Happy Birthday PATTIE BROOKS!!! An American singer most frequently associated with the disco era. Her first break came in 1968 when she auditioned for the chorus on The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour. In the next decade she became a sought-after backing singer, appearing on the Bobby Darin Show and touring with, among others Helen Reddy. She sang backing on Donna Summers I Remember Yesterday album. In the mid-1970s Brooks came to the attention of disco producer Simon Soussain and her solo recording career was born. Her first of four albums on the Casablanca label was 1977s Love Shook (credited as Pattie Brooks & The Simon Orchestra), the album peaked at #2 on the US Dance Chart. Brooks remained with Soussain and in 1978 recorded her biggest club hit, After Dark. This was selected to be part of the soundtrack to the film Thank God Its Friday and as the soundtrack topped the club play charts (#-1 for six weeks), Brookss contribution was up there with friend and stablemate Donna Summers Last Dance as the most celebrated tracks. After Dark was the mainstay of Brookss second album Our Ms. Brooks. The album also included the hit This Is The House Where Love Died and reached #-22 on the US Dance Charts. In 1979 Brooks moved away from Soussain as her third album Party Girl was produced by Bunny Sigler of Instant Funk and Salsoul fame. The result was a far more varied album that encompassed funk, pop, disco and ballads. While the album contained no major hits it did include Got Tu Go Disco, the title song from the short lived Broadway musical. The 12 single peaked at #-67 on the US Dance Charts. In 1979 Brooks branched out from disco by singing Close Enough For Love, the title song to the Vanessa Redgrave movie Agatha. By 1980 the disco backlash had taken effect in the USA, and Brookss fourth and last Casablanca offering Pattie. was very much a pop-soul affair, produced this time by Michael Smith. No hits were forthcoming and Brooks left Casablanca. She returned in 1982 on the Mirage label with a fifth album In My World, produced by Sandy Linzer. The album reflected the popular styles of the time, and produced a moderate club hit in the dance-rock tinged Doctor Ruth and a minor R&B hit in the ballad Every Time I Turn Around. The album was remastered and released as a compact disc on the Funky Town Grooves label in 2009. This turned out to be Brookss last album, although she remained active in terms of one-off singles. In 1983 she was signed by Backstreet Records, releasing the minor club hit Get It On And Have A Party and featured prominently on the soundtrack to the film Doctor Detroit, including two duets with its star Dan Aykroyd. In 1985 Brooks released Lifeline Dancing on the Easy Street label, which was featured in the Emilio Estevez movie That Was Then... This Is Now. In 1987 she surfaced on West Holly Records with All Talk, and in 1988 on Waterwheel Records with the maxi-single Function At The Junction. Following these one-off releases Brooks returned to backup vocalist sessions, the occasional advertising jingle and club appearances. In 2006 producer Rick Gianatos remixed/remade Brookss greatest hit After Dark and issued a CD single on his Nu & Improved label with up to the minute remixes, the single was well received and spent several weeks on the US club play chart. A pairing with Gianatos again in 2011 produced the track Its All About The Music, also released on the Nu & Improved label. Available on two compact discs, one featuring the U.S remixes and another with the U.K. remixes. There was also download-only remixes entitled The Soul Mixes. Once again Brooks was well received and had moderate chart success. In 2013 Gianatos recorded the brand new dance track I Like The Way You Move with Brooks. The track featured backing vocals by Scherrie Payne (former Supreme) and Joyce Vincent Wilson and Pamela Vincent (of Tony Orlando & Dawn fame). Released as a Bonus-Exclusive on the compilation First Ladies Of Disco-Rick Gianatos Presents The Music. As of February 1, 2014 the accompanying music video of I Like The Way You Move has been filmed. Now in the editing process it features a star studded cast including: Scherrie Payne, Charlo Crossley and Peggi Blu. The expected release date of video and single is March 2014. Her daughter Yvette Marine was a member of the Mary Jane Girls.
Posted on: Mon, 17 Mar 2014 11:49:49 +0000
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