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Negron, Chuck (8th June 1942-Present)

He is a singer born in Manhattan, New York, and raised in The Bronx.

While he was growing up he performed with several doo-wop groups from his area and when he was fifteen he was a member of The Rondells.  With them he appeared at the Apollo Theatre and made his first recording.  At the same time he was an avid basketball player and following his years at High School he moved south after he was awarded an athletic scholarship in Santa Maria, California, and was later recruited by California State University.

During his years in California he got a recording contract from Columbia and recorded two singles as Chuck & The Sorenson Brothers which were successful locally.  He was then signed up by Columbia as Chuck Negron-Rondell around 1965 and in 1967 he met up with the singers Cory Wells and Danny Hutton.  Together they formed the group Three Dog Night. They became one of the most successful bands of the late 1960s and early 1970s over the next few years and topped the charts with over 20 Top 40 chart hits and several No. 1s. Their numerous chart entries include the hit singles “An Old Fashioned Love Song”, “Black and White”, “Joy to the World “, “Mama Told Me (Not To Come)”, “Shambala” and “The Show Must Go On” and to date they have sold in excess of 90 million records.  The group decided to disband in 1977 after years of recording and touring and by this time he was dealing with an addiction to heroin.  After several years he was involved in the reunion of the group in 1981, leaving around 1985 to tackle his drug problem.  Following many attempts at rehabilitation he finally kicked the habit in 1991 and in 1992 started taking musical studied in voice.

In 1994 he decided to go out on his own as a solo artist and in 1995 recorded his debut album Am I Still in Your Heart, following it with Joy to the World, Long Road Back, Chuck Negron – Live in Concert and several others.

In 1999 he turned his hand to writing and published his autobiography Three Dog Nightmare this was followed up by his Three Dog Nightmare: The Continuing Chuck Negron Story.

In 2005 he released the award winning DVD The Chuck Negron Story: Biography of an Entertainer and in 2006 appeared as a ‘Special Guest of Blood, Sweat & Tears’ after his management company got the rights to use the name of the band.  He has performed many shows as a solo artist annually and assisted the charity Cri-Help for people suffering from addiction.

Three Dog Night recordings
Joy to the World (Hoyt Axton )
Old Gold OG-9795-B (UK 45)

Sources:

  1. http://www.negron.com/
  2. http://www.myspace.com/chucknegronformerlyofthreedognight
  3. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chuck_Negron
  4. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Dog_Night
  5. http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:mucyxdyb8olk~T1
  6. http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:wifwxq8gldhe~T4