Charlie Whitehead (September 12, 1942 – June 26, 2015) was a

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun '' soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest atte ...

singer from

Franklin Franklin may refer to: People * Franklin (given name) * Franklin (surname) * Franklin (class), a member of a historical English social class Places Australia * Franklin, Tasmania, a township * Division of Franklin, federal electoral d ...

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

. Whitehead moved to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

in 1968 and was subsequently signed to Musicor's R&B subsidiary, Dynamo Records, by

Charlie Foxx Inez Foxx (September 9, 1937 – August 25, 2022) and her elder brother Charlie Foxx (October 23, 1933 – September 18, 1998) were an American rhythm and blues and soul duo from Greensboro, North Carolina. Inez sang lead vocal, while Charli ...

. At Dynamo, Whitehead was paired with Jerry Williams, Jr., and the two wrote songs (often with Gary U.S. Bonds) for artists such as

Dee Dee Warwick Delia Juanita Warrick (September 25, 1942 – October 18, 2008), known professionally as Dee Dee Warwick, was an American soul singer. Born in Newark, New Jersey, she was the sister of singer Dionne Warwick, the niece of Cissy Houston, and a ...

and

Doris Duke Doris Duke (November 22, 1912 – October 28, 1993) was an American billionaire tobacco heiress, philanthropist, art collector, horticulturalist, and socialite. She was often called "the richest girl in the world". Her great wealth, luxurious l ...

, including Warwick's 1970 hit, "She Didn’t Know (She Kept on Talking)". Releasing only one single on Dynamo, Whitehead followed Williams when he left for

Canyon Records Canyon Records of Phoenix, Arizona is a record label that has produced and distributed Native American music for 56 years. History Canyon was founded in 1951 by Ray and Mary Boley, who had opened the first recording studio in Phoenix, Arizona ...

. In 1970, using the name Raw Spitt, Whitehead released a self-titled album, produced and mostly written by Williams. An additional song recorded for, but not included on the album, "Songs to Sing" was also released as a single on

United Artists United Artists Corporation (UA), currently doing business as United Artists Digital Studios, is an American digital production company. Founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, and Douglas Fairbanks, the stud ...

. Whitehead released some material under his own name on Williams' Stone Dogg Records and in 1973, the album ''Charlie Whitehead and the Swamp Dogg Band'' on Williams' Fungus Records. In 1975, he made the '' Billboard'' R&B chart with "Love Being Your Fool" on Island Records. Charlie Whitehead biography

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 databa ...

. He released one more album, 1977's ''Whitehead at Yellowstone'' before dropping from view. A CD compiling ''Raw Spitt'', ''Charlie Whitehead and the Swamp Dogg Band'', and various non-album tracks—called ''Songs to Sing: The Charlie Whitehead Anthology''—was released by Ace Records in 2006. On June 26, 2015, Charlie Whitehead died.

References

American soul singers 1942 births Songwriters from Virginia Possibly living people People from Franklin, Virginia Alive Naturalsound Records artists 2015 deaths African-American male songwriters 20th-century African-American male singers {{US-singer-stub