Odia Coates (November 13, 1941 – May 19, 1991) was an African-American singer, best known for her high-profile hits with Canadian singer-songwriter

Paul Anka Paul Albert Anka (born July 30, 1941) is a Canadian-American singer, songwriter and actor. He is best known for his signature hit songs including " Diana", " Lonely Boy", "Put Your Head on My Shoulder", and " (You're) Having My Baby". Anka also ...

Early life

The daughter of an

evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide Interdenominationalism, interdenominational movement within Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being "bor ...

minister, Odia Coates was born in

Vicksburg, Mississippi Vicksburg is a historic city in Warren County, Mississippi, United States. It is the county seat, and the population at the 2010 census was 23,856. Located on a high bluff on the east bank of the Mississippi River across from Louisiana, Vic ...

. As a young child her family moved to

Watts, California Watts, California, was a city of the sixth class that existed in Los Angeles County, California, between 1907 and 1926, when it was consolidated with the City of Los Angeles and became one of the neighborhoods in the southern part of that city. ...

, where her father served as pastor in the Beautiful Gates Church Of God In Christ, where she sang in the church choir. She eventually became a member of the Northern California State Youth Choir, co-founded by

Edwin Hawkins Edwin Reuben Hawkins (August 19, 1943 – January 15, 2018) was an American gospel musician, pianist, choir master, composer, and arranger. He was one of the originators of the urban contemporary gospel sound. He (as leader of the Edwin Hawkins S ...

and later became a member of Sisters Love.

Work with Paul Anka

Coates is best remembered for her duet with

, " (You're) Having My Baby", that went to No. 1 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 on August 24-September 7, 1974. Having heard Coates singing on an

Edwin Hawkins Singers Edwin Reuben Hawkins (August 19, 1943 – January 15, 2018) was an American gospel musician, pianist, choir master, composer, and arranger. He was one of the originators of the urban contemporary gospel sound. He (as leader of the Edwin Hawkins S ...

gospel album, he decided to use her on the recording as it needed a female voice. Anka was pleased with the results (both artistically and commercially; the song reached number one) and recorded several more songs with her. The two recorded several more Top 10 & Top 20 hits, including 1974's "

One Man Woman/One Woman Man "One Man Woman/One Woman Man" is a song written by Canadian singer-songwriter Paul Anka. Anka recorded the song as a duet with Odia Coates, the second of four consecutive duets with Coates that he released as singles and became hits. The 1974 si ...

" and 1975's " I Don't Like to Sleep Alone" and "(I Believe) There's Nothing Stronger Than Our Love". She recorded "Make It Up To Me in Love", (a sequel, ) to "One Man Woman/One Woman Man", with Anka in 1977. In Australia, "One Man Woman" peaked at number 35, while "(I Believe) There's Nothing Stronger Than Our Love" peaked at number 83, both in 1975.

Solo work

Coates had minor success as a solo artist with the Anka-penned track "You Come And You Go" and a cover of the

Electric Light Orchestra The Electric Light Orchestra (ELO) are an English rock band formed in Birmingham in 1970 by songwriters and multi-instrumentalists Jeff Lynne and Roy Wood with drummer Bev Bevan. Their music is characterised by a fusion of pop, classical a ...

song "

Showdown A showdown is a duel. The term may also refer to: Places * Showdown Ski Area, in Montana, United States Books * ''Showdown'' (Amado novel), a 1984 novel by Jorge Amado * ''Showdown'' (Dekker novel), a 2006 novel by Ted Dekker * ''Showdown'' (F ...

". Both songs come from her only self-titled solo album released in 1975 by

United Artists Records United Artists Records was an American record label founded by Max E. Youngstein of United Artists in 1957 to issue movie soundtracks. The label expanded into other genres, such as easy listening, jazz, pop, and R&B. History Genres In 1959, ...

with producer

Rick Hall Roe Erister "Rick" Hall (January 31, 1932 – January 2, 2018) was an American record producer, songwriter, and musician who became known as the owner of FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. As the "Father of Muscle Shoals Music", he was i ...

. Coates also recorded "Make It Up To Me Baby", released on

Buddah Records Buddah Records (later known as Buddha Records) was an American record label founded in 1967 in New York City. The label was born out of Kama Sutra Records, an MGM Records-distributed label, which remained a key imprint following Buddah's foundin ...

in 1973, written by Anka and Harris and very much sought after by soul collectors. She was working on solo album in Las Vegas at L.A.W. Recording Studios in 1984-5, with producer Lee Waters. Tracks were cut at LAW and Paramount and Sunset studios in LA.

Death

Odia Coates died from

breast cancer Breast cancer is cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipple, a newly inverted nipple, or a re ...

in 1991, aged 49, at

Oakland Medical Center Kaiser Oakland Medical Center is a hospital in Oakland, California. It is located at the intersection of Broadway and West MacArthur Boulevard, immediately north of Downtown. It is the flagship hospital of Kaiser Permanente, the largest managed ...

following a four-year battle with the disease.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Coates, Odia 1941 births 1991 deaths African-American women singers American women pop singers Deaths from cancer in California GMTV presenters and reporters Deaths from breast cancer American performers of Christian music Musicians from Los Angeles Musicians from Vicksburg, Mississippi Epic Records artists 20th-century American singers 20th-century American women singers