Happy Birthday Alexander ONeal (born November 15, 1953 in Natchez, Mississippi). Alexander ONeal had the distinction of being perhaps the best pure singer to come from Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis 80s production stable, and working with them released a number of memorable tracks that clearly bear the heavily synthesized sound of their era but still hold up relatively well today. But while he has continued to perform around the world for three decades now, his commercial success as a singer was almost exclusively tied to his work with Jam and Lewis, and his departure from their production and songwriting machine in the early 90s marked an abrupt pause in a noteworthy and popular recording career. Born in Natchez, Mississippi in 1953, ONeal moved North at age 20 and took odd jobs in Chicago and Philadelphia during the day, while singing in a number of bands at night. He ultimately would up in Minneapolis and became the lead singer of the group Flyte Tyme, which also included future stars Jam, Lewis and Jesse Johnson (of course, Jam and Lewis later named their famed production company Flyte Tyme). The emergence of singer Morris Day combined with personal issues led to ONeals dismissal from the group when it was renamed the Time and was mentored to success by Prince. After briefly forming his own rock group Alexander and releasing an independent solo album in the early 80s, ONeal, with the help of old friends Jam and Lewis, signed with Tabu Records and recorded a legitimate national solo debut that focused largely on his powerful vocals fronting a basketful of rhythmic ballads and midtempos written by the production duo. The marvelous single If You Were Here Tonight became a soul smash and, with the solid follow-up A Broken Heart Can Mend, led the album to the Soul Top 20. Between albums, ONeal scored even bigger with his duet with Cherelle (another Jam/Lewis singer), Saturday Love. ONeal hit his personal peak on his second Tabu album, Hearsay, a monster disc that included his biggest solo hit, the jumpy dance number Fake, as well as the hits Criticize and the duet with Cherelle Never Knew Love Like This. ONeal followed in 1988 with a relatively unsuccessful Christmas album, but shot back to the top of the Soul charts in 1991 with All True Man, which yielded big hits with the title cut and Whats This Thing Called Love. ONeal parted ways with Jam and Lewis for 1993s Love Makes No Sense, and the fallout was swift, as the album failed to hit the top 10 or yield a significant single. He then left Tabu for Motown, but languished for three years with nothing from his recording sessions being released by the label. While ONeals popularity in the US waned, he continued to have a solid following in the UK, where he spent much of the next several years touring. That also led him to sign with EMIs UK division for 1997s Lovers Again (later released in the US on the independent Ichiban label). He then dropped from sight for several years before independently releasing Saga of a Married Man in 2002. Editorial by Chris Rizik. Thank you GARY
Posted on: Fri, 15 Nov 2013 22:06:08 +0000
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