Dee Dee Sharp | |
---|---|
Birth name | Dione LaRue |
Born | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. | September 9, 1945
Genres | R&B, soul |
Occupation(s) | Singer |
Years active | 1961–present |
Labels | |
Website | deedeesharp |
Dee Dee Sharp (born Dione LaRue; September 9, 1945, in Philadelphia) [1] is an American R&B singer, who began her career recording as a backing vocalist in 1961.
Although Sharp had been playing the piano from an early age and directed church choirs for her grandfather's and other congregations in her hometown of Philadelphia, Sharp's career truly began in 1958. When Sharp was thirteen, her mother suffered a car accident, which spurred Sharp to find a singing job to help support her family while her mother recovered from her injuries. [1] [2] [3] This was only possible because of her grandmother's blessing, given only after Sharp promised to keep up with her schooling. [4] [2] Sharp responded to an ad in the daily news for backup singers. Her first job was with Willa Ward Moultrie and was soon singing backup vocals for the likes of Lloyd Price, Chubby Checker, Bobby Rydell, Frankie Avalon and Jackie Wilson. [1] [4] [2] [3]
In 1962, she was signed by Cameo/Parkway and was christened Dee Dee Sharp by producers Kal Mann and Bernie Lowe. [1] [3] At the time, her brother called her "Dee" and since she sang in "D sharp" she was given this new identity. [4] She produced a string of successful Billboard Hot 100 top 10 hits: "Slow Twistin'" (with Chubby Checker) (#3) for which she was uncredited on the label, "Mashed Potato Time" (#2), "Gravy (For My Mashed Potatoes)" (#9), "Ride!" (#5) and "Do the Bird" (#10). [1] Both "Mashed Potato Time" and "Ride!" each sold over one million copies, and were awarded gold discs. [5] "Do the Bird" provided her only entry in the UK Singles Chart, where it peaked at #46 in April 1963. [6]
From 1962 to 1981 she appeared several times on American Bandstand, the ABC Television Network music-performance and dance series hosted by Dick Clark. She was also a regular feature on Clark's Caravan of Stars tours. [2] [1] In 1965 Sharp performed Steady Steady on the Ed Sullivan show. In 1967, she married record producer and Philadelphia International co-founder Kenny Gamble and recorded under the name Dee Dee Sharp-Gamble until their divorce in 1980. Unhappy with record sales, she switched to Atco/Atlantic Records and later founded Gamble Records with Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff. Over time she would also work with TSOP and Philadelphia International. [1]
She had a brief career resurgence during the disco era and hit the charts again with her version of 10 CC's "I'm Not In Love." She also joined Lou Rawls, Billy Paul, Teddy Pendergrass, The O'Jays and Archie Bell as a member of the Philadelphia International All Stars, who had a minor hit with "Let's Clean Up the Ghetto." In 1980 she spent four weeks at number one on the Hot Dance Club Play chart with "Breaking and Entering" / "Easy Money," from her album Dee Dee. [1]
In 1992, Sharp's 1962 hit "Gravy (For My Mashed Potatoes)" was featured in a scene in the American movie comedy Sister Act which starred Whoopi Goldberg. It was also included as part of the film's soundtrack album. More recent appearances included a performance at Pontins in the UK for the Northern Soul Show, and at the 2008 Detroit Jazz Festival. In May 2009, she appeared in Belgium at the Salle De L'Hotel de Ville.[ citation needed ]
In a documentary film, Muhammad Ali: The Whole Story, Sharp claimed that in 1964 she was engaged to Muhammad Ali shortly before he converted to the Muslim faith; [7] when she was told that she herself had to become a Muslim before she married Ali, her mother ended the engagement.
Sharp was married to Kenny Gamble from 1967 to 1980, during which time she was known as Dee Dee Sharp-Gamble.
Sharp and her husband Bill Witherspoon reside in Medford, New Jersey. [8]
On November 9, 2013, the prestigious Sandy Hosey Lifetime Achievement Award was bestowed upon Sharp by the Artists Music Guild. Sharp thought she was in attendance to bestow the honor upon her longtime friend, Chubby Checker when she was surprised with her own honors. The Sandy Hosey Lifetime Achievement Award is presented to five artists every year by the Guild. [9]
Year | Album | Peak chart positions | ||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
US [10] | US R&B [10] | |||||||||||||
1962 | It's Mashed Potato Time | 44 | — | |||||||||||
Songs of Faith | — | — | ||||||||||||
Down to Earth(with Chubby Checker) | 117 | — | ||||||||||||
1963 | Do the Bird | — | — | |||||||||||
Down Memory Lane | — | — | ||||||||||||
Wild | — | — | ||||||||||||
1975 | Happy 'Bout the Whole Thing | — | 48 | |||||||||||
1977 | What Color Is Love (as Dee Dee Sharp Gamble, in association with Kenneth Gamble) | — | — | |||||||||||
1980 | Dee Dee | — | 59 | |||||||||||
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. |
Year | Single (A-side, B-side) Both sides from same album except where indicated | Label and number | Chart positions | Album *Wyncote label compilations of various Cameo-Parkway artists | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
US [10] | US R&B [10] | US Dance [10] | UK [6] [11] | |||||
1962 | "Mashed Potato Time" b/w "Set My Heart at Ease" (Non-album track) | Cameo 212 | 2 | 1 | — | — | It's Mashed Potato Time | |
"Slow Twistin'" (Chubby Checker & Dee Dee Sharp) b/w "La Paloma Twist" (by Chubby Checker, non-album track) | Parkway 835 | 3 | 3 | — | — | |||
"Gravy (For My Mashed Potatoes)" b/w "Baby Cakes" (Non-album track) | Cameo 219 | 9 | 11 | — | — | |||
"Ride!" b/w "The Night" (Non-album track) | Cameo 230 | 5 | 7 | — | — | All the Hits by Dee Dee Sharp Volume II | ||
1963 | "Do the Bird" b/w "Lover Boy" (from Hullabaloo with the Stars*) | Cameo 244 | 10 | 8 | — | 46 | Do the Bird | |
"Rock Me in the Cradle of Love" b/w "You'll Never Be Mine" (from Hullabaloo with the Stars*) | Cameo 260 | 43 | — | — | — | Biggest Hits | ||
"Wild!" b/w "Why Doncha Ask Me?" (from Do the Bird) | Cameo 274 | 33 | 25 | — | — | All the Hits with All the Stars* | ||
1964 | "Where Did I Go Wrong" / | Cameo 296 | 82 | — | — | — | Shindig with the Stars* | |
"Willyam, Willyam" | 97 | — | — | — | Hullabaloo with the Stars Vol. 2* | |||
"Never Pick a Pretty Boy" b/w "He's No Ordinary Guy" (Non-album track) | Cameo 329 | — | — | — | — | Hits a Go-Go with the Stars* | ||
"Deep Dark Secret" b/w "Good" | Cameo 335 | — | — | — | — | Non-album tracks | ||
"To Know Him Is to Love Him" b/w "There Ain't Nothin' I Wouldn't Do for You" | Cameo 347 | — | — | — | — | |||
1965 | "Let's Twine" b/w "(That's What) My Mama Said" | Cameo 357 | — | — | — | — | ||
"I Really Love You" b/w "Standing in the Need of Love" | Cameo 375 | 78 | 37 | — | — | |||
1966 | "(It's Wonderful) The Love I Feel for You" b/w "Willyam, Willyam" | Fairmount 1004 | — | — | — | — | ||
"It's a Funny Situation" b/w "There Ain't Nothin' I Wouldn't Do for You" | Cameo 382 | — | — | — | — | |||
"My Best Friend's Man" b/w "Bye Bye Baby" | Atco 6445 | — | — | — | — | |||
1967 | "What Am I Gonna Do" b/w "(Heart and Soul) Baby I Love You" | Atco 6502 | — | — | — | — | ||
1968 | "We Got a Thing Going On" b/w "What 'Cha Gonna Do About It" Both tracks: Ben E. King & Dee Dee Sharp | Atco 6557 | — | — | — | — | ||
"A Woman Will Do Wrong" b/w "You're Just a Fool in Love" | Atco 6576 | — | — | — | — | |||
"Help Me Find My Groove" b/w "This Love Won't Run Out" | Atco 6587 | — | — | — | — | |||
"What Kind of Lady" b/w "You're Gonna Miss Me (When I'm Gone)" | Gamble 219 | — | — | — | — | |||
1970 | "The Bottle or Me" b/w "You're Gonna Miss Me (When I'm Gone)" | Gamble 4005 | — | — | — | — | ||
1971 | "Conquer the World" b/w "We Got a Thing Going On" Both sides: Dee Dee Sharp Gamble with Bunny Sigler | Philadelphia International 3512 | — | — | — | — | ||
1974 | "Happy 'Bout the Whole Thing" b/w "Touch My Life" | TSOP 4776 | — | — | — | — | Happy 'Bout the Whole Thing | |
1975 | "Share My Love" | Album cut | — | — | 6 | — | ||
1976 | "I'm Not in Love" b/w "Make It Till Tomorrow" | TSOP 4778 | — | 62 | — | — | ||
1977 | "Nobody Could Take Your Place" b/w "Flashback" | Philadelphia International 3625 | — | — | — | — | What Color Is Love | |
"I'd Really Love to See You Tonight" b/w "What Color Is Love" | Philadelphia International 3636 | — | — | — | — | |||
1978 | "Just as Long as I Know You're Mine" b/w "I Believe in Love" | Philadelphia International 3638 | — | — | — | — | ||
"I Wanna Be Your Woman" b/w "Trying to Get the Feeling Again" | Philadelphia International 3644 | — | — | — | — | |||
1981 | "Easy Money" b/w "I Love You Anyway" | Philadelphia International 70058 | — | — | — | — | Dee Dee | |
"Breaking and Entering" | Philadelphia International 02041 | — | — | 1 | — | |||
"I Love You Anyway" | — | 79 | — | — | ||||
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory. |
Chubby Checker is an American singer and dancer. He is widely known for popularizing many dance styles, including the Twist dance style, with his 1960 hit cover of Hank Ballard & The Midnighters' R&B song "The Twist", and the pony dance style with the 1961 cover of the song "Pony Time". His biggest UK hit, "Let's Twist Again", was released one year later ; that year, he also popularized the song "Limbo Rock", originally a previous-year instrumental hit by the Champs to which he added lyrics, and its trademark Limbo dance, as well as other dance styles such as The Fly. In September 2008, "The Twist" topped Billboard's list of the most popular singles to have appeared in the Hot 100 since its debut in 1960, an honor it maintained for an August 2013 update of the list.
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The Mashed Potato is a dance move which was a popular dance craze of 1962. The dance move and mashed potato song were first made famous by James Brown in 1959 and used in his concerts regularly. It was also a dance done to songs such as Dee Dee Sharp's "Mashed Potato Time". The move vaguely resembles that of the twist, by Sharp's fellow Philadelphian Chubby Checker. The dance was first popularized internationally after being named in the lyrics of Motown's first mega-hit in the song "Do You Love Me" written by Berry Gordy Jr. and performed by The Contours in 1962.
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"The Twist" is an American pop song written and originally released in 1958 by Hank Ballard and the Midnighters as a B-side to "Teardrops on Your Letter". It was inspired by the twist dance craze. Ballard's version was a moderate hit, peaking at number 28 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1960. On the US Billboard Hot R&B Sides chart, the original version of "The Twist" first peaked at number sixteen in 1959 and at number six in 1960.
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"Mashed Potato Time" is a 1962 single written by Kal Mann and Bernie Lowe, and performed by Dee Dee Sharp, with backing vocals by The Orlons, on her debut album It's Mashed Potato Time. The song refers to the Mashed Potato dance move, which was a fad. It was one of several songs that at that time that referenced the dance, another being James Brown's "Mashed Potatoes U.S.A." The Marvelettes song "Please Mr. Postman" is mentioned in the lyrics and is copied in the arrangement. Also mentioned in the lyrics are the songs "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" by the Tokens and "Dear Lady Twist" by Gary U.S. Bonds. Sharp recorded a sequel to "Mashed Potato Time" called "Gravy ".
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"Slow Twistin'" is a song written by Jon Sheldon, and recorded by American rock and roll musicians Chubby Checker and Dee Dee Sharp. Released as a single in 1962, it peaked at number 3 on both the Billboard Hot 100 and the R&B singles chart.
"Dear Lady Twist" is a song written and produced by Frank Guida, and performed by Gary U.S. Bonds. It reached #5 on the U.S. R&B chart and #9 on the U.S. pop chart in 1962. It was featured on his 1962 album Twist Up Calypso.
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