Tyrone Davis (born Tyrone D. Fettson or Tyrone D. Branch, October 3, 1937 – February 9, 2005) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...

and soul singer with a long list of hit records over more than 20 years. Davis had three number 1 hits on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' R&B chart: " Can I Change My Mind" (1968), "

Turn Back the Hands of Time "Turn Back the Hands of Time" is a song recorded by American R&B singer Tyrone Davis. It was co-written by Jack Daniels and Bonnie Thompson and produced by Willie Henderson. "Turn Back the Hands of Time" was released as a single in February ...

" (1970), and "

Turning Point A turning point, or climax, is the point of highest tension in a narrative work. Turning Point or Turning Points may refer to: Film * ''The Turning Point'', a 1914 silent film starring Caroline Cooke * ''The Turning Point'' (1920 film), an Amer ...

" (1975).

Biography

Tyrone Fettson was born in Greenville, Mississippi, United States, to Willie Branch and Ora Lee Jones. Some sources give his date of birth as May 4, 1938, but researchers Bob Eagle and Eric LeBlanc state that his funeral notice gives the October 1937 date. He moved with his father to Saginaw, Michigan, before moving to Chicago in 1959. Working as a valet/chauffeur for

singer Freddie King, he started singing in local clubs where he was discovered by record executive/musician Harold Burrage. His early records for small record labels in the city, billed as "Tyrone the Wonder Boy", failed to register. Successful Chicago record producer Carl Davis signed him in 1968 to a new label, Dakar Records, that he was starting as part of a distribution deal with Atlantic, and suggested that Tyrone change his name, which he did by borrowing Carl's last name. His first release, "A Woman Needs to Be Loved" was flipped when the

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record compan ...

started to get radio attention. The song, "Can I Change My Mind" featured a change of vocal style for Davis with a softer, more pleading approach and tone. The record shot up the listings and spent three weeks on the top of the ''

'' R&B

chart A chart (sometimes known as a graph) is a graphical representation for data visualization, in which "the data is represented by symbols, such as bars in a bar chart, lines in a line chart, or slices in a pie chart". A chart can represent tabu ...

, while climbing to number 5 in 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 ...

. It sold over one million and received gold disc recognition. His biggest hit came in early 1970 when "

Turn Back The Hands Of Time "Turn Back the Hands of Time" is a song recorded by American R&B singer Tyrone Davis. It was co-written by Jack Daniels and Bonnie Thompson and produced by Willie Henderson. "Turn Back the Hands of Time" was released as a single in February ...

" also reached number 1 in the R&B chart and went up to number 3 in the Hot 100

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 ...

chart. Written by Jack Daniels and Bonnie Thompson, this disc also sold over one million copies, and received a gold disc awarded by the

Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

in May 1970. Davis released about 25 singles during his seven years with Dakar, most of them big R&B sellers produced by Willie Henderson. He finally returned to the top spot with "Turning Point" in 1975. Soon afterwards, Davis switched to the major

Columbia Columbia may refer to: * Columbia (personification), the historical female national personification of the United States, and a poetic name for America Places North America Natural features * Columbia Plateau, a geologic and geographic region in ...

record label and recorded seven albums over the next five years with producer

Leo Graham Leo Graham was a Jamaican singer. He first sang with The Bleechers, then after leaving the group recorded several solo singles in the 1970s including "Perilous Time," "A Win Them" and "Not Giving Up" for Joe Gibbs, and songs including "Big Ton ...

and arranger James Mack who had collaborated with him for "Turning Point." Major hits with Columbia included "Give It Up" (number 2), "This I Swear" (number 6), and "In the Mood" (number 6). Dubbed the "king of romantic Chicago soul" by MTV, Davis' perceived vulnerability and class endeared him to female soul fans through the 1970s. 1982 brought a change of label to the newly established independent, Highrise and another major hit, "Are You Serious" (number 3 R&B, number 57 pop), again produced by Leo Graham, and written by L.V. Johnson. When Highrise closed the following year, Davis switched to a tiny Los Angeles label, Ocean Front, which lacked promotional muscle to get behind arguably one of his best performances, "Let Me Be Your Pacifier." In 1991, Davis switched to Atlanta label, Ichiban Records, recording three albums including the song "Mom's Apple Pie." In 1994, Davis went to Bellmark/Life Records for one album. Davis' days as a major chart act were over, but he continued to be a popular live attraction and finally signed in 1996 with Malaco Records, the southern-based blues label recording him on a number of albums. He also performed on a PBS special on 1970s soul music in 2004, singing "Turn Back the Hands of Time." A

stroke A stroke is a medical condition in which poor blood flow to the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and hemorrhagic, due to bleeding. Both cause parts of the brain to stop functionin ...

in September 2004 ended his career and, following complications, he died in a Chicago

hospital A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment with specialized health science and auxiliary healthcare staff and medical equipment. The best-known type of hospital is the general hospital, which typically has an emerge ...

on February 9, 2005, at the age of 67.

Discography

Studio albums

Singles

References

External links

The complete Tyrone Davis discography at Soul Express
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Davis, Tyrone 1938 births 2005 deaths American soul musicians Atlantic Records artists American rhythm and blues singers Songwriters from Mississippi Singers from Mississippi Musicians from Greenville, Mississippi Malaco Records artists Singers from Chicago African-American male songwriters 20th-century African-American male singers 20th-century American singers 20th-century American songwriters