JACKIE WILSON
JANICE'S BLUES ALLEY PRESENTS
JACKIE WILSON
 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: Jackie Wilson |
| Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: Jackie Wilson |
b. 9 June 1934, Detroit, Michigan, USA, d. 21 January 1984, New Jersey, USA. When parental pressure thwarted his boxing ambitions, Wilson took to singing in small local clubs. He sang with the Thrillers (a predecessor group to the Royals) and recorded some solo tracks for Dizzy Gillespie 's Dee Gee label as Sonny Wilson, before replacing Clyde McPhatter in Billy Ward And The Dominoes. Wilson joined this notable group in 1953, but embarked on a solo career four years later with Brunswick Records. His first single for that label was the exuberant 'Reet Petite', a comparative failure in the USA where it crept to a lowly pop position and missed the R&B lists altogether. In the UK, however, it soared to number 6, thereby establishing Wilson in the minds of the British pop-purchasing audience. 'Reet Petite' had been written by Berry Gordy and Tyran Carlo (Roquel 'Billy' Davis), who went on to compose several of Wilson's subsequent releases, including the hits 'Lonely Teardrops' (1958), 'That's Why (I Love You So)' (1959) and 'I'll Be Satisfied' (1959).
In 1960, Wilson enjoyed two R&B number 1 hits with 'Doggin' Around' and 'A Woman, A Lover, A Friend'. His musical direction then grew increasingly erratic, veering from mainstream to pseudo-opera. There were still obvious highlights such as 'Baby Workout' (1963), 'Squeeze Her Please Her' (1964), 'No Pity (In The Naked City)' (1965), but all too often his wonderfully fluid voice was wasted on cursory, quickly dated material. The artist's live appearances, however, remained both exciting and dramatic, capable of inspiring the ecstasy his sometimes facile recordings belied. Wilson's career was rejuvenated in 1966. Abandoning his New York recording base, he moved to Chicago, where he worked with producer Carl Davis. He offered a more consistent empathy and 'Whispers (Gettin' Louder)' (1966), '(Your Love Keeps Lifting Me) Higher And Higher' (1967) and the sublime 'I Get The Sweetest Feeling' (1968) stand among his finest recordings. However, it did not last; 'This Love Is Real (I Can Feel Those Vibrations)' (1970) proved to be Wilson's last Top 10 R&B entry, by which time his work was influenced by trends rather than setting them. In September 1975, while touring with the Dick Clark revue, Wilson suffered a near-fatal heart attack onstage at New Jersey's Latin Casino. He struck his head on falling and the resulting brain damage left him comatose. He remained hospitalized until his death on 21 January 1984.
Wilson's career remains a puzzle; he never did join Berry Gordy's Motown empire, despite their early collaboration and friendship. Instead, the singer's legacy was flawed - dazzling in places, disappointing in others. Immortalized in the Van Morrison song 'Jackie Wilson Said', which was also a UK Top 5 hit for Dexys Midnight Runners in 1982, his name has remained in the public's eye. Fate provided a final twist in 1987, when an imaginative video (which some claimed belittled the singer's memory), using plasticine animation, propelled 'Reet Petite' to number 1 in the UK charts. He was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame the same year.
Encyclopedia of Popular Music Copyright Muze UK Ltd. 1989 - 1998
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01. Right Now 02. I'm Wonderin' 03. We Have Love 04. So Much 05. The Way I Am 06. You Only Live Once 07. Do Lord(w/Linda Hopkins) |
08. Silent One 09. Think Twice(w/LaVern Baker) 10. Since You Showed Me How To Be Happy 11. I Still Love You 12. Didn't I 13. Love Is Funny That Way 14. You Left The Fire Burning |
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01. (Your Love Keeps Lifting Me) Higher and Higher 02. Reet Petite (The Finest Girl You Ever Wanna Meet) 03. Lonely Teardrops 04. Baby Workout 05. No Pity (In the Naked City) |
06. Since You Showed Me How to Be Happy 07. Whispers (Getting Louder) 08. Shake! Shake! Shake! 09. Shake a Hand 10. Danny Boy |
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01. Shake, Shake, Shake 02. Why Can't You Be Mine 03. I'm Wonderin' 04. Lonely Teardrops 05. Yeah! Yeah! Yeah! 06. It's So Fine 07. Come Back to Me 08. Shake a Hand(w/Linda Hopkins) |
09. Reet Petite 10. If I Can't Have You 11. (You Were Made for) All My Love 12. So Much 13. I Know I'll Always Be in Love with You 14. Danny Boy 15. Doggin' Around 16. Do Lord(w/Linda Hopkins) |
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01. Baby Workout 02. Please Tell Me Why 03. Doggin' Around 04. Passin' Through 05. A Woman, A Lover, A Friend 06. You Don't Know What It Means |
07. Am I The Man 08. Whispers(getting louder) 09. Your Love Keeps Lifting Me(higher and higher) 10. No Pity(in the naked city) 11. She's All Right 12. You Got Me Walking |
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01. Reet Petite 02. To Be Loved 03. Lonely Teardrops 04. That's Why I Love You So 05. I'll Be Satisfied 06. Talk That Talk |
07. Night 08. The Tear Of The Year 09. You Better Know It 10. I Just Can't Help It 11. I'm Coming on Back To You 12. Danny Boy |
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01. Introduction 02. That's Why 03. To Be Loved 04. Higher And Higher 05. Doggin' Around |
06. Lonely Teardrops 07. If I Had A Hammer 08. Stand By Me 09. Chain Gang 10. My Way |
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01. I Get the Sweetest Feeling 02. Whisper 03. Higher and Higher 04. Who Who Song 05. Nothing But Blue Skies |
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01. (Your Love Keeps Lifting Me) Higher and Higher 02. You Can Count on Me 03. When Will Our Day Come 04. Those Heartaces 05. Soulville 06. Somebody up There Like You |
07. Open the Door to Your Heart 08. I've Lost You 09. I'm the One to Do It 10. I Need Your Loving 11. I Don't Need You Around |
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01. Tonight 02. Body and Soul 03. I Apologize 04. Love for Sale 05. And This Is My Beloved 06. Way I Am 07. I Love Them All/That's What I Say 08. Night |
09. I Love Them All/Danny Boy 10. That's Why (I Love You So) 11. Doggin' Around 12. To Be Loved 13. I Love Them All 14. Lonely Teardrops 15. St. James Infirmary 16. Perfect Day |
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01. Toot, Toot Tootsie Goodbye 02. Sonny Boy 03. California, Here I Come 04. Keep Smiling At Trouble (Trouble's A Bubble) 05. You Made Me Love You (I Didn't Want To Do It) 06. My Yiddishe Momme 07. Swanee 08. April Showers 09. Anniversary Song 10. Rock-A-Bye Your Baby With A Dixie Melody 11. For Me And My Girl 12. In Our House |
13. Silent Night 14. White Christmas 15. O Holy Night 16. The First Noel 17. Deck The Hall 18. Silver Bells 19. Joy To The World 20. It Came Upon The Midnight Clear 21. Adeste Fideles 22. I'll Be Home For Christmas 23. O Little Town Of Bethlehem 24. God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen |
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01. Lonely Teardrops 02. Each Time (I Love You More) 03. That' s Why ( I Love You So) 04. In The Blue Of The Evening 05. The Joke (Is Not On Me) 06. Someone To Need Me (As I Need You) |
07. You Better Know It 08. By The Light Of The Silvery Moon 09. Singing A Song 10. Love Is All 11. We Have Love 12. Hush-A-Bye |
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01. Etcetera 02. To Be Loved 03. Come Back To Me 04. If I Can't Have You 05. As Long As I Live 06. Reet Petite |
07. It's Too Bad We Had To Say Goodbye 08. Why Can't You Be Mine 09. I'm Wanderin' 10. Right Now! 11. Danny Boy 12. It's So Fine |
