Rockie Robbins | |
|---|---|
 Robbins in 1982 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Edward W. Robbins Jr. |
| Born | Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S. |
| Genres | Soul |
| Occupation | Singer |
| Years active | 1979–present |
| Labels | |
Edward W. Robbins Jr., known as Rockie Robbins, is an American soul singer from Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Robbins was born Edward W. Robbins Jr. He signed for A&M Records in 1979 and cut his first album, which was arranged and produced by veteran Chicago producers, Richard Evans and Johnny Pate. The master tapes for this record were erased in transit to the record company and the album had to be re-recorded. [1] Robbins' self-titled debut did not sell particularly well, but the label retained him for a second album, which was produced by former Philadelphia top arranger and producer, Bobby Martin, in Los Angeles. This resulted in the singer's biggest hit, "You and Me", which reached the Billboard Hot 100 and the R&B Top 10, staying on that chart for over five months.
A third album, produced by Skip Scarborough and Jerry Peters, saw Robbins score two R&B hits including "I Believe in Love" (#30), in 1981. A fourth A&M album was recorded in 1983 but remains unreleased. After a break, Robbins signed to MCA Records who, in 1984, included his song "Emergency" in the Grammy Award-winning soundtrack to the Hollywood blockbuster Beverly Hills Cop . They also released Robbins' second self-titled album in 1985, but without success. Robbins later released three singles, "Serious" (Respect Records/Profile Records; 1989), "Are You Ready" (Debut; 1991) and "Be My Lady" (High On Rhythm; 1992).
In 2018 Robbins signed with Expansion Records to work with long-serving producer Ricky Peterson. The single "Good Life/Let’s Groove", remixed in the UK by Boogie Back Productions, entered the UK Soul Chart at No. 1 in February 2019. Good Life, the album, was released in March 2019 to coincide with his live show in London at the Jazz Café on 10 March.
Ray Erskine Parker Jr. is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. As a solo performer, he wrote and performed the theme song for the 1984 film Ghostbusters and also sounds from the animated series The Real Ghostbusters. Previously, Parker achieved a US top-5 hit in 1982 with "The Other Woman". He also performed with his band, Raydio, and with Barry White in the Love Unlimited Orchestra.
Maurice White was an American musician, best known as the founder, leader, main songwriter and chief producer of the band Earth, Wind & Fire, also serving as the band's co-lead singer with Philip Bailey.
The Crusaders were an American jazz/jazz fusion group performing from the 1960s to the 2010s. The group was known as the Jazz Crusaders from their formation in 1960 until shortening their name in 1971. The Crusaders played a wide assortment of genres, including straight ahead jazz, urban R&B, R&B-based jazz, and the blues. The band reached a commercial apex in 1979 with their hit single "Street Life", featuring lead vocals by Randy Crawford, and their accompanying album of the same name.
Van Allen Clinton McCoy was an American record producer, arranger, songwriter and singer. He is known for his 1975 internationally successful hit "The Hustle". He has approximately 700 song copyrights to his credit, and produced songs by such recording artists as Brenda & the Tabulations, David Ruffin, The Stylistics, The Presidents, Faith, Hope & Charity, New Censation, Gladys Knight & the Pips, Aretha Franklin, Peaches & Herb, Lesley Gore, and Stacy Lattisaw.
Lee Mack Ritenour is an American jazz guitarist who has been active since the late 1960s.
Stacy Lattisaw Jackson is an American R&B singer from Washington, D.C., United States.
Claudja Barry is a Jamaican-born Canadian singer. Her successful songs were "Down and Counting", "Boogie Woogie Dancin' Shoes", "Dancing Fever", and others. As an actress, she is known for appearing in the European versions of stage musicals AC/DC and Catch My Soul.
"I Belong to You" is a 1991 song recorded by American singer Whitney Houston for her third studio album, I'm Your Baby Tonight (1990). It was written by Derek Bramble and Franne Golde, produced by Narada Michael Walden, and was released on October 18, 1991, as the album's fifth single by Arista Records. "I Belong to You" was a Top 10 hit on the US Billboard R&B chart, and also charted in the UK and the Netherlands. The song garnered Houston a nomination for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance at the 35th Grammy Awards (1993).
Malaco Records is an American independent record label based in Jackson, Mississippi, United States, that has been the home of various major blues and gospel acts, such as Johnnie Taylor, Bobby Bland, Mel Waiters, Z. Z. Hill, Denise LaSalle, Latimore, Dorothy Moore, Little Milton, Shirley Brown, Tyrone Davis, Marvin Sease, and the Mississippi Mass Choir. It has received an historic marker issued by the Mississippi Blues Commission to commemorate its important place on the Mississippi Blues Trail.
The Heat Is On is the thirteenth studio album by American soul and funk group The Isley Brothers, released June 7, 1975, on T-Neck Records and Epic Records. Written and produced entirely by the group, the album was recorded in 1975 at Kendum Recorders in Burbank, California. The Heat Is On features musical elements of rock, and is divided between uptempo funk songs and soul ballads.
Paul Nelson Humphrey was an American jazz and R&B drummer.
Car Wash: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is a soundtrack double album released by the funk band Rose Royce on the MCA label in September 1976. It was produced by Norman Whitfield. It is the soundtrack/film score to the 1976 hit comedy Car Wash that featured Richard Pryor and George Carlin and is also the debut album for Rose Royce.
Masterjam is the platinum-selling eighth studio album by funk band Rufus. Released in 1979, it was their debut on the MCA Records label following their purchase and dissolution of ABC Records.
James Edward Gadson is an American drummer and session musician. Beginning his career in the late 1960s, Gadson has since become one of the most-recorded drummers in the history of R&B. He is also a singer and songwriter.
Love Man is the third posthumous album by American soul recording artist Otis Redding. It was released in June 20, 1969 and featured songs Redding had recorded in 1967. The album was produced by Steve Cropper, and featured Booker T. and the M.G.'s.
Believe in Me is the fifth studio album by American singer Regina Belle. It was released by MCA Records on June 9, 1998, in the United States. Belle's first and only release with MCA, she worked with producer and songwriter Erik "E-Smooth" Hicks on the majority of the album. Believe in Me received generally positive reviews but became her lowest-charting album yet, peaking at number 42 on the US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. It earned a Grammy Award nomination for Best Traditional R&B Vocal Album in 1999, and produced the singles, "I've Had Enough" and "Don't Let Go."
Ollie E. Brown is an American drummer, percussionist, record producer, and high school basketball coach. A prolific session musician, Brown has performed on over a hundred albums in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. Brown was also half of the American dance-pop duo Ollie & Jerry, which had a Top 10 hit with "Breakin'... There's No Stopping Us" in 1984.
Imagination is the tenth studio album by American R&B/soul vocal group the Whispers, released on November 30, 1980, by SOLAR Records.
Melba is the eighth album by singer Melba Moore, released in 1978.
One Way is an American R&B and funk band that was popular in the late 1970s, and throughout most of the 1980s, led by singer Al Hudson. The group's most successful record was "Cutie Pie", which reached number 4 on the Billboard Soul Singles chart and number 61 on the pop chart in 1982.
| Authority control databases: Artists |
|---|
