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Lou Rawls

LOU RAWLS
 
 
Lou Rawls  (December 1, 1933 – January 6, 2006) was an American recording artist, voice actor, songwriter, and record producer.  He is best known for his singing ability:  Frank Sinatra once said that Rawls had “the classiest singing and silkiest chops in the singing game”.  Rawls released more than 60 albums, sold more than 40 million records, and had numerous charting singles, most notably his song “You’ll Never Find Another Love Like Mine”.  He worked as a television, motion picture, and voice actor.  He was also a three-time Grammy-winner, all for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance.  (More from Wikipedia)
 
 
Some great music came out of the disco era, without a doubt.  One of the great voices in soul music, Lou Rawls had his biggest hit song with the disco-flavored “You’ll Never Find Another Love Like Mine”.  He was hardly the only 1970’s artist to retool their sound to a disco feel:  The Rolling Stones, Rod Stewart, Diana Ross, Blondie, and even Pink Floyd are examples, but no one made it bigger than the Bee Gees in their Saturday Night Fever heyday. 
 
One other thing.  Stratavarious might fill an annoying hole in the roster of the Under-Appreciated Rock Bands:  Nobody so far has been African-American.  I do know that Johnny Usry is black, as is Poison.  Also, most of the people that Usry has worked with over the years are African-American:  Besides the Three Degrees, they include Teddy Pendergrass, Lou Rawls, and the O’Jays; however, that is not true of Air Supply.  I have no photos so far, and the music itself could go either way, so I am still not sure. 
 
(March 2012)
 
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Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff founded Philadelphia International Records in 1971 and (as Allmusic put it) “ruled the mid-’70s R&B world with the same sound”.  Major artists that were signed to the label include the O’Jays, Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes, Lou Rawls, the Three Degrees, and Billy Paul.  Blue Notes lead singer Teddy Pendergrass later signed a solo deal.  

 

(July 2014)