Robert S. Nevil (born October 2, 1958) is an American
pop
Pop or POP may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Music
* Pop music, a musical genre Artists
* POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade
* Pop!, a UK pop group
* Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band
Albums
* ''Pop'' (G ...
singer
Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or witho ...
,
songwriter
A songwriter is a musician who professionally composes musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music ...
,
producer
Producer or producers may refer to:
Occupations
*Producer (agriculture), a farm operator
*A stakeholder of economic production
*Film producer, supervises the making of films
**Executive producer, contributes to a film's budget and usually does not ...
, and
guitarist
A guitarist (or a guitar player) is a person who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of guitar family instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselve ...
who had five ''Billboard'' top 40 hits including his songs "
C'est la Vie" (#2, 1986), "
Dominoes
Dominoes is a family of tile-based games played with gaming pieces, commonly known as dominoes. Each domino is a rectangular tile, usually with a line dividing its face into two square ''ends''. Each end is marked with a number of spots (also ca ...
" (#14, 1987), and "
Wot's It to Ya
"Wot's It to Ya" is the third single by American musician Robbie Nevil from his self-titled debut album, released as a single in May 1987 by Manhattan Records. It peaked at number 10 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100.
Lyrics and writing
The so ...
" (#10, 1987).
Life and career
Nevil began playing guitar at age 11 and played in a series of
cover bands. He began performing his original music and signed a publishing deal in 1983, writing songs for the
Pointer Sisters,
El DeBarge,
Alison Moyet, and
Earth, Wind & Fire.
In 1986, he obtained his first
recording contract
A recording contract (commonly called a record contract or record deal) is a legal agreement between a record label and a recording artist (or group), where the artist makes a record (or series of records) for the label to sell and promote. Artists ...
, signing with
Manhattan Records, for whom he recorded his debut
album
An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...
with the producers
Alex Sadkin and
Phil Thornalley.
His debut single "
C'est la Vie" reached #2 on the
''Billboard'' Hot 100,
propelling the album into the
top 40
In the music industry, the Top 40 is the current, 40 most-popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "Top 40" or "conte ...
on both the
US pop
Pop or POP may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Music
* Pop music, a musical genre Artists
* POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade
* Pop!, a UK pop group
* Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band
Albums
* ''Pop'' (G ...
and ''
Billboard''
R&B chart. His second single "Dominoes" hit #14 on the Hot 100 and #22 on the
Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart, while the third single "Wot's It to Ya" peaked at #10 on the Hot 100 and Dance Club/Play charts, and #69 on the R&B chart.
He sang backup on Stevie Nicks' version of "Silent Night" for the holiday compilation,
A Very Special Christmas.
Nevil's second album was released in 1988; however, it did not match the success of his debut album.
''
A Place Like This'' (
#118) spawned the top 40 moderate hit "Back on Holiday" (#34), and a second single, "Somebody Like You", became a minor hit, peaking at #63.
In 1991, Nevil's third album, ''
Day 1'', was released to fewer sales.
The lead single "Just Like You" became his biggest hit since his debut album, and his fifth and final top 40 single, peaking at #25 on the Hot 100. Second single "For Your Mind" peaked at #86, ending his chart run in the US.
Nevil turned to writing and producing for other acts such as
Babyface,
Jessica Simpson,
Destiny's Child, and Japanese pop singer
Seiko Matsuda. In 2006, he collaborated with
Matthew Gerrard on the
Smash Mouth album ''
Summer Girl
''Summer Girl'' is the sixth studio album by American rock band Smash Mouth, released on September 19, 2006 through Beautiful Bomb Records. This is the last album featuring original guitarist and songwriter Greg Camp.
The album was released wi ...
''. Gerrard had been writing for
Disney
The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...
for some time and their work led to a partnership working on Disney projects including ''
The Cheetah Girls The Cheetah Girls may refer to:
* The Cheetah Girls (franchise), a series of young adult novels by Deborah Gregory and the spin-offs made from the novels, including a film series
** ''The Cheetah Girls'' (film), a 2003 Disney Channel Original Movie ...
'', ''
High School Musical
''High School Musical'' is a 2006 American musical television film directed by Kenny Ortega and written by Peter Barsocchini. The 63rd Disney Channel Original Movie (DCOM) and first installment of the ''High School Musical'' film series, ...
'', and ''
Hannah Montana
''Hannah Montana'' is an American teen sitcom created by Michael Poryes, Rich Correll and Barry O'Brien that aired on Disney Channel for four seasons between March2006 and January2011. The series centers on Miley Stewart ( Miley Cyrus), ...
'' franchises. Nevil shared ASCAP Awards for his work on ''
High School Musical
''High School Musical'' is a 2006 American musical television film directed by Kenny Ortega and written by Peter Barsocchini. The 63rd Disney Channel Original Movie (DCOM) and first installment of the ''High School Musical'' film series, ...
'' and ''
Hannah Montana
''Hannah Montana'' is an American teen sitcom created by Michael Poryes, Rich Correll and Barry O'Brien that aired on Disney Channel for four seasons between March2006 and January2011. The series centers on Miley Stewart ( Miley Cyrus), ...
'' in 2008, 2009, and 2010.
From 2011 on, Nevil has been creating, writing, and producing music for Extreme Music, part of
Sony/ATV Music Publishing
Sony Music Publishing (formerly Sony/ATV Music Publishing) is the largest music publisher in the world, with over five million songs owned or administered as of end March 2021. US-based, it is part of the Sony Music Group, which is itself owned ...
. Several of his Extreme Music compositions appear on the 2015 Sony compilation album ''Party Pop''.
Robbie Nevil is married with two children. He is the older brother of actor
Alex Nevil
Alex Nevil (born January 25, 1965) is an American film and television actor. He is known for portraying the role of Rebecca Howe's lecherous young boss " Martin Teal" in the American sitcom television series ''Cheers
''Cheers'' is an Americ ...
.
Discography
Studio albums
Compilation albums
* ''The Best of Robbie Nevil'' (1998)
* ''Wot's It to Ya: The Best of Robbie Nevil'' (1999)
* ''Party Pop'' (2015)
Singles
See also
*
List of number-one dance hits (United States)
This is a list of number-one dance hits as recorded by '' Billboard'' magazine's Dance Club Songs chart – a weekly national survey of popular songs in U.S. dance clubs. It began on October 26, 1974, under the title ''Disco Action'' chart. It i ...
*
List of artists who reached number one on the U.S. dance chart
Notes
References
External links
*
*
Allmusic
AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the dat ...
br>
Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nevil, Robbie
1958 births
Living people
American dance musicians
American male singers
American male songwriters
Songwriters from California
Singers from Los Angeles