Bobby Womack
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Bobby Womack Robert Dwayne “Bobby” Womack (/ˈwoʊmæk/; March touch his guitar while he was away. One night, eight-year- 4, 1944 – June 27, 2014) was an American singer- old Bobby, who was often playing it, broke a guitar string. songwriter and musician, and producer. Since the early After Friendly replaced the string with a shoelace,[8] he 1960s, when he started his career as the lead singer of his let Bobby play the guitar for him. According to Bobby, family musical group The Valentinos and as Sam Cooke's Friendly was stunned by his son’s talents as well as the tal- backing guitarist, Womack’s career spanned more than ents of his other sons. Soon afterwards, he bought Bobby 50 years, during which he played in the styles of R&B, his own guitar. soul, rock and roll, doo-wop, gospel, and country. Bobby’s career started before he was 10,[6] when he be- Womack wrote and originally recorded the Rolling gan touring with his four brothers, Curtis, Harry, Cecil Stones' first UK No. 1 hit, "It’s All Over Now" and New and Friendly, Jr., on the midwest gospel circuit in the Birth's "I Can Understand It" among other songs. As mid-1950s, initially as The Womack Brothers.[9] The a singer he is most notable for the hits "Lookin' For a gospel group toured along with their parents accompany- Love", "That’s The Way I Feel About Cha", "Woman’s ing them on organ and guitar. In 1954, under the moniker Gotta Have It", "Harry Hippie", "Across 110th Street", Curtis Womack and the Womack Brothers, the group and his 1980s hit "If You Think You're Lonely Now". issued the Pennant single, “Buffalo Bill”.[3] More records followed.[9] Sam Cooke, the lead singer of The Soul Stirrers, first saw 1 Biography the group performing in the mid-1950s. He became their mentor and helped them go on tour. They went on na- [4] 1.1 1944–1966: Early life and career: The tional tours with The Staple Singers. Even though Cur- tis Womack often sang lead, Bobby Womack was allowed Valentinos to sing alongside him showcasing his gruff baritone vocals in contrast to his older brother’s smoother tenor. During Main article: The Valentinos performances, Bobby would sometimes imitate the role of a preacher, which later became his nickname.[7] At just Born in Cleveland’s Fairfax neighborhood, near East 16, Bobby dropped out of high school.[9] 85th Street and Quincy Avenue, to Naomi Womack and At the beginning of the 1960s, Cooke formed SAR [3] Friendly Womack, Bobby was the third of five brothers. Records and signed the quintet to the label in 1961, Friendly Jr. and Curtis were the older brothers, Cecil and where they released a handful of gospel singles.[10] Then, Harry were his younger brothers. They all grew up in the Cooke changed their name to The Valentinos, relocated Cleveland slums, so poor that the family would fish pig them to Los Angeles and convinced them to transition snouts out of the local supermarket’s trash. He had to from gospel music to secular soul- and pop-influenced [4] share a bed with his brothers. His mother told him he sound.[4] Cooke produced and arranged the group’s first [5] could “sing his way out of the ghetto”. Bobby recalls: hit single, "Lookin' for a Love", which was a pop ver- sion of the gospel song, “Couldn't Hear Nobody Pray”, We came up very poor. My kids have had a they had recorded earlier. The song became an R&B much better life than I'd ever thought of livin'[6] hit and helped land the group an opening spot for James Brown's tour. The group’s next hit came in 1964 with the country-tinged "It’s All Over Now", co-composed by And: Bobby. Their version was rising on the charts when The Rolling Stones covered it. The neighborhood was so ghetto that we Womack was also a member of Cooke’s band, touring and didn't bother the rats and they didn't bother recording with him from 1961.[10] The Valentinos’ career us.[4] was left shaky after Sam Cooke was shot and killed in a Los Angeles motel. Devastated by the news, the brothers Raised Baptist, their mother played the organ for the disbanded and SAR Records folded. Womack continued church choir, and their father was a steelworker,[7] part- to work as a session musician. Between 1965 and 1968 time minister, musician who played the guitar and also he toured and recorded with Ray Charles.[10] sang gospel. Their father would advise his sons to not 1 2 1 BIOGRAPHY 1.2 1967–1972: Early solo career during this period with a remake of his first hit single, "Lookin' for a Love". His solo version of the song be- Circa 1965, Womack relocated to Memphis where he came even more successful than the original with The worked at Chips Moman's American Studios. He played Valentinos’, becoming his second number one hit on the guitar on recordings by Joe Tex and the Box Tops. Wom- R&B chart and peaking at number ten on the Billboard ack played guitar on several of Aretha Franklin's albums, Hot 100, becoming his only hit to reach that high on including Lady Soul, but not on the hit song "Chain of the pop chart. The song was featured on the album Fools", as erroneously reported. His work as a songwriter Lookin' for a Love Again and featured the minor charted caught the eye of music executives after Wilson Pickett “You're Welcome, Stop on By”, later covered by Rufus took a liking to some of Womack’s songs and insisted on & Chaka Khan. Womack’s career began stalling after recording them. Among the songs were “I'm a Midnight Womack received the news of his brother Harry’s death. Mover” and "I'm in Love". Womack continued to record albums with United Artists In 1968, he signed with Minit Records and recorded his through 1975 and 1976 but with less success than previ- first solo album, Fly Me to the Moon, where he scored his ous albums. In 1975, Womack collaborated with Rolling first major hit with a cover of The Mamas & The Pa- Stones member Ronnie Wood, on Wood’s second solo al- pas'"California Dreamin'". In 1969, Womack forged a bum, Now Look. partnership with Gábor Szabó and with Szabó, penned Womack languished with his own recordings during the the instrumental "Breezin'", later a hit for George Ben- late 1970s but continued to be a frequent collaborator son. Womack also worked with rock musicians Sly and with other artists, most notably Wilton Felder of The the Family Stone and Janis Joplin, contributing vocals and Crusaders. In 1980, Wilton Felder released on MCA guitar work on The Family Stone’s accomplished album Records, the album Inherit The Wind, featuring Bobby There’s a Riot Goin' On, and penning the ballad “Trust Womack, that became a Jazz-Funk classic (notably in the Me”, for Joplin on her album Pearl. UK – Robbie Vincent at Radio London included the track After two more albums with Minit, Bobby switched as one of his all-time winners in October 1982). In 1981, labels, signing with United Artists where he changed Womack signed with Beverly Glen Records and had his his attire and his musical direction with the album first R&B top 10 single in five years - since the 1976 sin- Communication. The album bolstered his first top 40 hit, gle "Daylight" - with "If You Think You're Lonely Now" "That’s the Way I Feel About Cha", which peaked at num- that peaked at number three on the R&B singles chart. ber two R&B and number twenty-seven on the Billboard His accompanying album The Poet reached number one Hot 100 in the spring of 1972. on the R&B album charts and is now seen as the high point of his long career, bringing him wider acclaim not only in the U.S. but also in Europe. He had two more 1.3 1972–1985: Solo success R&B top 10 singles during the 1980s including the Patti LaBelle duet, "Love Has Finally Come at Last", and "I Following Communication, Womack’s profile was raised Wish He Didn't Trust Me So Much". He had a hit featur- with two more albums, released in 1972. The first was ing on the Wilton Felder single "(No Matter How High I Understanding, noted for the track "I Can Understand It", Get) I'll Still Be Looking Up to You”. later covered by the funk band New Birth and a three- Womack duets with Van Morrison on “Some Peace of sibling lineup of Bobby’s old group, The Valentinos, and Mind”, from Morrison’s 1991 album, “Hymns to the Si- two hit singles, "Woman’s Gotta Have It" and "Harry Hip- lence”, on Morrison’s album “Duets: Re-working the pie". The latter song was written for Womack by Jim Catalogue” released in 2015. Ford in a country version, which Womack re-arranged in an R&B version. “Harry Hippie” later became Womack’s [11] first single to be certified gold. Contrary to popular 1.4 1985–2014: Later career belief, the song was not about Womack’s brother Harry. “Woman’s Gotta Have It” became Womack’s first single Womack’s solo career started to slow down, however, af- to hit number one on the R&B charts.