His highest-charting pop song ever came in 1994, a #2 duet with Mariah Carey on a cover of “ Endless Love.” Over the next three years, he notched three more Top Ten hits with “Power of Love/Love Power,” “Don’t Want to Be a Fool,” and “The Best Things in Life Are Free” (a multi-artist collaboration with Ralph Tresvant, Bell Biv DeVoe, and Janet Jackson). He wrote and produced for Aretha Franklin, Diana Ross, and Dionne Warwick, and sang back-up vocals on songs like Stevie Wonder’s huge hit, “Part-Time Lover.” His presence on the pop charts had been consistent, but took an uptick at the end of the decade when 1989’s “Here and Now” went to #6. Throughout the rest of the ’80s, Vandross continued a solid run of successes both as a solo artist and a collaborator. “Here and Now” (Uploaded to YouTube by Luther Vandross) On its updated 2020 list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All-Time, Rolling Stone magazine included Never at #362. Never Too Much would sell two million copies, making it the first in a run of 11 straight platinum (certified sells of one million) albums. Never also included a seven-minute version of the Dionne Warwick classic, “ A House Is Not a Home,” and it quickly became one of Vandross’s most popular tunes. The album yielded Vandross’s first two Grammy nominations: Best New Artist and Best R&B Vocal Performance, Male. The title track was a sizeable hit, making #33 on the Hot 100, #4 on the Dance Club charts, and #1 on R&B. Never went to #19 on the Billboard 200 Album Chart, and #1 on the R&B Album Charts. Vandross’s first solo album, Never Too Much, hit in July of 1981. Never Too Much (Uploaded to YouTube by Luther Vandross)
After working on more records for the likes of Quincy Jones and briefly joining the group Change, Vandross struck out on his own with a solo contract at Epic Records.
Even with all of this recording and touring productivity, Vandross still found time to write and sing commercial jingles, lending his voice everything from Burger King to the NBC network one of his regular songs, “A Brand New Day” was used by Kodak and Valtrex. As a member of the group Luther, Vandross had a chance to produce two albums for the act. King, Diana Ross, Chaka Khan, Ringo Starr, Barbra Streisand, Cat Stevens, and more. He sang for an incredible range of acts, including Roberta Flack and David Bowie (for whom he wrote or co-wrote songs), Bette Midler, Carly Simon, Ben E. Between 19, the group also appeared in several episodes, including the pilot, of Sesame Street.ĭuring the ’70s, Vandross established himself as an in-demand back-up singer and occasional writer. As part of theatrical group Listen My Brother, Vandross performed in the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival (a documentary about which, Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised), debuted on Hulu this month). He would go on to frequent the theater’s popular amateur night. As a youngster, his sisters would take him to the Apollo Theater for shows one his sisters, Patricia, was an early member of The Crests, later known for hits like “Step by Step” and “16 Candles.” By 1969, Vandross had finished high school but decided to drop out of college to chase his musical dreams.Īs a teen, Vandross sang in a group that got to play at the Apollo.
His father was a singer, but the family lost him to complications from diabetes when Vandross was eight years old. Forty years ago, Vandross released his debut album, Never Too Much, the first sign of greatness from an artist that would be gone too soon.īorn in New York City in 1951, Vandross was a self-taught pianist. From back-up singer to group member to jingle singer to producer to solo artist to hitmaker to Grammy winner, Vandross evolved from a child seeing legends at the Apollo Theater into becoming one in his own right. But his overall journey to superstardom seemingly touched every level of the business.
Luther Vandross became a music fan early in his life, even founding a Patti LaBelle fan club in his high school. An inevitable part of the journey to music stardom is the transition from fan to performer.