JANICE'S BLUES ALLEY PRESENTS
FREDA PAYNE
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The multi-talented Freda Payne is best known for her singing career, yet she has also performed in musicals and acted in movies over the years, and briefly was the host of her own TV talk show. Born Freda Charcilia Payne on September 19, 1945, in Detroit, MI, Payne developed an appreciation of music at an early age (due to such sultry jazz singers as Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, and Billie Holiday). Payne's own musical career blossomed soon after, as she began early singing radio commercial jingles, which brought the young vocalist to the attention of several music-biz heavyweights. Berry Gordy, Jr. attempted to sign Payne to his then-burgeoning record company, Motown, while Duke Ellington employed Payne as the featured singer with his renowned orchestra for two nights in Pittsburgh, resulting in Ellington offering the teenager a ten-year contract. But in both cases, Payne's mother turned them down.
During the early to mid-'60s, Payne established herself as a fine jazz vocalist, touring the country with both Quincy Jones and Bill Cosby, and issuing a jazz/big band-based album in 1963, After the Lights Go Down Low and Much More!. In addition to a sophomore effort surfacing three years later, How Do You Say I Don't Love You Anymore, Payne enjoyed further exposure via appearances on such TV shows as Johnny Carson, David Frost, and Merv Griffin. But it wasn't until Payne signed on to the Invictus label in 1969 (headed by longtime friends/former Motown songwriters/producers Eddie Holland, Lamont Dozier, and Brian Holland) and issued the fine album Band of Gold that she scored her breakthrough hit single, the album's title track, which peaked at number three in the U.S. and topped the chart in the U.K. in 1970.
Although Payne never enjoyed another hit as substantial as "Band of Gold," several other successful singles followed in the early '70s: "Deeper and Deeper," "Cherish What's Dear to You," "You Brought the Joy," and the Vietnam protest song "Bring the Boys Home." Further albums followed throughout the '70s, including such titles as Contact, Reaching Out, Payne & Pleasure, Out of Payne Comes Love, Stares & Whispers, Supernatural High, and Hot, which all failed to make an impression on the charts. Payne then switched her attention from music to TV, as she hosted her very own (yet short-lived) talk show in 1981, Today's B lack Woman. The '90s saw Payne return back to music, as such albums as An Evening With Freda Payne and Christmas With Freda and Friends were issued, while Payne also landed roles in such movies as Private Obsession, Sprung, and Ragdoll. Payne continued to balance an acting and music career during the early 21st century, as she appeared in the 2000 Eddie Murphy comedy Nutty Professor II: The Klumps and the made-for-TV movie Fire & Ice, plus issuing an all-new album in 2001, Come See About Me. Around the same time, several hits compilations were issued, including such titles as Band of Gold: The Best of Freda Payne, Unhooked Generation: The Complete Invictus Recordings, and The Best of Freda Payne: Ten Best Series. Impulse re-released After the Lights Go Down Low in 2005, but failed to add any bonus material. -- Greg Prato of All Music Guide.
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1964 After The Lights Go Down Low And Much More!!! | |||
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01. After The Lights Go Down Low 02. Sweet Pumpkin 03. Blue Piano 04. The Things We Love To Do 05. Awaken My Lonely One 06. Sweet September |
07. I Cried For You 08. 'Round Midnight 09. Out Of This World 10. Lonely Woman 11. I Wish I Knew 12. It's Time | ||
1966 How Do You Say I Don't Love You Anymore | |||
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01. How Do You Say I Don't Love You Anymore 02. Yesterday 03. San Juan 04. You Never Should Have Loved Me 05. Let It Be Me 06. On Easy Street |
07. You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling 08. It's Here For You 09. Feeling Good 10. Sad Sad September 11. If You Love Me 12. Too Late | ||
1970 Band Of Gold | |||
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01. Band Of Gold 02. I Left Some Dreams Back There 03. Deeper And Deeper 04. Rock Me In The Cradle 05. Unhooked Generation 06. Love On Borrowed Time |
07. Through The Memory Of My Mind 08. This Girl Is A Woman Now 09. The World Don't Owe You A Thing 10. Now Is The Time To Say Goodbye 11. Happy Heart 12. The Easiest Way To Fall | ||
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1971 Contact | |||
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01. I'm Not Getting Any Better 02. Suddenly It's Yesterday 03. You Brought The Joy 04. Bring The Boys Home 05. You've Got To Love Somebody 06. The Road We Didn't Take 07. Odds And Ends 08. Cherish What Is Dear To You |
09. I Shall Not Be Moved 10. Mama's Gone 11. He's In My Life 12. Just A Woman 13. Come Back 14. You're The Only Bargain I've Got 15. Deeper And Deeper 16. Band Of Gold | ||
1973 Reaching Out | |||
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01. Two Wrongs Don't Make A Right 02. Reaching Out 03. For No Reason 04. Man Of My Dreams 05. Mother Misery's Favorite Child | 06. We've Got To Find A Way Back To Love 07. Mood For Love 08. Rainy Days And Mondays 09. If You Go Away 10. Right Back Where I Started From | ||
1974 Payne & Pleasure | |||
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01. It's Yours To Have 02. Didn't I Tell You 03. I Get Carried Away 04. Run For Your Life 05. Don't Wanna Be Left Out |
06. Shadows On The Wall 07. I Won't Last A Day Without You 08. The Way We Were 09. A Song For You | ||
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1975 Out Of Payne Comes Love | |||
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01. Look What I Found 02. I Hear Rumors 03. You 04. Keep It Coming 05. Seems So Long |
06. You Brought The Woman Out Of Me 07. See Me One Last Time 08. Lost In Love 09. Million Dollar Horse | ||
1978 Stares & Whispers | |||
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01. Master Of Love 02. Love Magnet 03. Stares And Whispers 04. Feed Me Your Love |
05. I Get High On Your Memory 06. Loving You Means So Much To Me 07. Bring Back The Joy | ||
1978 Supernatural High | |||
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01. Happy Days Are Here Again 02. Pullin' Back 03. Tell Me Please 04. Just The Thought Of You |
05. Livin' For The Beat 06. Falling In Love 07. I'll Do Anything For You 08. Storybook Romance | ||
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1995 Freda Payne Sings the (Unauthorized) I Hate Barney Songbook: A Parody | |||
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01. I Hate You 02. Barney Is A Dinosaur 03. Bye Bye Barney 04. Bad Manners 05. Like Barney |
06. Someday You're Gonna Fade Out 07. Crunch, Crunch, Crunch 08. I Hate Barney 09. Stupidee Dupidee Ideas 10. No & Shut Up | ||
1996 An Evening With Freda Payne: Live! | |||
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01. Don't Rain On My Parade 02. I'm A Woman 03. Little Girl Blue 04. One Mint Julep 05. Teach Me Tonight 06. Through The Memory Of My Mind 07. Cherish What Is Dear To You 08. The Road We Didn't Take 09. Band Of Gold 10. Bring The Boys Home |
11. It Don't Mean A Thing 12. Take The 'A' Train 13. In A Sentimental Mood 14. Rough And Ready Man 15. Beads 16. C'Est Si Bon 17. Stormy Weather 18. Oh, Lady Be Good 19. Here's To Life | ||
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1996 Christmas With Freda And Friends | |||
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01. What Is Christmas To You? 02. Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas 03. The Christmas Song 04. Let's Have Christmas Every Day Of The Year 05. Santa Baby 06. The Perfect Time Of Year |
07. Silver Bells 08. O Little Town Of Bethlehem 09. O Holy Night 10. Silent Night 11. What Christmas Means To Me 12. This Christmas | ||
2001 Come See About Me | |||
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01. Let's Make Beautiful Music 02. I'll Never Fall In Love Again 03. First Impression 04. I Live For New York City 05. At This Moment 06. You Turned The Tables On Me |
07. You Complete Me 08. Come See About Me 09. I Couldn't Live Without Your Love 10. Nice To Be With You 11. Just Like That | ||
2007 On The Inside | |||
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01. Welcome To The Human Race 02. The Ideal Man 03. Even If My Heart Could Break 04. On The Inside 05. Love Unconditional 06. Beyond The Bedroom 07. Do You Still Dream About Me |
08. I Don't Want To Talk About It 09. Sexy Is A State Of Mind 10. Dreaming Wide Awake 11. Bring The Boys Home 12. Somebody For Everybody 13. I Don't Want To Talk About It (remix) | ||
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