Claudia Lennear | |
---|---|
Birth name | Claudia Joy Offley |
Also known as | Joy Lennear [1] |
Born | 1946 (age 77–78) [2] Providence, Rhode Island, U.S. |
Genres | |
Occupations |
|
Years active | 1968–present |
Labels | Real Gone Music |
Website | claudialennear |
Claudia Lennear (born Claudia Joy Offley; 1946) is an American soul singer and educator. Lennear began her performing with the Superbs before becoming an Ikette in the Ike & Tina Turner Revue. She was also a background vocalist for various acts, including Joe Cocker, Leon Russell, and Freddie King. She released her only solo album in 1973. Lennear was featured in the 2013 Oscar-winning documentary 20 Feet from Stardom . [3] She was inducted in the Rhode Island Music Hall of Fame in 2019. [4]
Lennear was born Claudia Joy Offley at Providence Lying-In Hospital in Rhode Island. Her last name was changed after her mother married Leo V. Lennear, a Navy man stationed in Newport. [3] She grew up in different neighborhoods in Providence. Although raised a Catholic, her grandmother taught her to sing gospel songs as a child. [5]
In elementary school, Lennear studied music theory and took French at St. Charles Borromeo parochial school. Her career goal was to become a translator at the United Nations. [3] She also took private piano lessons. In high school, she was in the chorale program. As a teenager she listened to Patti LaBelle & the Bluebelles, Gladys Knight & the Pips, Carla Thomas, and Ike & Tina Turner. [5] During her senior year at Hope High School, her stepfather retired from the Navy and she moved to Pomona, California with her family in 1964. [3] [6]
After graduating from high school, Lennear enrolled in college and began fronting the Los Angeles-based soul group The Superbs. [5] They performed local gigs around Los Angeles. Lennear made her recording debut with the group on the single "One Bad Habit", released on Doré Records in 1968. [2]
Through her friend, singer Sherlie Matthews, Lennear landed an audition with bandleader Ike Turner in 1968. [2] [5] She passed the audition and left the Superbs to become an Ikette. She said: "He [Ike Turner] was a terrific business person, very disciplined, and he was a visionary." [7] Lennear was with Ike & Tina Turner for a few years until she had a spat with Tina Turner. [8] Nonetheless, Lennear recalled her time with the Turners fondly, telling The Providence Journal :
Without Ike and Tina, I'd probably be 20 miles from stardom, not 20 feet....they taught me how to perform, how to work with other singers and musicians. Ike taught me how to support Tina on stage. And Tina taught me how to present myself....During the three years I was an Ikette, I never witnessed any physical abuse. [3]
After leaving the Ikettes in 1970, Lennear worked with many acts including Humble Pie and Joe Cocker. She was part of a trio of backup singers for Delaney and Bonnie that also included Rita Coolidge. [9]
Lennear was one of Leon Russell's Shelter People. She sang back-up vocals on Joe Cocker's 1970 Mad Dogs and Englishmen tour and live album, on Leon Russell and the Shelter People (1971), and on George Harrison's The Concert for Bangla Desh (1971). [3] Her lead vocal live recording of "Let It Be" from the film Joe Cocker: Mad Dogs & Englishmen (1971) was the B side of Leon Russell's "Mad Dogs and Englishmen" single on A&M Records in 1971. [10]
In 1973, Lennear released her first and only solo album for Warner Bros. Records entitled Phew!. [3] [11] She had a bit part in the film Thunderbolt and Lightfoot (1974), playing the secretary who asks Clint Eastwood's character for his Social Security number. Lennear appeared in the August 1974 issue of Playboy magazine in a pictorial entitled "Brown Sugar". [3]
Lennear appeared in the Academy Award-winning documentary 20 Feet from Stardom (2013), which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. [5] After the success of the film, David Bowie contacted Lennear and offered to write songs for her next project. [12]
Since 2014, Lennear has performed and recorded in Los Angeles with The New Ash Grove Players with S S Jones & Claudia Lennear. They have performed at the McCabes Guitar Shop, The Coffee Gallery, the Pasadena Pavilion for the Performing Arts, and The Improv. [13]
At the Lockn' Festival on September 11, 2015, Lennear performed with the Tedeschi Trucks Band, Rita Coolidge, Leon Russell, and other alumni from the 1970 Joe Cocker Mad Dogs and Englishmen Tour in a memorial concert for Cocker. [14] [15]
In 2006, Lennear received degrees in French literature and art history from Pitzer College. [16]
Lennear began teaching first in high school and then at Mt. San Antonio College, where she has been teaching French, Spanish, English, and remedial math. [3] [17]
In 2019, Lennear was inducted into the Rhode Island Music Hall of Fame. [4] [18] [19]
In 1969, Lennear dated Mick Jagger when Ike & Tina Turner were the opening act for the Rolling Stones on their American tour. [20] Lennear's relationships with Mick Jagger and David Bowie are often cited as inspiration for The Rolling Stones' "Brown Sugar" (1971) and Bowie's "Lady Grinning Soul" (1973). [21] [22] [23] NME editors Roy Carr and Charles Shaar Murray noted in 1981 that she was "yet to reply in song to either Mick or David." [21] However, in a 1973 article in Rolling Stone , she was quoted as saying that she wrote the song "Not At All" "to inform Mick Jagger of his dispensability". [24]
Year | Title | Label |
---|---|---|
1971 | "Let It be" | A&M Records |
1973 | "Two Trains" / "Not At All" | Warner Bros. Records |
Year | Album | Label |
---|---|---|
1973 | Phew! | Warner Bros. Records |
Release date | Album | Label |
---|---|---|
June 1969 | In Person | Minit Records |
July 1969 | So Fine | Pompeii Records |
August 1969 | Cussin', Cryin' & Carryin' On | Pompeii Records |
October 1969 | The Hunter | Blue Thumb Records |
May 1970 | Come Together | Liberty Records |
November 1970 | Workin' Together | Liberty Records |
Year [25] | Album | Artist | Credits |
---|---|---|---|
U.F.O. | Ron Davies | Vocals (Background) | |
Truckers, Kickers, Cowboy Angels: The Blissed-Out Birth of Country Rock, Vol. 6: 1973 | Vocals (Background) | ||
My Perfect List 60 Titres Soul 1 | Primary Artist | ||
All the Funk & Groove | Primary Artist | ||
1970 | Stephen Stills | Stephen Stills | Vocals |
1970 | Mad Dogs & Englishmen | Joe Cocker | Main Personnel, Vocals, Vocals (Background), Choir/Chorus, Featured Artist, Primary Artist |
1970 | Alone Together | Dave Mason | Vocals |
1971 | Rock On | Humble Pie | Vocals |
1971 | New York City (You're a Woman) | Al Kooper | Vocals, Vocals (Background) |
1971 | Living by the Days | Don Nix | Vocals, Vocals (Background) |
1971 | Leon Russell and the Shelter People | Leon Russell | Vocals |
1971 | Klatu Berrada Nitku | Dependables | Vocals, Bass, Group Member |
1971 | Into the Purple Valley | Ry Cooder | Vocals |
1971 | Getting Ready... | Freddie King | Vocals, Vocals (Background) |
1972 | Bring Me Back | Tony Kelly | Vocals |
1972 | Artist Proof | Chris Darrow | Vocals (Background) |
1972 | A Possible Projection of the Future | Al Kooper | Vocals |
1973 | Chris Jagger | Chris Jagger | Vocals |
1974 | No Other | Gene Clark | Main Personnel, Vocals, Vocals (Background), Voices |
1974 | Mo' Roots | Taj Mahal | Vocals, Vocals (Background) |
1974 | Compartments | José Feliciano | Vocals (Background) |
1975 | Stills | Stephen Stills | Vocals |
1976 | The Best of Leon Russell [DCC/Shelter] | Leon Russell | Vocals |
1976 | Glass Heart | Allan Rich | Sound Effects |
1976 | Cry Tough | Nils Lofgren | Vocals, Vocals (Background) |
1977 | Brothers | Taj Mahal | Vocals, Vocals (Background) |
1985 | Takin' Care of Business | Freddie King | Choir/Chorus |
1991 | Key to the Highway [Del Rack] | Freddie King | Vocals, Vocals (Background) |
1997 | Soft Fun, Tough Tears | Nils Lofgren | Vocals (Background) |
1997 | Retrospective | Leon Russell | Vocals |
1999 | Ultimate Collection | Nils Lofgren | Vocals (Background) |
1999 | Ultimate Collection | Dave Mason | Vocals (Background) |
2000 | The Best of Freddie King: The Shelter Records Years | Freddie King | Vocals (Background) |
2001 | Ultimate Collection | Freddie King | Vocals (Background) |
2001 | Sing a Happy Song: The Warner Bros. Recordings | Taj Mahal | Vocals (Background) |
2001 | Right On, Vol. 3: Break Beats & Grooves from the Atlantic & Warner Vaults | Primary Artist | |
2001 | Right On! Box Set | Primary Artist | |
2001 | Rare + Well Done: The Greatest & Most Obscure Recordings | Al Kooper | Vocals |
2005 | The Essential Taj Mahal | Taj Mahal | Main Personnel, Vocals (Background) |
2005 | Mad Dogs & Englishmen [2005 DVD] | Joe Cocker | Performer |
2006 | What It is! Funky Soul and Rare Grooves: 1967–1977 | Primary Artist | |
2006 | The Definitive Collection | Dave Mason | Vocals (Background) |
2006 | The Definitive Collection | Humble Pie | Additional Personnel, Vocals (Background) |
2006 | The Complete Fillmore East Concerts | Joe Cocker | Vocals, Primary Artist |
2006 | Mad Dogs & Englishmen: Fillmore March 28, 1970 | Joe Cocker | Vocals, Primary Artist |
2007 | Less Than the Song/Life Machine | Hoyt Axton | Main Personnel, Vocals (Background) |
2010 | Rarities Edition: Mad Dogs & Englishmen | Joe Cocker | Choir/Chorus, Primary Artist |
2011 | Easy Does It/New York City (You're a Woman)/ A Possible Projection of the Future: Childhood's End | Al Kooper | Vocals (Background) |
2014 | The Best of the Superbs | The Superbs | Photo Courtesy |
2014 | Face the Music | Nils Lofgren | Vocals |
2016 | Lost Studio Sessions 1964–1982 | Gene Clark | Featured Artist |
Year | Title | Role |
---|---|---|
1968 | The Hollywood Palace | Ikette |
1969 | Andy's Love Concert | Ikette |
1969 | The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour | Ikette |
1969 | Playboy After Dark | Ikette |
1970 | The Ed Sullivan Show | Ikette |
1974 | Thunderbolt and Lightfoot | Secretary |
2013 | 20 Feet from Stardom | Herself |
Tina Turner was a singer, songwriter, and actress. Known as the "Queen of Rock 'n' Roll", she rose to prominence as the lead singer of the husband-wife duo Ike & Tina Turner before launching a successful career as a solo performer.
John Robert "Joe" Cocker 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, such as "Feelin' Alright?" and "Unchain My Heart", were recordings of songs written by other song writers, though he composed a number of songs for most of his albums as well, often in conjunction with songwriting partner Chris Stainton.
Ike & Tina Turner was an American musical duo consisting of husband-and-wife Ike Turner and Tina Turner. From 1960 to 1976, they performed live as the Ike & Tina Turner Revue, supported by Ike Turner's band, the Kings of Rhythm, and backing vocalists, the Ikettes. The Ike & Tina Turner Revue was regarded as "one of the most potent live acts on the R&B circuit."
Bonnie Bramlett is an American singer and occasional actress known for performing with her husband, Delaney Bramlett, as Delaney & Bonnie. She continues to sing as a solo artist.
Patricia Ann Cole, known professionally as P. P. Arnold, is an American soul singer. She began her career as an Ikette with the Ike & Tina Turner Revue in 1965. The following year she relocated to London to pursue a solo career. Arnold enjoyed considerable success in the United Kingdom with her singles "The First Cut Is the Deepest" (1967) and "Angel of the Morning" (1968).
Linda Ann Wolf is an American photographer and writer. She was one of the first female rock and roll photographers. She does fine art photography with an emphasis on women and global photojournalism.
Mad Dogs & Englishmen is a live album by Joe Cocker, released in 1970. The album's title is drawn from the 1931 Noël Coward song of the same name and Leon Russell's "Ballad of Mad Dogs and Englishmen". Only four songs of the 16 on the original album were drawn from his first two studio albums. Besides the contributions of bandmate and musical director Leon Russell, it draws equally from rock and soul. Accompanying Cocker is a choir, a three-piece horn section and several drummers.
Venetta Lee Fields is an American-born Australian singer and musical theater actress, and vocal coach.
Christopher Robert Stainton is an English session musician, keyboard player, bassist and songwriter, who first gained recognition with Joe Cocker in the late 1960s. In addition to his collaboration with Cocker, Stainton is best known for his work with Eric Clapton, The Who, Andy Fairweather Low and Bryan Ferry.
The Rolling Stones' 1969 Tour of the United States took place in November 1969. With Ike & Tina Turner, Terry Reid, and B.B. King as the supporting acts, rock critic Robert Christgau called it "history's first mythic rock and roll tour", while rock critic Dave Marsh wrote that the tour was "part of rock and roll legend" and one of the "benchmarks of an era." In 2017, Rolling Stone magazine ranked the tour among The 50 Greatest Concerts of the Last 50 Years.
The Ikettes, originally The Artettes, were a trio of female backing vocalists for the Ike & Tina Turner Revue. Despite their origins, the Ikettes became successful artists in their own right. In the 1960s they had hits such as "I'm Blue " and "Peaches 'N' Cream". In 2017, Billboard ranked "I'm Blue " No. 63 on its list of 100 Greatest Girl Group Songs of All Time.
Kathryn Marie "Kathi" McDonald was an American blues and rock singer and songwriter. As a teenager she sang with different bands around the Pacific Northwest before she was discovered by Ike Turner. She sang as an Ikette with Ike & Tina Turner and eventually replaced Janis Joplin as the front woman of Big Brother and Holding Company. McDonald became a background vocalist for various artists, including Leon Russell, Joe Cocker, The Rolling Stones, Freddie King, and Long John Baldry. She also recorded as a solo artist and fronted her own band Kathi McDonald & Friends.
The Tedeschi Trucks Band is an American blues and blues rock group based in Jacksonville, Florida. Formed in 2010, the band is led by married couple Susan Tedeschi and Derek Trucks. Their debut album, Revelator (2011), won the 2012 Grammy Award for Best Blues Album. The band has released five studio and three live albums.
Mad Dogs & Englishmen: The Complete Fillmore East Concerts is a live album by Joe Cocker, recorded in New York City in 1970.
20 Feet from Stardom is a 2013 American documentary film directed by Morgan Neville and produced by Gil Friesen, a music industry executive whose curiosity to know more about the lives of background singers inspired the making of the film. Using archival footage and new interviews, it details the behind-the-scenes experiences of such backup singers as Darlene Love, Merry Clayton, Lisa Fischer, Judith Hill, Jo Lawry, Claudia Lennear, and Tata Vega. The film won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature at the 86th Academy Awards, 23 years after In the Shadow of the Stars (1991), a similar documentary that focused on the members of an opera chorus, won the same award.
Mad Dogs & Englishmen is a 1971 American documentary film of Joe Cocker's 1970 U.S. tour, directed by Pierre Adidge, starring Cocker and Leon Russell. The film was released on March 29, 1971, by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.
Robbie Montgomery is an American singer and restaurateur. She is noted for being one of the original Ikettes in the Ike & Tina Turner Revue in the 1960s. After her tenure as an Ikette, she was a member of the Mirettes, and then became a "Night Tripper" for Dr. John. In the 1970s, Montgomery was a backing vocalist for acts such as Stevie Wonder, Barbra Streisand, the Rolling Stones, and Joe Cocker. She later created the Sweetie Pie's franchise, and starred in the award-winning reality series Welcome to Sweetie Pie's.
Esther Faye Bills was an American soul singer and choreographer, best known as the "longest-lasting Ikette" in the Ike & Tina Turner Revue. In the 1980s, she was the lead vocalist in the band Formula 5.
Jessie Smith was an American R&B vocalist. She began her career singing with musician Benny Sharp, recording as Little Miss Jessie, and became best known as one of the original Ikettes in the Ike & Tina Turner Revue. She later sang backing vocals for various artists, including Dr. John, Paul Williams, Al Kooper, José Feliciano, and Leon Ware.
Insane Asylum is the debut album by American blues rock singer Kathi McDonald. The album was released on Capitol Records in February 1974.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)