Curtis Stigers (born October 18, 1965) is an American jazz singer. He achieved a number of hits in the early 1990s, most notably the international hit " I Wonder Why" (1991), which reached No. 5 in the UK and No. 9 in the US.

Career

Stigers was born in

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywoo ...

, California, and grew up in

Boise, Idaho Boise (, , ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Idaho and is the county seat of Ada County. On the Boise River in southwestern Idaho, it is east of the Oregon border and north of the Nevada border. The downtown ar ...

. He started his music career as a teenager, playing in rock and blues bands, as well as receiving an education in clarinet and saxophone in high school in Boise. He acquired much of his motivation for pursuing jazz from jam sessions led by

Gene Harris Gene Harris (born Eugene Haire, September 1, 1933 – January 16, 2000) was an American jazz pianist known for his warm sound and blues and gospel infused style that is known as soul jazz. From 1956 to 1970, he played in The Three Sounds tri ...

at the Idanha Hotel. His song "Swingin' Down at Tenth and Main" is a tribute to those times with Harris. After receiving his diploma, he moved to New York City, intending to become a rock musician. But he spent more time in jazz clubs singing and playing saxophone. Arista released his debut album, which achieved multi-

platinum Platinum is a chemical element with the symbol Pt and atomic number 78. It is a dense, malleable, ductile, highly unreactive, precious, silverish-white transition metal. Its name originates from Spanish , a diminutive of "silver". Pla ...

sales. His combination of rock and soul was also popular on the soundtrack to the movie ''The Bodyguard'', which contained his version of "

(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love, and Understanding "(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love, and Understanding" is a 1974 song written by English singer/songwriter Nick Lowe. Initially released by Lowe with his band Brinsley Schwarz on their 1974 album '' The New Favourites of... Brinsley Schwarz'' ...

" by

Nick Lowe Nicholas Drain Lowe (born 24 March 1949) is an English singer-songwriter, musician and producer. A noted figure in power pop and new wave,

Concord Jazz Concord Jazz is a record company and label founded in 1973 by Carl Jefferson, the former owner of Jefferson Motors Lincoln Mercury dealership in Concord, California. The label was named after the city in the East San Francisco Bay area, and the ...

released ''Baby Plays Around'', an album of that included

Chris Minh Doky Chris Minh Doky (born 7 February 1969) is a Vietnamese-Danish jazz bassist. He is the younger brother of jazz pianist Niels Lan Doky. He released his first album, ''Appreciation'', in 1989 four years after picking up the instrument. As a sid ...

and

Randy Brecker Randal Edward Brecker (born November 27, 1945) is an American trumpeter, flugelhornist, and composer. His versatility has made him a popular studio musician who has recorded with acts in jazz, rock, and R&B. Early life Brecker was born on No ...

He recorded several more jazzy albums for Concord before turning to the country flavor of ''Let's Go Out Tonight'' with cover versions of songs by

Steve Earle Stephen Fain Earle (; born January 17, 1955) is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, author, and actor. Earle began his career as a songwriter in Nashville and released his first EP in 1982. Initially working in the country music ...

, Richard Thompson, and

Hayes Carll Joshua Hayes Carll (born January 9, 1976), known professionally as Hayes Carll, is a singer-songwriter. A native of The Woodlands, Texas, his style of roots-oriented songwriting has been noted for its plainspoken poetry and sarcastic humor. C ...

. He has worked with

Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, pianist and composer. Commonly nicknamed the "Rocket Man" after his 1972 hit single of the same name, John has led a commercially successful career a ...

Eric Clapton Eric Patrick Clapton (born 1945) is an English rock and blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is often regarded as one of the most successful and influential guitarists in rock music. Clapton ranked second in ''Rolling Stone''s list o ...

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. ...

Bonnie Raitt Bonnie Lynn Raitt (; born November 8, 1949) is an American blues singer and guitarist. In 1971, Raitt released her self-titled debut album. Following this, she released a series of critically acclaimed roots-influenced albums that incorporated ...

Rod Stewart Sir Roderick David Stewart (born 10 January 1945) is a British rock and pop singer and songwriter. Born and raised in London, he is of Scottish and English ancestry. With his distinctive raspy singing voice, Stewart is among the best-selling ...

The Allman Brothers Band The Allman Brothers Band was an American rock band formed in Jacksonville, Florida in 1969 by brothers Duane Allman (founder, slide guitar and lead guitar) and Gregg Allman (vocals, keyboards, songwriting), as well as Dickey Betts (lead guita ...

and

Joe Cocker John Robert "Joe" Cocker (20 May 1944 – 22 December 2014) was an English singer known for his gritty, bluesy voice and dynamic stage performances that featured expressive body movements. Most of his best known singles were recordings of son ...

. He sang a duet with Julia Fordham on her re-recording of "Where Does the Time Go?" on the 1998 compilation album '' The Julia Fordham Collection''. His song " I Wonder Why" reached No. 5 on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

and No. 9 on the United States ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart in 1991, while "

You're All That Matters to Me "You're All That Matters to Me" is a song by American singer-songwriter Curtis Stigers. It was the second single released from his debut studio album, ''Curtis Stigers'' (1991), and peaked at number six on the UK Singles Chart in 1992. Although a ...

" reached No. 6 as the follow-up single in the UK. In 2006, Stigers participated in the BBC Television show '' Just the Two of Us'', where he sang with journalist

Penny Smith Penelope Jane Smith (born 21 September 1958) is an English author, television presenter, newsreader and radio presenter. She has presented for Sky News, GMTV, Classic FM, BBC Radio London, TalkRadio and is a regular contributor to TalkTV la ...

. He was one of the soloists at a concert celebrating the MGM musical during the 2009

Proms The BBC Proms or Proms, formally named the Henry Wood Promenade Concerts Presented by the BBC, is an eight-week summer season of daily orchestral classical music concerts and other events held annually, predominantly in the Royal Albert Hal ...

season. His song " This Life" was for the American television show ''

Sons of Anarchy ''Sons of Anarchy'' is an American action crime drama television series created by Kurt Sutter for FX. Originally aired from September 3, 2008 to December 9, 2014, ''Sons of Anarchy'' follows the lives of a close-knit outlaw motorcycle club ...

''. He also sang " John the Revelator" for the

season one Season One may refer to: Albums * ''Season One'' (Suburban Legends album), 2004 * ''Season One'' (All Sons & Daughters album), 2012 * ''Season One'' (Saukrates album), 2012 See also * * * Season 2 (disambiguation) Season 2 may refer to: ...

finale.

Discography

Albums

* '' Curtis Stigers'' ( Arista, 1991) * ''Time Was'' (Arista, 1995) * ''Brighter Days'' (Columbia, 1999) * ''Baby Plays Around'' (Concord Jazz, 2001) * ''Secret Heart'' (Concord Jazz, 2002) * ''You Inspire Me'' (Concord Jazz, 2003) * ''I Think It's Going to Rain Today'' (Concord Jazz, 2005) * ''Real Emotional'' (Concord, 2007) * ''Lost in Dreams'' (Concord, 2009) * ''Let's Go Out Tonight'' (Concord Jazz, 2012) * ''Hooray for Love'' (Concord Jazz, 2014) * ''One More for the Road'' ive(Concord Jazz, 2014 el. 2017 with the Danish Radio Big Band * ''Gentleman'' (EmArcy, 2020) * ''This Life'' (EmArcy, 2022)

Charting singles

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Stigers, Curtis 1965 births Living people American jazz singers Jazz-pop singers Smooth jazz singers Musicians from Boise, Idaho Concord Records artists EmArcy Records artists Arista Records artists Jazz musicians from Idaho American baritones Sons of Anarchy