Jack Leroy "Jackie" Wilson, Jr. (June 9, 1934 – January 21, 1984) was an American soul singer-songwriter and performer.
A tenor with a four octave vocal range, he was nicknamed "Mr. Excitement", and was important in the transition of rhythm and blues into soul.
He was considered a master showman, and one of the most dynamic and influential singers and performers in R&B and rock 'n' roll history.[1][2]
Gaining fame in his early years as a member of the R&B vocal group Billy Ward and His Dominoes, he went solo in 1957 and recorded over 50 hit singles that spanned R&B, pop, soul, doo-wop and easy listening.
This included 16 R&B Top 10 hits, including 6 R&B # 1's.
On the Billboard Hot 100, he scored 14 Top 20 Pop hits, 6 of which made it into the Pop Top 10.
On September 29, 1975 while headlining a Dick Clark Oldies Concert, he collapsed on stage from what was later deemed to be a massive heart attack, and subsequently slipped into a coma slowing awakening over a period of 8 months.
He remained semi-comatose for the 9 years preceding his death in 1984, at the age of 49; he was deemed conscious but incapacitated in early June, 1976.
Wilson was an inspiration to Elvis Presley, Bruce Springsteen, James Brown and Michael Jackson to name a few. He was one of the most influential artists of his generation.
A two-time Grammy Hall of Fame Inductee, Wilson was inducted to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987.[3]
In 2004, Rolling Stone magazine ranked Jackie Wilson #69 on their list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.[4]
| Jackie Wilson | |
|---|---|
Wilson in 1961
|
|
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Jack Leroy Wilson, Jr. |
| Also known as | Mr. Excitement |
| Born | June 9, 1934 Detroit, Michigan, United States |
| Died | January 21, 1984 (aged 49) Mount Holly, New Jersey, United States |
| Genres | R&B, soul, pop, rock and roll |
| Occupation(s) | Singer-songwriter |
| Instruments | Vocals |
| Years active | 1953–1975 |
| Labels | Dee Gee Records, King, Federal, Brunswick |
| Associated acts | |
Early years and career
Jack Leroy Wilson, Jr. was born on June 9, 1934, in Detroit, Michigan,
the only son of Jack Sr. and Eliza Mae Wilson, as she lost two previous
children.
Eliza Mae was born on The Billups-Whitfield Place in Columbus, Mississippi.
Her parents were Tom and Virginia Ransom.
Jackie often visited his
family in Columbus and was greatly influenced by the choir at Billups
Chapel.
Growing up in the rough Detroit area of Highland Park,
Wilson joined a gang called the Shakers and often found himself in
trouble.
Wilson's father was frequently absent, as he was alcoholic and
usually out of work.
Wilson began singing at an early age, accompanying
his mother, once a choir singer, to church. In his early teens Jackie
joined a quartet, the Ever Ready Gospel Singers, which became a popular
feature of churches in the area.
Jackie was not very religious, but
enjoyed singing and used the money he and his group earned performing to
buy cheap wine which he began drinking at the age of nine.[5]
Jack Sr. and Eliza separated shortly after Jackie turned nine.
Wilson dropped out of high school at the age of 15, having already
been sentenced to detention in the Lansing Corrections system for
juveniles twice.
During his second stint in detention, he learned boxing
and started performing in the amateur circuit in the Detroit area at
the age of 16.
His record in the Golden Gloves was 2 and 8. After his
mother forced him to quit, Wilson got married to Freda Hood and became a
father at 17.
It is rumored that he fathered at least 10 other children
prior to getting married and was forced to marry Hood by her father.
He
gave up boxing for music, first working at Lee's Sensation club as a
solo singer,[6] then forming a group called the Falcons (not to be confused with The Falcons Wilson Pickett was part of), that included cousin Levi Stubbs, who later went on to lead the Four Tops (two more of Wilson's cousins, Hubert Johnson and Levi's brother Joe, later became members of The Contours).
The other members joined Hank Ballard as part of The Midnighters.[7]
including Alonzo Tucker & Billy Davis, who would work with Wilson
several years later as a solo artist.
Tucker and Wilson collaborated as
songwriters on a few songs Wilson recorded.
Jackie Wilson was soon discovered by talent agent Johnny Otis, who assigned him to join a group called the Thrillers.
That group would later be known as The Royals (who would later evolve into R&B group, The Midnighters, but Wilson wasn't part of the group when it changed its name and signed with King Records).
LaVern Baker, Little Willie John, Johnnie Ray and Della Reese were acts managed by Al Green (not to be confused with R&B singer Al Green, nor Albert "Al" Green of the now defunct National Records).
Al Green owned two music publishing companies, Pearl Music and Merrimac
Music, and Detroit's Flame Show Bar where Wilson met Baker.
After recording his first version of "Danny Boy" and a few other tracks on Dizzy Gillespie's
record label Dee Gee Records under the name Sonny Wilson (his
nickname), Wilson was eventually hired by Billy Ward in 1953 to join a
group Ward formed in 1950 called The Dominoes, after Wilson's successful audition to replace the immensely popular Clyde McPhatter, who left the Dominoes and formed his own group, The Drifters.[8]
Wilson almost blew his chance that day, showing up calling himself
"Shit" Wilson and bragging about being a better singer than McPhatter.[9]
Billy Ward felt a stage name would fit The Dominoes' image, hence Jackie
Wilson.
Prior to leaving The Dominoes, McPhatter coached Wilson on the
sound Billy Ward wanted for his group, influencing Wilson's singing
style and stage presence.
"I learned a lot from Clyde, that high-pitched
choke he used and other things...Clyde McPhatter was my man. Clyde and
Billy Ward."[6]
Forties blues singer Roy Brown was also a major influence on him, and Wilson grew up listening to The Mills Brothers, The Ink Spots, Louis Jordan and Al Jolson.
Wilson was the group's lead singer for three years, but the Dominoes
lost some of their stride with the departure of McPhatter.
They were
able to make appearances riding on the strength of the group's earlier
hits, until 1956 when the Dominoes recorded Wilson with an unlikely
interpretation of the pop hit "St. Therese of the Roses", giving The
Dominoes another brief moment in the spotlight.
Their only other
post-McPhatter/Wilson successes were "Stardust", released July 15, 1957,
and "Deep Purple", released October 7, 1957.[10]
In 1957 Wilson set out to begin a solo career, leaving the Dominoes and
collaborating with cousin Levi and got work at Detroit's Flame Show
Bar.
Later, Al Green worked out a deal with Decca Records, and Wilson was signed to their subsidiary label, Brunswick.
Solo stardom
Shortly after Wilson signed a solo contract with Brunswick, Al Green suddenly died.
Green's business partner, Nat Tarnopol, took over as Wilson's manager (and later rose to president of Brunswick).
Wilson's first single was released, "Reet Petite" from the album He's So Fine,
which became a modest R&B success (and many years later, an
international smash hit).
The song was written by another former boxer, Berry Gordy, Jr.,[11] who co-wrote it with partner Roquel "Billy" Davis (who also went by the pseudonym Tyran Carlo) and Gordy's sister Gwendolyn.
The trio composed and produced six further singles for Wilson, which
included "To Be Loved", "I'm Wanderin'", "We Have Love", "That's Why (I Love You So)", "I'll Be Satisfied" and his late-1958 signature song, "Lonely Teardrops",
which peaked at No. 7 on the pop charts, No. 1 on the R&B charts in
the U.S., and established him as an R&B superstar known for his
extraordinary, operatic multi-octave vocal range.[12]
"Lonely Teardrops" sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc by the RIAA.[13]
Due to his fervor when performing, with his dynamic dance moves,
singing and impeccable dress, he was soon christened "Mr. Excitement", a
title he would keep for the remainder of his career.
His stagecraft in
his live shows inspired James Brown, Michael Jackson[14] and Elvis Presley,
and a host of other artists that followed.
Presley was so impressed by
Wilson that Elvis made it a point to meet him, and the two instantly
became good friends.
In a photo of the two posing together, Presley's
caption in the autograph reads "You got you a friend for life."
Wilson
was sometimes called "The Black Elvis".[15]
Reportedly, when asked about this Presley said, "I guess that makes me
the white Jackie Wilson."
Wilson also said he was influenced by Presley
too, saying "A lot of people have accused Elvis of stealing the black
man’s music, when in fact, almost every black solo entertainer copied
his stage mannerisms from Elvis."[16]
Wilson's powerful, electrifying live performances rarely failed to bring audiences to a state of frenzy.[17]
His live performances consisted of knee-drops,[18][19] splits, spins, back-flips,[20][21]
one-footed across-the-floor slides, removing his tie and jacket and
throwing them off the stage, a lot of basic boxing steps (advance and
retreat shuffling)[22]
and one of his favorite routines, getting some of the less attractive
girls in the audience to come up and kiss him.
"If I kiss the ugliest
girl in the audience," Wilson often said, "they'll all think they can
have me and keep coming back and buying my records."
Having women come
up to kiss him is one reason Wilson kept bottles of mouthwash in his
dressing room.
Another reason was probably his attempt to hide the
alcohol on his breath.
Wilson was also a regular on TV, making regular appearances on such shows as The Ed Sullivan Show, American Bandstand,
Shindig, and Hullabaloo.
His only movie appearance was in the
forgettable rock and roll film ′′Go Johnny Go′′, where he performed his
1959 hit song ′′You Better Know It′′.
In 1958, Davis and Gordy left Wilson and Brunswick after royalty
disputes escalated between them and Nat Tarnopol.
Davis soon became a
successful staff songwriter and producer for Chess Records,
while Gordy borrowed $800 from his family and used money he earned from
royalties writing for Wilson to start his own recording studio, Hitsville USA, the foundation of Motown Records in his native Detroit.
Meanwhile, convinced that Wilson could venture out of R&B and rock and roll, Tarnopol had the singer record operatic ballads and easy listening material, pairing him with Decca Records' veteran arranger Dick Jacobs.
Wilson scored hits as he entered the 1960s with the No. 15 "Doggin' Around", the No. 1 pop ballad "Night", another million-seller,[23] and "Baby Workout", another Top 10 hit (No. 5), which he composed with Midnighters
member Alonzo Tucker.
His songwriting alliance with Tucker also turned
out other songs, including "No Pity (In The Naked City)" and "I'm So
Lonely."
Top 10 hits continued with "Alone At Last" (No. 8 in 1960) and
"My Empty Arms" (No. 9 in 1961).
Also in 1961, Wilson recorded a tribute album to Al Jolson, Nowstalgia...You Ain't Heard Nothin' Yet,
which included the only album liner notes he ever wrote: "...to the
greatest entertainer of this or any other era...I guess I have just
about every recording he's ever made, and I rarely missed listening to
him on the radio...During the three years I've been making records, I've
had the ambition to do an album of songs, which, to me, represent the
great Jolson heritage...This is simply my humble tribute to the one man I
admire most in this business...to keep the heritage of Jolson alive."[24][25]
The album was a commercial failure.
Following the success of "Baby Workout", Wilson experienced a lull in
his career between 1964 and 1966 as Tarnopol and Brunswick Records
released a succession of unsuccessful albums and singles.
Despite the
lack of sales success, he still made artistic gains as he recorded an
album with Count Basie, as well as a series of duets with rhythm and blues legend Lavern Baker and gospel singer Linda Hopkins.
In 1966, he scored the first of two big comeback singles with established Chicago soul producer Carl Davis with "Whispers (Gettin' Louder)" and "(Your Love Keeps Lifting Me) Higher and Higher", a No. 6 Pop smash in 1967, which became one of his final pop hits.
This was followed by "I Get the Sweetest Feeling",
which, despite its modest initial chart success in the US (Billboard
Pop #34), has since become one of his biggest international chart
successes, becoming a Top 10 hit in the UK twice, in 1972 and in 1987,
and a Top 20 hit in the Dutch Top 40, and has spawned numerous cover versions by other artists such as Edwin Starr, Will Young, Erma Franklin (Aretha's sister) and Liz McClarnon.
A key to his musical rebirth was that Davis insisted that Wilson no
longer record with Brunswick's musicians in New York; instead, he would
record with legendary Detroit musicians normally employed by Motown Records and also Davis' own Chicago-based session players.
The Detroit musicians, known as The Funk Brothers, participated on Wilson's recordings due to their respect for Davis and Wilson.
By 1975, Wilson and The Chi-Lites
were Brunswick's only significant artists left on the aging label's
roster.
Until then, Wilson continued to record singles that found
success on the R&B chart, but found no significant pop chart
success.
His final hit, "You Got Me Walkin' ", written by Eugene Record of the Chi-Lites, was released in 1972 with the Chi-Lites backing him on vocals and instruments.
Personal life
Wilson's personal life was laced with tragedy.
In 1960 in New
Orleans, he was arrested and charged with assaulting a police officer
when fans tried to climb on stage.
He assaulted a policeman who had
shoved one of the fans.
Wilson had a reputation for being
short-tempered.[6]
On February 15, 1961, in Manhattan, Wilson was injured in a shooting.
It is said the story behind this incident is that one of his
girlfriends, Juanita Jones, shot and wounded him in a jealous rage when
he returned to his Manhattan apartment with another woman, fashion model
Harlean Harris, an ex-girlfriend of Sam Cooke's.
Wilson's management supposedly concocted a story to protect Wilson's
reputation; that Jones was an obsessed fan who had threatened to shoot
herself, and that Wilson's intervention resulted in him being shot.[26]
Wilson was shot in the stomach: The bullet would result in the loss of a
kidney, and lodged too close to his spine to be operated on.[5]
However, in early 1975, in an interview with author Arnold Shaw, Wilson
maintained it actually was a zealous fan whom he did not know that shot
him.
"We also had some trouble in 1961. That was when some crazy chick
took a shot at me and nearly put me away for good..."[27]
Nonetheless, the story of the zealous fan was accepted, and no charges
were brought against Jones.
A month and a half later after the shooting
incident, Jackie was discharged from the hospital,
At the time Jackie had declared annual earnings of $263,000, while
the average salary a man earned then was just $5,000 a year.
But he
discovered that, despite being at the peak of success, he was broke.
Around this time the Internal Revenue Service
(IRS) seized Jackie's Detroit family home.
Tarnopol and his accountants
were supposed to take care of such matters.
Fortunately, Jackie made
arrangements with the IRS to make restitution on the unpaid taxes; he
also re-purchased the family home at auction.[5]
As far as money troubles went, this was not even the beginning for
Wilson.
Nat Tarnopol had taken advantage of Wilson's naïveté,
mismanaging his money since becoming his manager.
Tarnopol also had
power-of-attorney over Wilson's finances, giving him complete control
over Wilson's money.
Sadly, Wilson was a rather trusting soul, trusting
people he shouldn't have like Tarnopol and some of Wilson's other
managers.[28]
Tarnopol and 18 other Brunswick executives were indicted on charges
of mail fraud and tax evasion stemming from bribery and payola scandals
in 1975.
Also in the indictment was the charge that Tarnopol owed at
least $1 million in royalties to Wilson.
In 1976 Tarnopol and the others
were found guilty; an appeals court overturned their conviction 18
months later.
Although the conviction was overturned, judges went into
detail, outlining that Tarnopol and Brunswick Records did defraud their
artists of royalties, and that there was sufficient evidence for Wilson
to file a lawsuit.
However, a trial to sue Tarnopol for royalties never
took place, as Wilson lay in a nursing home semi-comatose.
Wilson died
riddled with debt to the IRS and Brunswick Records.[29]
In March 1967, Wilson and friend/drummer Jimmy Smith were arrested in
South Carolina on "morals charges"; the two were entertaining two
24-year-old white women in their motel room.[9]
Freda Hood, Wilson's first wife, with whom he had four children,
divorced him in 1965 after 14 years of marriage, frustrated with his
notorious womanizing.
Although the divorce was amicable, Freda would
regret her decision.[5]
His 16-year-old son, Jackie Jr, was shot and killed on a neighbor's
porch in 1970.
The death of Jackie Jr. devastated Wilson.
He sank into a
period of depression, and for the next couple of years remained mostly a
recluse, drinking and using marijuana and cocaine.
After coming out of this slump he quit his drinking and drug use.
More tragedy hit when two of Wilson's daughters died at a young age.[30]
His daughter Sandra died in 1977 at the age of 24 of an apparent heart
attack.
Jacqueline Wilson was killed in 1988 in a drug related incident
in Highland Park, Michigan.[31]
Wilson's second marriage was to model Harlean Harris in 1967 with whom
he had three children, but they separated soon after.
Wilson later met
and lived with Lynn Guidry, a fan who tried to take the role of Wilson's
caregiver while he was in the nursing home.
He was with Guidry until
his heart attack in 1975.
However, as he and Harris never officially
divorced, Harris took the role of Wilson's caregiver for the singer's
remaining nine years.
Wilson converted to Judaism as an adult.[32]
Patti LaBelle
wrote in her autobiography that Wilson once tried to force himself on
her in her teenage years, as she waited backstage to meet him after one
of his performances.[33]
Wilson is also said to be the father of author and speaker Alexyss K.
Tylor, who claims that her mother was raped and impregnated by the
entertainer.[34]
Death
On September 29, 1975, Wilson was one of the featured acts in Dick Clark's Good Ol' Rock and Roll Revue, hosted by the Latin Casino in Cherry Hill, New Jersey.
He was in the middle of singing "Lonely Teardrops" when he suffered a heart attack,
reportedly during the middle of the line "My heart is crying."
When he
collapsed on stage, audience members initially thought it was part of
the act.
Clark sensed something was wrong, then ordered the musicians to
stop the music.
Cornell Gunter of the Coasters,
who was backstage, noticed Wilson was not breathing.
Gunter was able to
resuscitate him and Wilson was then rushed to a nearby hospital.[9]
Medical personnel worked nearly 30 minutes to stabilize his vitals,
but the lack of oxygen to his brain caused him to slip into a coma.
He
briefly recovered in early 1976, and was even able to take a few wobbly
steps[35] but slipped back into a semi-comatose state.
He was a resident of the Medford Leas Retirement Center in Medford, New Jersey when he was admitted into Memorial Hospital of Burlington County in Mount Holly, New Jersey due to having trouble taking nourishment, according to Wilson's attorney John Mulkerin.[36]
Jackie Wilson died on January 21, 1984, at age 49 from complications of pneumonia.
He initially was buried in an unmarked grave at Westlawn Cemetery near Detroit.[37]
In 1987, a fundraiser collected enough money to purchase a headstone.[9]
Tributes and legacy
On August 17, 2013 in Cleveland, Ohio, Jackie Wilson was inducted into The Official R&B Music Hall of Fame.
In 1985, The Commodores recorded "Nightshift" in memory of Wilson and soul singer Marvin Gaye, who had both died in 1984.
Reaching No. 1 R&B and No. 3 pop in the U.S., and topping the Dutch singles chart, it was the group's biggest hit after the departure of Lionel Richie.
Van Morrison also recorded a tribute song called "Jackie Wilson Said (I'm in Heaven When You Smile)" on his 1972 album Saint Dominic's Preview.
This song was later covered by Dexy's Midnight Runners.
When the track was performed on the British TV show Top of the Pops, a picture of darts player Jocky Wilson was used instead.
This has often been speculated to be a mistake but Dexy's frontman Kevin Rowland stated that it was a deliberate joke by the band.
Michael Jackson honored Jackie Wilson at the 1984 Grammy Awards. Jackson dedicated his Album of the Year Grammy for Thriller
to Wilson, saying, "In the entertainment business, there are leaders
and there are followers.
And I just want to say that I think Jackie
Wilson was a wonderful entertainer...Jackie, where you are I want to say
I love you and thank you so much."[38]
Until Jackson's comments, Wilson's recording legacy had been dormant
for almost a decade.
Tarnopol owned Wilson's recordings due to
Brunswick's separation from MCA,
but the label had closed down, essentially deleting Wilson's
considerable recorded legacy.
When Jackson praised Wilson at the
Grammys, interest in the legendary singer stirred, and Tarnopol released
the first Wilson album (a two-record compilation) in almost nine years
through Epic Records, Jackson's label at the time.
Through Tarnopol's son, Wilson's music has become more available.
- In the VH-1 5-part television special, Say It Loud: A Celebration of Black Music in America, fellow Rock and Roll Hall of Famers Smokey Robinson and Bobby Womack both paid tribute to Wilson. Smokey explained that "Jackie Wilson was the most dynamic singer and performer that I think I've ever seen. Bobby added "He was the real Elvis Presley, as far as I'm concerned...and Elvis took a lot from him too."[39]
- In his autobiography To Be Loved (named for one of the hit tunes he wrote for Wilson) Motown founder Berry Gordy
stated that Wilson was "The greatest singer I've ever heard. The
epitome of natural greatness. Unfortunately for some, he set the
standard I'd be looking for in singers forever".[40]
- Wilson is mentioned in the song "Gone But Not Forgotten" sung by artist TQ,
which is a song dedicated to the memory of famous musicians who have
died. The lyric goes "..and Jackie, will you teach me how to glide
across the stage?"
- Wilson is mentioned in the rap song "Thugz Mansion" by Tupac Shakur. The lyric is:
"Seen a show with Marvin Gaye last night,
It had me shook, sippin' peppermint schnapps
With Jackie Wilson, and Sam Cooke."
- Wilson scored a posthumous hit when "Reet Petite" reached number one in the United Kingdom, Ireland and the Netherlands
in 1986. This success was likely due in part to a new animated video
made for the song, featuring a clay model of Wilson, that became popular
on television. The following year he hit the UK charts again with "I Get the Sweetest Feeling" (No. 3), and "(Your Love Keeps Lifting Me) Higher and Higher" (No. 15).
- Rita Coolidge covered "Higher and Higher" in 1977; her version reached No. 2 on the US pop charts, earning a gold record.
- In 1999, Wilson's original version of "Higher and Higher" and "Lonely Teardrops" were inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame; both are on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
- Wilson was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987; that same year, he was portrayed in the Ritchie Valens biopic La Bamba by Howard Huntsberry.
- Wilson is referenced in the 1986 song "R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A." by John Mellencamp.
- Wilson and "Lonely Teardrops" are referenced in the 1993 song "Jupiter and Teardrop" by Grant Lee Buffalo on their debut album Fuzzy.
- In 1988, his version of "To Be Loved" was featured in the film Coming to America, when Akeem and Lisa were falling in love. Akeem (Eddie Murphy) later came back home singing the song loudly, waking up and infuriating his neighbors.
- In 1989, "Higher and Higher" was featured in the film Ghostbusters II, the soundtrack album of which featured a cover version of the song by Howard Huntsberry.
- In 1992, Wilson was portrayed in the ABC miniseries by Grady Harrell in The Jacksons: An American Dream.
- In 1994, Monkee Peter Tork recorded a bluegrass-rock cover of "Higher and Higher" on his first solo album Stranger Things Have Happened. Tork regularly performs the song in concert.
- In 2007, Wilson's music was featured in a film adaptation of Irvine Welsh's book Ecstasy: Three Tales of Chemical Romance.
- In September 2010, Wilson's song "That's Why (I Love You So)" appeared on Dick Clark's Rock, Roll and Remember.
- On November 18, 2011, the Black Ensemble Theater of Chicago produced a musical about Wilson's life.
- In 2014, artist Hozier
released a song titled "Jackie and Wilson", a play on Wilson's name.
The song includes the lyrics "We'll name our children Jackie and Wilson
and raise them on rhythm and blues."[41]
"Seen a show with Marvin Gaye last night,
It had me shook, sippin' peppermint schnapps
With Jackie Wilson, and Sam Cooke."
Source: Wikipedia.org
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