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e encyclopediaThis article is about the American record producer and singer-songwriter. For the US Ambassador to Norway, see Barry B. White.Barry White
Barry White at the Grand Gala du Disque Populaire, 1974.Background informationBirth nameBarry Eugene CarterBornSeptember 12, 1944
Barry Eugene Carter; September 12, 1944 – July 4, 2003) was an American composer and singer-songwriter.A three-time Grammy Award–winner known for his distinctive bass-baritone voice and romantic image, White's greatest success came in the 1970s as a solo singer and with the Love Unlimited Orchestra, crafting many enduring soul, funk, and disco songs such as his two biggest hits, "You're the First, the Last, My Everything" and "Can't Get Enough of Your Love, Babe".During the course of his career in the music business, White achieved 106 gold albums worldwide, 41 of which also attained platinum status. [hide]
Barry White was born Barry Eugene Carter in [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galveston,_Texas]Galveston, Texas, and grew up in the high-crime areas of South Central Los Angeles. White was the older of two kids: his brother Darryl was 13 months younger. He grew up listening to his mother's classical music collection, and first took to the piano emulating what he heard on the records. White has often been credited with playing piano at age eleven on Jesse Belvin's 1956 hit single, "Goodnight My Love." However, in a 1995 interview with the Boston Herald's Larry Katz, White denied writing or arranging the song. He believed the story was an exaggeration by journalists. While White and Belvin lived in the same neighborhood, Belvin was twelve years older than White. Barry White also stated that he had no involvement with Bob & Earl's 1963 hit single Harlem Shuffle, a song he is credited with producing. White's voice deepened suddenly when he was fourteen. White recalled: "[As a child] I had a normal squeaky kid voice. Then as a teenager, that completely changed. My mother cried because she knew her baby boy had become a man."Gang life and jail sentence=small[edit]His brother Darryl was murdered in a clash with a rival gang, and White himself was jailed—at the age of 16—for stealing $30,000 worth of Cadillac tires. While in jail, White listened to Elvis Presley singing "It's Now or Never" on the radio, an experience he later credited with changing the course of his life. The 1960s After his release from jail, he left gang life and began a musical career at the beginning of the 1960s in singing groups. He first released "Too Far to Turn Around" in 1960 as part of The Upfronts before working for various small independent labels in Los Angeles. He also recorded several singles under his own name in the early 1960s, backed by vocal groups the Atlantics (for the Rampart and Faro labels) and the Majestics (for the Linda and Jordan labels). ]Bob Keane of Del-Fi Records—the man who discovered Ritchie Valens—hired him as an A&R man in the mid 1960s, and White started working with the label's artists, including Viola Wills and The Bobby Fuller Four, as a songwriter, session musician, and arranger. He discovered singer Felice Taylor and arranged her song "I Feel Love Comin' On" as well as "Harlem Shuffle" for Bob & Earl. Both records became big hits in the UK.[3] He also wrote "Doin' the Banana Split" for TV bubblegum act The Banana Splits in 1968.The 1970s as producer In 1972, he got his big break producing a girl group he had discovered called Love Unlimited. Formed in imitative style of the Motown girl group The Supremes, the group members had gradually honed their talents with White for two years previously until they signed contracts with Uni Records. His friend Paul Politi hooked him up with music industry businessman Larry Nunes, who helped to finance their album. After it was recorded, Nunes took the recording to Russ Regan, who was the head of the Uni label owned by MCA. The album, 1972's From A Girl's Point of View We Give to You... Love Unlimited, became a million album seller and the first of White's string of long-titled albums and singles.White produced, wrote and arranged their classic soul ballad "Walking in the Rain with the One I Love", which climbed to #14 in the Billboard Hot 100 Pop chart and #6 on the Billboard R&B chart in late 1972. This single also reached #12 in the UK chart. White's voice can clearly be heard in this piece as he plays the lover who answers the phone call of the female lead.Soon after, Regan left Uni for 20th Century Records. Without Regan, White's relationship with Uni soured. With his relationship with Uni over and Love Unlimited contract-bound with the label, White was able to switch both his production deal and the group to 20th Century Records. (They recorded several other hits throughout the 1970s, "I Belong to You", which spent over five months on the Billboard R&B chart in 1974 including a week at #1 and "Under the Influence of Love", which hit #3 on the Billboard Pop album charts. White married the lead singer of the group, Glodean James, on July 4, 1974.)The 1970s as solo artist=small[edit]White wanted to work with another act but decided to work with a solo male artist. While working on a few demos for a male singer, he made three song demos of himself singing and playing, but Nunes heard them and insisted that he re-record and release them himself as a solo recording artist. After arguing for days about it, White was finally persuaded to release the songs himself although he was initially reluctant to step out in front of the microphone.He then wrote several other songs and recorded them for what eventually became an entire album of music. He was going to use the name "White Heat," but decided on using his given name instead. White was still hesitating up to the time the label copy was made. It eventually became the first solo White album, 1973's I've Got So Much to Give. It included the title track and his first solo chart hit, "I'm Gonna Love You Just a Little More Baby", which also rose to #1 on the Billboard R&B charts as well as #3 on the Billboard Pop charts in 1973 and stayed in the top 40 for many weeks.Other chart hits by White included "Never, Never Gonna Give Ya Up" (#2 R&B, #7 Pop in 1973), "Can't Get Enough of Your Love, Babe" (# 1 Pop and R&B in 1974), "You're the First, the Last, My Everything" (#1 R&B, #2 Pop in 1974), "What Am I Gonna Do with You" (#1 R&B, #8 Pop in 1975), "Let the Music Play" (#4 R&B in 1976), "It's Ecstasy When You Lay Down Next to Me" (#1 R&B, #4 Pop in 1977) and "Your Sweetness is My Weakness" (#2 R&B in 1978) and others. White also had a strong following in the UK, where he scored five Top 10 hits and a #1 for "You're the First, the Last, My Everything
Barry White at the Grand Gala du Disque Populaire, 1974.Background informationBirth nameBarry Eugene CarterBornSeptember 12, 1944Barry Eugene Carter; September 12, 1944 – July 4, 2003) was an American composer and singer-songwriter.A three-time Grammy Award–winner known for his distinctive bass-baritone voice and romantic image, White's greatest success came in the 1970s as a solo singer and with the Love Unlimited Orchestra, crafting many enduring soul, funk, and disco songs such as his two biggest hits, "You're the First, the Last, My Everything" and "Can't Get Enough of Your Love, Babe".During the course of his career in the music business, White achieved 106 gold albums worldwide, 41 of which also attained platinum status. [hide]
Barry White was born Barry Eugene Carter in [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galveston,_Texas]Galveston, Texas, and grew up in the high-crime areas of South Central Los Angeles. White was the older of two kids: his brother Darryl was 13 months younger. He grew up listening to his mother's classical music collection, and first took to the piano emulating what he heard on the records. White has often been credited with playing piano at age eleven on Jesse Belvin's 1956 hit single, "Goodnight My Love." However, in a 1995 interview with the Boston Herald's Larry Katz, White denied writing or arranging the song. He believed the story was an exaggeration by journalists. While White and Belvin lived in the same neighborhood, Belvin was twelve years older than White. Barry White also stated that he had no involvement with Bob & Earl's 1963 hit single Harlem Shuffle, a song he is credited with producing. White's voice deepened suddenly when he was fourteen. White recalled: "[As a child] I had a normal squeaky kid voice. Then as a teenager, that completely changed. My mother cried because she knew her baby boy had become a man."Gang life and jail sentence=small[edit]His brother Darryl was murdered in a clash with a rival gang, and White himself was jailed—at the age of 16—for stealing $30,000 worth of Cadillac tires. While in jail, White listened to Elvis Presley singing "It's Now or Never" on the radio, an experience he later credited with changing the course of his life. The 1960s After his release from jail, he left gang life and began a musical career at the beginning of the 1960s in singing groups. He first released "Too Far to Turn Around" in 1960 as part of The Upfronts before working for various small independent labels in Los Angeles. He also recorded several singles under his own name in the early 1960s, backed by vocal groups the Atlantics (for the Rampart and Faro labels) and the Majestics (for the Linda and Jordan labels). ]Bob Keane of Del-Fi Records—the man who discovered Ritchie Valens—hired him as an A&R man in the mid 1960s, and White started working with the label's artists, including Viola Wills and The Bobby Fuller Four, as a songwriter, session musician, and arranger. He discovered singer Felice Taylor and arranged her song "I Feel Love Comin' On" as well as "Harlem Shuffle" for Bob & Earl. Both records became big hits in the UK.[3] He also wrote "Doin' the Banana Split" for TV bubblegum act The Banana Splits in 1968.The 1970s as producer In 1972, he got his big break producing a girl group he had discovered called Love Unlimited. Formed in imitative style of the Motown girl group The Supremes, the group members had gradually honed their talents with White for two years previously until they signed contracts with Uni Records. His friend Paul Politi hooked him up with music industry businessman Larry Nunes, who helped to finance their album. After it was recorded, Nunes took the recording to Russ Regan, who was the head of the Uni label owned by MCA. The album, 1972's From A Girl's Point of View We Give to You... Love Unlimited, became a million album seller and the first of White's string of long-titled albums and singles.White produced, wrote and arranged their classic soul ballad "Walking in the Rain with the One I Love", which climbed to #14 in the Billboard Hot 100 Pop chart and #6 on the Billboard R&B chart in late 1972. This single also reached #12 in the UK chart. White's voice can clearly be heard in this piece as he plays the lover who answers the phone call of the female lead.Soon after, Regan left Uni for 20th Century Records. Without Regan, White's relationship with Uni soured. With his relationship with Uni over and Love Unlimited contract-bound with the label, White was able to switch both his production deal and the group to 20th Century Records. (They recorded several other hits throughout the 1970s, "I Belong to You", which spent over five months on the Billboard R&B chart in 1974 including a week at #1 and "Under the Influence of Love", which hit #3 on the Billboard Pop album charts. White married the lead singer of the group, Glodean James, on July 4, 1974.)The 1970s as solo artist=small[edit]White wanted to work with another act but decided to work with a solo male artist. While working on a few demos for a male singer, he made three song demos of himself singing and playing, but Nunes heard them and insisted that he re-record and release them himself as a solo recording artist. After arguing for days about it, White was finally persuaded to release the songs himself although he was initially reluctant to step out in front of the microphone.He then wrote several other songs and recorded them for what eventually became an entire album of music. He was going to use the name "White Heat," but decided on using his given name instead. White was still hesitating up to the time the label copy was made. It eventually became the first solo White album, 1973's I've Got So Much to Give. It included the title track and his first solo chart hit, "I'm Gonna Love You Just a Little More Baby", which also rose to #1 on the Billboard R&B charts as well as #3 on the Billboard Pop charts in 1973 and stayed in the top 40 for many weeks.Other chart hits by White included "Never, Never Gonna Give Ya Up" (#2 R&B, #7 Pop in 1973), "Can't Get Enough of Your Love, Babe" (# 1 Pop and R&B in 1974), "You're the First, the Last, My Everything" (#1 R&B, #2 Pop in 1974), "What Am I Gonna Do with You" (#1 R&B, #8 Pop in 1975), "Let the Music Play" (#4 R&B in 1976), "It's Ecstasy When You Lay Down Next to Me" (#1 R&B, #4 Pop in 1977) and "Your Sweetness is My Weakness" (#2 R&B in 1978) and others. White also had a strong following in the UK, where he scored five Top 10 hits and a #1 for "You're the First, the Last, My Everything