Ted Taylor (singer)
| Ted Taylor | |
|---|---|
|
Ted Taylor in 1969 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Theodore Austin Taylor |
| Also known as |
Austin Taylor Ivory Lucky |
| Born |
February 16, 1934 Okmulgee, Oklahoma, U.S. |
| Died |
October 2, 1987 (aged 53) Lake Charles, Louisiana, U.S. |
| Genres | Soul, gospel, doo-wop |
| Occupation(s) | Singer |
| Years active | Mid 1950s – 1987 |
| Labels | Modern, RPM, Melatone, Ebb, Duke, Top Rank International, Laurie, Warwick, Gold Eagle, Soncraft, Apt, Okeh, Epic, Atco, Jewel, Ronn, Alarm, Solpugids, SPG |
| Associated acts | The Cadets |
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Theodore Austin "Ted" Taylor (February 16, 1934 – October 2, 1987)[1] was an American R&B and soul singer.
Biography
Born in Okmulgee, Oklahoma, Taylor moved to California in 1952.[1] He became a member of the Mighty Clouds of Joy gospel group, before joining the Santa Monica Soul Seekers as a tenor singer. In 1955, the Soul Seekers approached Maxwell Davis at Modern Records for a recording deal, and he persuaded them to concentrate on secular R&B music. The same group recorded as both The Cadets on Modern and The Jacks on the subsidiary RPM label. Taylor sang lead vocals on The Cadets' "Do You Wanna Rock (Hey Little Girl)" and "I Cry" and also on The Jacks' "Away" and "My Darling." He did not appear on The Cadets' biggest hit, "Stranded In The Jungle" in 1955; for that session, he was replaced by Prentice Moreland.[2]
Taylor left the group, and recorded two singles on Melatone Records in 1957 with the Bob Reed orchestra on which he was credited for contractual reasons as "Ivory Lucky". Over the next seven years, he recorded singles for a succession of labels including Ebb, Duke, Top Rank International, Laurie (where several of his records were credited to Austin Taylor), Warwick, Gold Eagle, Soncraft, and Apt.[3]
He was influenced by such singers as Little Willie John, Clyde McPhatter and Jackie Wilson.[1] At Duke, he made the first recording of the ballad "Be Ever Wonderful" in 1959.[4][5] Although he had several regional hits, and released an album, Ted Taylor Sings, on Warwick in 1963, he did not achieve national commercial success until his 1965 recording on Okeh Records of "Stay Away From My Baby" reached number 14 on the Billboard R&B chart and number 99 on the pop chart, his only national pop chart entry.[6] He also released three albums, Be Ever Wonderful (1963), Blues & Soul (1965) and Ted Taylor's Greatest Hits (1966) on Okeh.[5][7]
After further singles on Okeh, Epic, Atco and Jewel, Taylor signed for the Ronn label in 1967.[3] He remained on the label for seven years, and had several further R&B chart hits including "It's Too Late" (1969), "Something Strange is Going On in My House" (1970), and "How's Your Love Life Baby" (1971). He also issued several albums, including You Can Dig It! and Taylor Made on Ronn.[5] His final chart hit, "Steal Away", was issued on the Alarm label of Shreveport, Louisiana in 1976.[6] He continued to record on his own Solpugids and SPG labels until his death.[3][4]
Taylor died in a car crash in Lake Charles, Louisiana in 1987, aged 53.[1][8]
Discography
Chart singles
| Year | Title | Chart Positions[9] | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Billboard Hot 100 | US R&B Singles | ||
| 1960 | "Push Push" (as Austin Taylor) | 90 | - |
| "Look Out" | 105 | - | |
| 1963 | "I'll Release You" | 134 | - |
| "Be Ever Wonderful" | 123 | - | |
| "You Give Me Nothing To Go On" | 104 | - | |
| 1965 | "(Love Is Like a) Ramblin' Rose" | 132 | - |
| "Stay Away From My Baby" | 99 | 14 | |
| 1966 | "Daddy's Baby" | 129 | - |
| 1969 | "It's Too Late" | 118 | 30 |
| 1970 | "Somethin' Strange Is Goin' On In My House" | - | 26 |
| 1971 | "How's Your Love Life Baby" | - | 44 |
| 1973 | "What a Fool" | - | 93 |
| 1976 | "Steal Away" | - | 64 |
Albums
- Ted Taylor Sings (Warwick #2049) (1961)
- Be Ever So Wonderful (Okeh #12104/14104) (1963)
- Blues and Soul (Okeh #12109/14109) (1965)
- Greatest Hits (Okeh #12113/14113) (1966)
- Shades of Blue (Ronn #LPS-7528) (1969)
- You Can Dig It! (Ronn #LPS-7529) (1970)
- Taylor Made (Ronn #LPS-7531) (1973)
- The Super Taylors (Ronn #LPS-7533) (1973) (with Little Johnny Taylor)
- Ted Taylor (Alarm #1000) (1976)
- Keeping My Head Above Water (MCA #305) (1978)
- Keep Walking On (Charly #CRB-1011) (France) (1980) (compilation album)
- Be Ever So Wonderful (Solpugdits #1001) (1985)
- Taylor Made For You (Solpugdits #1002) (1987)
- Somebody’s Always Trying (Mr. R&B #1005) (Sweden) (1987)
References
- 1 2 3 4 Eagle, Bob; LeBlanc, Eric S. (2013). Blues - A Regional Experience. Santa Barbara: Praeger Publishers. p. 360. ISBN 978-0313344237.
- ↑ Marv Goldberg, "The Jacks/Cadets", Marv Goldberg's R&B Notebooks. Retrieved 21 November 2016
- 1 2 3 Discography, SoulfulKindaMusic.com. Retrieved 21 November 2016
- 1 2 Colin Larkin, "Ted Taylor", The Encyclopedia of Popular Music , Oldies.com. Retrieved 21 November 2016
- 1 2 3 "Ted Taylor", SoulWalking.co.uk. Retrieved 21 November 2016
- 1 2 Whitburn, Joel (1996). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-1995. Record Research. p. 436.
- ↑ Ted Taylor Discography, Discogs.com. Retrieved 21 November 2016
- ↑ Ted Taylor at Allmusic
- ↑ Billboard Singles. Allmusic.com.