Robert Parissi (born 29 December 1950 in Mingo Junction,

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

) is an American singer, songwriter, and musician, best known as frontman for the American funk group Wild Cherry. He also wrote the group's only hit, the 1976 chart-topping "

Play That Funky Music "Play That Funky Music" is a song written by Rob Parissi and recorded by the band Wild Cherry. The single was the first released by the Cleveland-based Sweet City record label in April 1976 and distributed by Epic Records. The performers on th ...

".. He was raised in the steel mill town of Mingo Junction,

. He graduated from Mingo High School in 1968. Rob formed the band Wild Cherry in 1970 in

Steubenville, Ohio Steubenville is a city in and the county seat of Jefferson County, Ohio, United States. Located along the Ohio River 33 miles west of Pittsburgh, it had a population of 18,161 at the 2020 census. The city's name is derived from Fort Steuben, a 1 ...

, one mile north of Mingo Junction along the Ohio River. The band played the Ohio Valley region, Wheeling,

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the Bur ...

and the rest of the Northern West Virginia panhandle, and

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

. After Wild Cherry disbanded in 1979 without another major hit, Parissi became a producer and dedicated himself to

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 ...

music. He writes and records

smooth jazz Smooth jazz is a genre of commercially-oriented crossover jazz and easy listening music that became dominant in the mid 1970s to the early 1990s. History Smooth jazz is a commercially oriented, crossover jazz which came to prominence in the 19 ...

and has collaborated with Steve Oliver and Will Donato.

Discography

With Wild Cherry

* '' Wild Cherry'', 1976 * '' Electrified Funk'', 1977 * ''

I Love My Music ''I Love My Music'' is the third studio album by Wild Cherry, released in 1978. It includes "Don't Stop, Get Off," a single with no lyrics outside the title itself, sung in a strident voice, backed by horns playing a funky riff. Also featured on ...

'', 1978 * '' Only the Wild Survive'', 1979

Solo

* ''Late Bloomer'', 2008 * ''Boca Ciega Bay'', 2010 * ''Ocean Sunset'', 2011 * ''East Coast Vibe'', 2011 * ''The Real Deal'', 2012

References

External links

* - not Official site. {{DEFAULTSORT:Parissi, Rob American funk singers American funk guitarists American male guitarists Living people 1950 births Wild Cherry (band) members People from Mingo Junction, Ohio Guitarists from Ohio