkley in the American television Western series ''The Big Valley'' (1965–1969), Colonel Steve Austin in the American televisio ...

and

Linda Evans Linda Evans (born Linda Evenstad; November 18, 1942) is an American actress known primarily for her roles on television. In the 1960s she played Audra Barkley, the daughter of Victoria Barkley (played by Barbara Stanwyck) in the Western tel ...

). He was also in the season 5 episode "Lifeline" of the television show '' Mannix'' and the season 6 episode "Return to the Cotton Club" of the show ''

Fantasy Island ''Fantasy Island'' is an American fantasy drama television series created by Gene Levitt. It aired on ABC from 1977 to 1984. The series starred Ricardo Montalbán as the mysterious Mr. Roarke and Hervé Villechaize as his assistant, Tattoo. Gu ...

''. He appeared in the films ''

Leaving Las Vegas ''Leaving Las Vegas'' is a 1995 American drama film written and directed by Mike Figgis, and based on the semi-autobiographical 1990 novel of the same name by John O'Brien. Nicolas Cage stars as a suicidal alcoholic in Los Angeles who, having ...

'', ''

Blues Brothers 2000 ''Blues Brothers 2000'' is a 1998 American musical comedy film directed by John Landis from a screenplay written by Landis and Dan Aykroyd, both of whom were also producers. The film, starring Aykroyd and John Goodman, is a sequel to the 1980 f ...

'', and ''Angel, Angel, Down We Go''. He had a role and sang in ''

Lookin' Italian Lookin' Italian is a 1994 American crime film directed by Guy Magar and starring Jay Acovone and Matt LeBlanc. Synopsis Vinny Pallazzo (Jay Acovone) is a retired gangster who has left the mafia after a disastrous incident. Now working as a cl ...

'' (1994), an independent film about the mafia. He had a supporting role in ''

Baywatch Nights ''Baywatch Nights'' is an American police and science-fiction drama series that aired in syndication from 1995 to 1997. Created by Douglas Schwartz, David Hasselhoff, and Gregory J. Bonann, the series is a spin-off from the television series, '' ...

''. He was a guest host on ''Jazz Central'', a television program that was broadcast on the BET channel. For many years, he was a spokesperson for the

Colonial Penn The Colonial Penn Life Insurance Company (often known as simply Colonial Penn) is an American life insurance company based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, founded by philanthropist and AARP co-founder Leonard Davis, owned by CNO Financial Group. C ...

Life Insurance Company. First appearing in television and radio commercials in the mid-to-late 1960s for Spur Malt Liquor, a

Rainier Brewing Company The Rainier Brewing Company was an American brewery based in Seattle, Washington. It brewed Rainier Beer, a popular brand in the Pacific Northwest of the United States. Although Rainier was founded in 1884, the Seattle site had been brewing beer s ...

product in Seattle. He appeared in a number of

Budweiser Budweiser () is an American-style pale lager, part of AB InBev. Introduced in 1876 by Carl Conrad & Co. of St. Louis, Missouri, Budweiser has become a large selling beer company in the United States. ''Budweiser'' may also refer to an unrela ...

advertisements. Budweiser was a sponsor for the Rawls telethon and UNCF. There was no attempt to avoid the similarity between the title of the 1977 album ''When You've Heard Lou, You've Heard It All'' and his corporate sponsor's slogan "When You Say Bud, You've Said It All". A track on the 1978 album ''Lou Rawls Live'' features him singing the commercial slogan.

Anheuser-Busch Anheuser-Busch Companies, LLC is an American brewing company headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri. Since 2008, it has been wholly owned by Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV (AB InBev), now the world's largest brewing company, which owns multiple glo ...

, the brewers of Budweiser, suggested his telethon work to him. Rawls lent his rich baritone to cartoons, including ''

Hey Arnold! ''Hey Arnold!'' is an American animated comedy television series created by Craig Bartlett. It originally aired on Nickelodeon from October 7, 1996, to June 8, 2004. The show centers on fourth grader Arnold Shortman, who lives with his grandpar ...

'', ''

Garfield ''Garfield'' is an American comic strip created by Jim Davis. Originally published locally as ''Jon'' in 1976, then in nationwide syndication from 1978 as ''Garfield'', it chronicles the life of the title character Garfield the cat, his human ...

'', ''

Captain Planet and the Planeteers ''Captain Planet and the Planeteers'' is an American animated environmentalist superhero television series created by Barbara Pyle and Ted Turner and developed by Pyle, Nicholas Boxer, Thom Beers, Andy Heyward, Robby London, Bob Forward and Ca ...

'' and ''

The Proud Family ''The Proud Family'' is an American animated television series created by Bruce W. Smith that originally ran on Disney Channel from September 15, 2001, to August 19, 2005. A revival, known as '' The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder'', was announ ...

''. For many of the Film Roman ''Garfield'' specials, Rawls would often compose songs, which he would then sing usually doing a duet with Desiree Goyette, as well as the singing voice of the title character himself. In the season 2 episode of ''

My Wife and Kids ''My Wife and Kids'' is an American sitcom that ran on ABC from March 28, 2001, to May 17, 2005. The series was produced by Touchstone Television. It starred Damon Wayans as Michael Kyle, the patriarch of an African-American family. Wayans and v ...

'' entitled "Michael's Garden", Lou Rawls himself sings "

" to Michael Kyle (

Damon Wayans Damon Kyle Wayans Sr. (; born September 4, 1960) is an American actor, comedian, producer, and writer. Wayans performed as a comedian and actor throughout the 1980s, including a year long stint on the sketch comedy series ''Saturday Night Live.' ...

) during a colonoscopy.

Personal life

Rawls was married three times. His third wife, Nina, a former flight attendant, managed his career during his last two years. They had one son, Aiden Rawls. Rawls was also survived by another son, Lou Rawls Jr.; two daughters, Louanna Rawls of Los Angeles and Kendra Smith of Los Angeles; and four grandchildren.

Death

In December 2005, it was announced that Rawls was being treated for lung cancer that metastasized to his brain. He died from this illness on January 6, 2006, at

Cedars-Sinai Medical Center Cedars-Sinai Medical Center is a nonprofit, tertiary, 886-bed teaching hospital and multi-specialty academic health science center located in Los Angeles, California. Part of the Cedars-Sinai Health System, the hospital employs a staff of over 2 ...

in Los Angeles, California. He is buried at

Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Hollywood Hills) Forest Lawn Memorial Park – Hollywood Hills is one of the six Forest Lawn cemeteries in Southern California. It is located at 6300 Forest Lawn Drive, Los Angeles, California 90068, in the Hollywood Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles. Histor ...

. Lou Rawls's final television performance occurred during the 2005–2006 edition of the telethon, honoring

Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris ( Judkins; May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, who is credited as a pioneer and influence by musicians across a range of genres that include rhythm and blues, Pop musi ...

in September 2005, months before entering the hospital and after having been diagnosed with cancer earlier in the year. He performed "

You Are the Sunshine of My Life "You Are the Sunshine of My Life" is a 1973 single released by Stevie Wonder. The song became Wonder's third number-one single on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart and his first number-one on the Easy Listening chart. It won Wonder a Grammy Award f ...

" and "

It Was A Very Good Year "It Was a Very Good Year" is a song composed by Ervin Drake in 1961 and originally recorded by Bob Shane with the Kingston Trio. It was made famous by Frank Sinatra's version in D minor, which won the Grammy Award for Best Male Vocal Performance ...

" as a tribute to

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Chairman of the Board" and later called "Ol' Blue Eyes", Sinatra was one of the most popular ...

Awards and honors

On the night of September 29, 1977, Rawls performed the national anthem of the United States before the

Earnie Shavers Earnie Dee Shaver (August 31, 1944 – September 1, 2022), best known as Earnie Shavers, was an American professional boxer who competed between 1969 and 1995. A two-time world heavyweight championship challenger, he is known as one of the harde ...

Muhammad Ali Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and activist. Nicknamed "The Greatest", he is regarded as one of the most significant sports figures of the 20th century, a ...

title fight at

Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as The Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth avenues from 31st to 33rd Street, above Pennsylva ...

. He was invited to sing the anthem many times over the next 28 years. His final performance was in his hometown of Chicago when he was asked to sing the national anthem before the second game of the 2005 World Series between the

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and p ...

and

Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston, Texas. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division, having moved to the division in 2013 after ...

U.S. Cellular Field Guaranteed Rate Field is a baseball stadium located on the South Side of Chicago, Illinois, United States. It serves as the home stadium of the Chicago White Sox, one of the city's two Major League Baseball (MLB) teams, and is owned by the state ...

. Rawls won the AMA for Favorite Soul/R&B Male Artist in 1979, tied with singer

Teddy Pendergrass Theodore DeReese Pendergrass (March 26, 1950 – January 13, 2010) was an American soul and R&B singer-songwriter. He was born in Kingstree, South Carolina. Pendergrass spent most of his life in the Philadelphia area, and initially rose to musi ...

. In 1982, Rawls received a star on the

Hollywood Walk of Fame The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a historic landmark which consists of more than 2,700 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, Californ ...

. On January 19, 1985, he sang "

Wind Beneath My Wings "Wind Beneath My Wings" (sometimes titled "The Wind Beneath My Wings" and "Hero") is a song written in 1982 by Jeff Silbar and Larry Henley. The song was first recorded by Kamahl in 1982 for a country and western album he was recording. Kamahl ta ...

" at the nationally televised 50th Presidential Inaugural Gala the day before the second inauguration of

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

. In 2021, Rawls was posthumously inducted into the Rhythm & Blues Hall of Fame inductees.

Grammy Awards

, - !scope="row", 1968 , "Dead End Street" ,

, , - !scope="row", 1972 , "A Natural Man" , ,

, , - !scope="row", 1976 , "

" , Best Male Pop Vocal Performance , , - !scope="row", 1978 , ''Unmistakably Lou'' , ,

Legacy

Guion Bluford Guion Stewart Bluford Jr. (born November 22, 1942) is an American aerospace engineer, retired United States Air Force (USAF) officer and fighter pilot, and former NASA astronaut in which capacity he became the second person of African descent to ...

, the first black astronaut, brought the Lou Rawls album ''When the Night Comes'' (Epic, 1983) into space with him. It contained the song "Wind Beneath My Wings". In 1989, he performed vocals for "The Music and Heroes of America" segment in the animated television miniseries ''

This Is America, Charlie Brown ''This Is America, Charlie Brown'' is an eight-part animated television miniseries that depicts a series of events in American history featuring characters from the Charles M. Schulz comic strip ''Peanuts''. It aired from 1988 to 1989 on CBS. ...

''. In January 2004, Rawls was honored by the United Negro College Fund for his more than 25 years of charity work with the organization. Instead of hosting and performing as he usually did, Rawls was given the seat of honor and celebrated by his performing colleagues, including

The O'Jays The O'Jays are an American R&B group from Canton, Ohio, formed in 1958 and originally consisting of Eddie Levert, Walter Lee Williams, William Powell, Bobby Massey, and Bill Isles. The O'Jays made their first chart appearance with the minor ...

Gerald Levert Gerald Edward Levert (July 13, 1966 – November 10, 2006) was an American singer-songwriter and producer. Levert was best known for singing with his brother, Sean Levert, and friend Marc Gordon of the vocal group LeVert. Levert was also a ...

, and Ashanti. In 2009, Pathway Entertainment announced its intention to produce a biopic about Rawls's life, tentatively titled ''Love Is a Hurtin' Thing: The Lou Rawls Story'',"Lou Rawls biopic in the works"
ABC News, March 26, 2009. with Rawls' son, Lou Rawls Jr., writing the

screenplay ''ScreenPlay'' is a television drama anthology series broadcast on BBC2 between 9 July 1986 and 27 October 1993. Background After single-play anthology series went off the air, the BBC introduced several showcases for made-for-television, fe ...

and

Isaiah Washington Isaiah Washington IV is an American actor and media personality. Following a series of film appearances, he came to prominence for portraying Dr. Preston Burke in the first three seasons of the series ''Grey's Anatomy'' from 2005 to 2007. Wash ...

reportedly playing Rawls.

Discography

Albums

* ''

'' with Les McCann (Capitol, 1962) * ''Black and Blue'' (Capitol, 1963) * ''Tobacco Road'' (Capitol, 1964) * ''Nobody But Lou'' (Capitol, 1965) * ''Lou Rawls and Strings'' (Capitol, 1965) * ''Live!'' (Capitol, 1966) * ''Soulin (Capitol, 1966) * ''Carryin' On!'' (Capitol, 1966) * ''Too Much!'' (Capitol, 1967) * ''That's Lou'' (Capitol, 1967) * ''Merry Christmas Ho! Ho! Ho!'' (Capitol, 1967) * ''Feelin' Good'' (Capitol, 1968) * ''You're Good for Me'' (Capitol, 1968) * ''Central Park Music Festival'' with Ramsey Lewis, Maxine Brown (Music Images, 1968) * ''Come On in, Mister Blues'' (Pickwick, 1968) * '' The Way It Was, The Way It Is'' (Capitol, 1969) * ''Your Good Thing'' (Capitol, 1969) * ''You've Made Me So Very Happy'' (Capitol, 1970) * ''Bring It On Home...and Other Great Sam Cooke Hits'' (Capitol, 1970) * ''Natural Man'' (MGM, 1971) * ''Silk & Soul'' (MGM, 1972) * ''A Man of Value'' (MGM, 1972) * ''The Soul of Nigger Charley'' with Don Costa (MGM, 1973) * ''Live at the Century Plaza'' (MGM, 1973) * ''She's Gone'' (Bell, 1974) * ''Lou Rawls with Host Sam Riddle'' (Sounds Like The Navy, 1974) * '' All Things in Time'' (Philadelphia International, 1976) * ''Naturally'' (Polydor, 1976) * ''

Unmistakably Lou ''Unmistakably Lou'' is an album by American R&B singer Lou Rawls, released in 1977 on the Philadelphia International Records label. It was Rawls' second PIR album and performed respectably ( 14 R&B and No. 41 pop), although its sales fell we ...

'' (Philadelphia International, 1977) * ''

'' (Philadelphia International, 1977) * ''Live'' (Philadelphia International, 1978) * '' Let Me Be Good to You'' (Philadelphia International, 1979) * '' Sit Down and Talk to Me'' (Philadelphia International, 1980) * ''Shades of Blue'' (Philadelphia International, 1981) * ''Live On Stage'' (Philadelphia International, 1981) * ''Here Comes Garfield'' (Epic, 1982) * ''Now Is the Time'' (Epic, 1982) * ''When the Night Comes'' (Epic, 1983) * ''Close Company'' (Epic, 1984) * ''Trying As Hard As I Can'' (Allegiance, 1984) * ''Holiday Cheer'' with Lena Horne (Capitol, 1985) * ''Love All Your Blues Away'' (Epic, 1986) * ''Family Reunion'' (Gamble and Huff 1987) * ''At Last'' (Blue Note, 1989) * ''It's Supposed to Be Fun'' (Blue Note, 1990) * ''Greatest Hits'' (Curb, 1990) * '' Portrait of the Blues'' (Manhattan, 1993) * ''Christmas Is the Time'' (Manhattan, 1993) * ''Tonight: Lou Rawls Live'' (ABCD Music, 1993) * ''In Concert'' (Skyline, 1995) * ''Seasons 4 U'' (Rawls & Brokaw, 1998) * ''Classic Soul'' (TKO Magnum Music, 1999) * ''Swingin' Christmas'' (EMI-Capitol, 2000) * ''I'm Blessed'' (Malaco, 2001) * ''Oh Happy Day'' (601 Music/Malaco, 2002) * ''Rawls Sings Sinatra'' (Savoy, 2003) * ''Amen'' (Prism Platinum 2005) * ''Live in Concert 1992/1995'' (ABC Entertainment 2006) * ''Merry Christmas, Baby'' (Capitol, 2006) * ''Christmas'' (Time Life 2006)

Billboard Top 50 hit singles

The following is a list of Rawls singles that made the top 50 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. His first Hot 100 entry was "Three O'Clock in the Morning" in 1965, and his final was "

" in 1983. In addition to those two, nine other singles peaked at positions above the top 50 on the Hot 100, and additional singles reached the R&B,

Adult Contemporary Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quie ...

and Bubbling Under charts. * " Love Is a Hurtin' Thing" - 1966, No. 13 (also No. 1 R&B) * "Dead End Street" - 1967, No. 29 * "Show Business" - 1967, No. 45 * "

Your Good Thing (Is About to End) "Your Good Thing (Is About to End)" is a song written by Isaac Hayes and David Porter. The song was originally recorded by Mable John in 1966. It peaked at number 95 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and number 6 on the R&B Charts. Lou Rawls record ...

" - 1969, No. 18 (sold over one million copies and was awarded a

gold disc Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...

) * "A Natural Man" - 1971, No. 17 * "

" - 1976, No. 2 (also No. 1 R&B and No. 1 Easy Listening); certified gold for sales of one million copies * " Lady Love" - 1978, No. 24

Chart singles

Filmography

* 1969: ''

Angel, Angel, Down We Go ''Angel, Angel, Down We Go'', also known as ''Cult of the Damned'', is a 1969 American film directed by playwright and screenwriter Robert Thom, his sole directorial credit. Thom based his screenplay on an unproduced stage play of the same title ...

'' as Joe * 1969: "Joshua Watson" The Big Valley * 1972: "Mannix" Lifeline Episode as Vance Logan * 1995: ''

'' as Concerned Cab Driver *1996-2004: ''Hey Arnold'' as Harvey the Mailman (18 episodes) Only in America (Don King HBO Movie) * 1997: “Still Breathing” as The Tree Man * 1998: ''

The Secret Files of the Spy Dogs ''The Secret Files of the Spy Dogs'' is an American children's animated series, produced by Saban Entertainment, that aired on Fox Kids from 1998 to 1999. Ownership of the series passed to Disney in 2001 when Disney acquired Fox Kids Worldwide, ...

'' (voice of Anubis) * 1998: ''

The Rugrats Movie ''The Rugrats Movie'' is a 1998 American animated comedy film based on the Nickelodeon animated television series '' Rugrats''. It was directed by Igor Kovalyov and Norton Virgien and was written by David N. Weiss & J. David Stem. The film int ...

'' as a newborn baby singer * 1999: ''

Kablam ''KaBlam!'' (stylized as ''KaBLaM!'') is an American animated sketch comedy television series that ran on Nickelodeon from 1996 to 2000. The series was created by Robert Mittenthal, Will McRobb, and Chris Viscardi. The show was developed as a f ...

'' as himself * 2000: ''Jazz Channel Presents Lou Rawls'' (Image) * 2001: ''

'' Episode: "Michael's Garden" (himself) * 2002: ''

'' Episode The Party * 2003: ''In Concert'' (BMG/Image) * 2005: ''Prime Concerts: In Concert with Edmonton Symphony'' (Amalgamated) * 2005: ''

South Park ''South Park'' is an American animated sitcom created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone and developed by Brian Graden for Comedy Central. The series revolves around four boys Stan Marsh, Kyle Broflovski, Eric Cartman, and Kenny McCormickand th ...

'' as

Tolkien Black Tolkien Black (originally known as Token Williams and Token Black) is a fictional character in the adult animated television series '' South Park''. He was originally voiced by Trey Parker, later changed to series art director, storyboard art ...

(singing voice; archival synthase recording) Episode: "

Wing A wing is a type of fin that produces lift while moving through air or some other fluid. Accordingly, wings have streamlined cross-sections that are subject to aerodynamic forces and act as airfoils. A wing's aerodynamic efficiency is expres ...

" * 2006: ''The Lou Rawls Show: With Duke Ellington & Freda Payne'' * 2007: ''Live in Concert: North Sea Jazz. 1992-1995'' (E-M-S)

References

External links

* *
All Together - Navy recruiting video
("Tell 'em Lou Rawls sent ya") * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rawls, Lou 1933 births 2006 deaths African-American male actors American blues singers American jazz singers American male voice actors American baritones American rhythm and blues singers American soul musicians Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Hollywood Hills) Capitol Records artists Deaths from brain cancer in the United States Deaths from lung cancer in California Dunbar Vocational High School alumni American former Scientologists Grammy Award winners MGM Records artists Philadelphia International Records artists Singers from Chicago United States Army soldiers Jazz musicians from Illinois Jazz musicians from Pennsylvania American male jazz musicians 20th-century African-American male singers