Vandross Jr., Luther Ronzoni
(20th April 1951-1st July 2005)
He was a singer-songwriter
and producer born on the Lower Wast Side of Manhattain in New
York City.He grew up with a musical family and
began to play the piano when he was three years old.His sister sang with the chart
topping group The Crests in the 1960s. Once in high school he joined the
band Listen My Brother and they appeared once in Harlem
at the Apollo Theater.In 1968
he produced the album Soul Christmas
and in 1969 he was a vocalist on the Quincy
Jones Album Best and appeared on
the first every episode of Sesame Street.During his career he has written
music for the Broadway musical Everybody
Rejoice, the movie The Wiz, and
numerous songs and jingles for commercials. As a singer he saw success with his
own recordings and song covers, selling over 25 million albums and winning
eight Grammy Awards.His inspiration
came from singers including Patti LaBelle, Dionne
Warwick, Diana Ross and Aretha Franklin, and
in turn he inspired artists such as Boyz II Men,
Brandy, Beyonce, Alicia Keys and Usher.A sufferer of hypertension and diabetes,
he suffered a stroke in 2003.Although briefly appearing on video at the 2004 Grammy Awards to
accept an award he was never seen in public again.He died in 2005 aged 54 in New Jersey.
J. Geils Band recordings
Flamethrower
(Seth Justman)
Recorded in 1981 this song is the B-side of J. Geils
Band "Centerfold" and appears on the album Freeze Frame.The
song features several back up vocalists including Cissy
Houston, Tawatha Agee and Luther Vandross.It
was featured in the 1995 film Man of
the Year.
