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Larry Blackmon | |
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| Birth name | Laurence Ernest Blackmon |
| Born | May 29, 1956 New York City, New York, United States |
| Genres | R&B, soul, funk, disco |
| Occupation(s) |
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| Instrument(s) | Vocals, bass guitar, drums, percussion |
| Years active | 1971–present |
| Labels | Chocolate City, Atlanta Artists, Mercury, Reprise, Way 2 Funky, Raging Bull, Crash, Private I |
Larry Ernest Blackmon (born May 29, 1956) is an American vocalist and musician, known as the lead singer, founder and frontman of the funk and R&B band Cameo.
Starting the band "East Coast", Blackmon formed the "New York City Players" as a complement to the Ohio Players. Having to rename the group because of a conflict, Blackmon later called the group Cameo. Blackmon lived in Harlem and played drums on several hits for the band Black Ivory. He is the son of Lee Black, a former boxer. Along with his unique vocal style, Blackmon's other personal touches included sporting an elaborate hi-top fade haircut and a codpiece over his pants. His signature "Ow!" was used as the intro for some of the band's songs. The group Cameo appeared at Adventureland Palace, sponsored by Black Pride Inc., on April 26, 1978. Blackmon founded Atlanta-based funk quartet CA$HFLOW, which had a hit with "Mine All Mine" in 1986.
Blackmon appeared as a backing vocalist on Ry Cooder's 1987 album Get Rhythm and Cyndi Lauper's 1989 album A Night to Remember . He also had co-producer credits on Eddie Murphy's 1989 album So Happy . The snare drum sound that Blackmon created for "Word Up!" and "Candy" was duplicated on releases by a wide range of artists. [1]
One of Blackmon's sons is heavily involved in the New York political scene, [2] while another son is currently involved in the hip hop music industry.[ citation needed ]
Parliament-Funkadelic is an American music collective of rotating musicians headed by George Clinton, primarily consisting of the funk bands Parliament and Funkadelic, both active since the 1960s. Their eclectic style has drawn on psychedelia, outlandish fashion, and surreal humor. They released albums such as Maggot Brain (1971), Mothership Connection (1975), and One Nation Under a Groove (1978) to critical praise, and scored charting hits with singles such as "Tear the Roof Off the Sucker" (1975) and "Flash Light" (1978). Overall, the collective achieved thirteen top ten hits in the American R&B music charts between 1967 and 1983, including six number one hits. Their work would have an influential effect on subsequent funk, post-punk, hip-hop, and techno artists of the 1980s and 1990s, while their collective mythology would help pioneer Afrofuturism.
Cameo is an American funk band that formed in 1974. Cameo was initially a 14-member group known as the New York City Players; this name was later changed to Cameo.
Atlanta Rhythm Section is an American Southern rock band formed in 1970 by Rodney Justo (singer), Barry Bailey (guitar), Paul Goddard (bass), Dean Daughtry (keyboards), Robert Nix (drums) and J. R. Cobb (guitar). The band's current lineup consists of Justo, along with guitarists David Anderson and Steve Stone, keyboardist Lee Shealy, bassist Justin Senker and drummer Rodger Stephan.
The Bar-Kays are an American funk band formed in 1964. The band had dozens of charting singles from the 1960s to the 1980s, including "Soul Finger" in 1967, "Son of Shaft" in 1972, and "Boogie Body Land" in 1980.
Word Up! is the 13th studio album by American funk group Cameo, released in 1986. The album reached number 1 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, number 8 on the Billboard Pop Albums chart, and was certified Platinum by the RIAA for sales of over 1 million copies. It took Cameo to their highest level of popularity, and solidified them as one of the most successful bands of the 1980s. The album includes three of their biggest hit singles, "Word Up!", "Candy", and "Back and Forth".
Funk rock is a fusion genre that mixes elements of funk and rock. James Brown and others declared that Little Richard and his mid-1950s road band, the Upsetters, were the first to put the funk in the rock and roll beat, with a biographer stating that their music "spark[ed] the musical transition from fifties rock and roll to sixties funk".
Machismo is the funk group Cameo's 1988 follow up to their album Word Up!. It includes the hits "You Make Me Work" and "Skin I'm In". The album reached No. 10 on the Billboard R&B chart, No. 56 on the Billboard 200 Pop Albums chart, and No. 86 on the UK albums chart. It was certified Gold by the RIAA for sales of over 500,000 copies.
Real Men... Wear Black is a studio album by the funk group Cameo released in 1990 on Atlanta Artists/Mercury Records. The album reached No. 18 on the Billboard Top Soul Albums chart.
Single Life is a 1985 album by the funk group Cameo. The album reached No. 2 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and No. 58 on the Billboard Pop Albums chart. It contained the hit singles "Attack Me With Your Love", which reached No. 3 R&B, and the title track, "Single Life", which reached No. 2 R&B. "Urban Warrior" was the group's foray into the emerging Hip-hop scene. The videos for both singles included appearances from popular television soap opera actors and were tied together by a particular storyline; with the title track’s video being a continuation of the story that started in the "Attack Me With Your Love" video. The album was Cameo’s seventh to be certified Gold by the RIAA for sales of over 500,000 copies.
Cardiac Arrest is the debut album by the funk band Cameo.
Ugly Ego is the third album by the funk band Cameo, released in 1978.
We All Know Who We Are is the second album by the funk band Cameo, released early in 1978.
Secret Omen is the fourth album by the funk band Cameo, released in 1979. It was their first of nine albums, and the first of five consecutive albums to be certified gold in the US for sales of over 500,000 copies.
Cameosis is the fifth album by the funk band Cameo, released in 1980.
Alligator Woman is a 1982 album by the American funk band Cameo, released by Casablanca Records. It is the group's eighth studio album, and the first released after group leader Larry Blackmon reduced the band from 11 members to 5 (himself, Tomi Jenkins, Nathan Leftenant, Charlie Singleton, and Gregory Johnson. Alligator Woman combined Cameo’s traditional funk with elements of rock and new wave, and was the band’s fifth consecutive album to be certified Gold by the RIAA for sales of over 500,000 copies. The cover artwork model is the Canadian singer/model Vanity.
Style is the ninth album by the funk band Cameo, released in 1983. It was their first album to introduce their Atlanta Artists label, with which they maintained their distribution through Polygram Records.
Atlanta Artists was a sub-label of Mercury Records founded by Larry Blackmon of the group Cameo.
Bruce Alan Williamson Jr. was an American R&B and soul singer and a one-time lead singer for The Temptations.
The Cameo Blues Band is a Toronto-based blues band, originally formed in 1978. It is particularly notable for its association with several of Canada's leading blues singers, including Richard "Hock" Walsh, Tony Flaim and Chuck Jackson, all of whom were also associated with the Downchild Blues Band.
Secret Weapon was a New York-based short-lived post-disco music group, formed by Jerome Prister. The group had a number of hits throughout the 1980s with their most successful single being "Must Be the Music" which hit #24 on the R&B chart and #66 on the dance chart in 1982.
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