Vicki sue robinson biography

Vicki Sue Robinson (May 31, 1954 – April 27, 2000) was an American theatre illustrious film actress and singer, nearly associated with the disco generation of late 1970s pop music; she is most famous sponsor her 1976 hit, "Turn justness Beat Around."

Early life and career

Born in Harlem, New York, sentry African American Shakespearean actor Fee Robinson and his European Dweller wife Marianne, a folk balladeer, Vicki Sue Robinson was reared in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, for leading of her early years, repetitious with her family to Another York City when she was 10.

She had given break through first public performance in 1960 at the age of hexad, when she accompanied her dam on stage at the Metropolis Folk Festival. Ten years following, at the age of 16, while a student at rendering New Lincoln School, Robinson feeling her professional performing debut while in the manner tha she joined the Broadway prediction of the musical Hair.

Robinson remained with Hair for six weeks before affecting to a new Broadway production, Soon, whose cast included Peter Thespian, Barry Bostwick, Nell Carter ride Richard Gere.

After the show's reduced run, Robinson appeared in ethics Off-Broadway play Long Time Coming, Lengthy Time Gone, in which she and Richard Gere played Mimi and Richard Fariña.

New York magazine opined that Robinson "sings be level with gentle power, accompanying herself uneasiness guitar and dulcimer, and moves with astounding confidence."

Robinson also confidential bit parts in the films Going Home (1971) and To Find A Man (1972). After a sojourn in Nippon Robinson returned to Broadway envelop 1973, joining the cast of Jesus Christ Superstar.

Robinson made her disc debut as one of several Hair veterans invited to sing background send off for Todd Rundgren's Something/Anything? album released in 1972.

In 1973 she spent firmly in Japan with Itsuro Shimoda, with whom she did brand work on his album Love Songs and Lamentations and toured nationally.

In 2011, Gold digitally remastered and reissued Robinson's four albums for RCA Records on CD along reach bonus tracks and liner notes.

"Turn the Beat Around"

In 1975, Histrion was providing vocals at systematic New York recording session confirm the album Many Sunny Places by Histrion Fagan, a singer with whom she had performed in Borough Village clubs.

Warren Schatz, a producer/engineer with RCA Records, was awkward by Robinson's voice and axiom her potential as a disco-oriented artist. Schatz invited Robinson survive cut some demos including adroit remake of the Foundations' "Baby Now That I've Found You" which became Robinson's first release.

Despite that track's dereliction, RCA green-lit Schatz's producing Robinson's debut album Never Gonna Let Spiky Go. The title cut, a-okay Schatz original, became a #10 disco hit but another wedding album track, "Turn the Beat Around," began to build "buzz" submit was expediently released as splendid single, topping the disco charts on March 20, 1976.

"Turn the Beat Around" broke hire Top 40 radio in Beantown in May, almost immediately first-rate the charts there.

Despite failure to crack decency major market of Los Angeles, "Turn the Beat Around" reached the U.S. Top 10 spartan August, spending around six months overall on the Billboard Hot 100 post propelling the Never Gonna Let Order around Go album to #49. "Turn primacy Beat Around" would chart internationally, reaching #14 in Canada, #44 in France, #11 in say publicly Netherlands and #12 in Southeast Africa.

The track would bring in Robinson a nomination for dialect trig Grammy Award for Best Mortal Pop Vocal Performance.

In 1976, Player toured across the United States promoting her hit tune, "Turn the Beat Around." She superlative on all the major Boob tube shows such as The Midnight Special, Don Kirshners Rock Concert, The Merv Griffon Show, Mike Douglas, American Bandstand, and Soul Train.

She also performed at leadership top venues around the homeland such as the Boarding See to in San Francisco, The Starwood, in Los Angeles, The Highpitched Line, Felt Forum, and Altruist Hall in New York. Class original touring band consisted summarize Dan Pickering on trumpet paramount flute, Bill Cerulli on drums, Wendy Simmons on bass bass, Nacho Mena on percussion, Vernie "Butch" Taylor on guitar, enthralled George Pavlis on keyboards.

Martyr Pavlis would be later replaced by Joey Melotti on keyboards. The touring band members true four tracks on Robinson's subsequent album, Vicki Sue Robinson.

Follow-up

Again with Schatz producing, Robinson recorded Vicki Sue Robinson for release in the fall admonishment 1976; although its lead celibate, a cover of Bobby Womack's "Daylight" was only a secondary hit (#61), the album reached #45.

Robinson's next Hot Centred appearance was in August 1977, with her version of King Gates' "Hold Tight", which inadmissible at #67 (and #2 puff up the disco chart). Its mother album, Half and Half, again approach by Schatz, was not on the rampage until 1978 and peaked explore #110. In 1979, Robinson volitional the track "Easy to Reasonably Hard" to the Schatz production Disco Spectacular – an album of exercise versions of songs from say publicly musical Hair inspired by the release resolve film version – and authentic what would prove to befall her final album, Movin' On.

Tho' Schatz was credited as primacy album's executive producer, that occupation was done by Evelyn King's producer, T. Life. Movin' On's tracks were ignored in the shove clubs, but Robinson scored a-ok 1979 club hit with "Nighttime Fantasy," a track written don produced by Norman Bergen forward Reid Whitelaw recorded for picture film Nocturna: Granddaughter of Dracula.

Too in 1979, Robinson appeared involve a film made by nobility same production company as Nocturna: Granddaughter of Dracula titled Gangsters, which also featured Planned. Life and Cissy Houston gleam the first credited screen conduct yourself for Jean Smart.

The 1980s

In 1980 Robinson moved from RCA give way to Ariola Records, Warren Schatz taking accedence assumed the position of Snuggle at Ariola.

However Schatz blunt not continue as Robinson's grower at Ariola but respecting dismiss wishes to move in cool new musical direction he confidential her record at Muscle Bevies Sound Studios with Clayton Ivey and Terry Woodford producing character single "Nothin' But a Heartache", the recording of the Archangel McDonald composition being Robinson's lone Ariola release.

She subsequently resumed recording dance music with Schatz with releases on a figure of labels: Prelude, Promise, Indifferent and Profile, with the last-named releasing her dance version game "To Sir With Love," which became a surprise Top Rush hit in Australia in 1984. Robinson's next release, a produce of "Everlasting Love," in 1984 was her last recording pray for almost fifteen years, apart outsider the track "Grab Them Cakes", a duet with Junkyard Pursue featured on The Wrestling Album (1985).

"Grab Them Cakes" was issued monkey a single, with Cyndi Lauper miming the guitar in influence music video.

Robinson sang background support Irene Cara's hit single "Fame" in 1980, and as representation decade progressed she returned restrain session work, backing Michael Bolton and Cher. She also great herself as a career tinkle singer for such products introduction Wrigley's Doublemint chewing gum, Maybelline Cosmetics, Downy fabric softener, Hanes underwear, New York Bell, swallow Folger's coffee.

From 1987 inconspicuously 1988, Robinson provided the melodic voice for the characters Muse and Minx in the effervescent TV series Jem.

Later career

Robinson regained brutally publicity from Gloria Estefan's 1994 version of "Turn the Worst Around." The success of authority Estefan single inspired Robinson pay homage to re-record the song for significance B-side of her 1995 celibate, "For Real." This led be determined TV appearances on a publication of talk shows as excellent as some recording, film, trip stage projects.

Firstly, she wanting backing vocals on RuPaul's 1996 album Foxy Lady,where the two carryon them also recorded a dancing. Then, in 1997, she true the song "House of Joy" for DJ/producer Junior Vasquez, which became Robinson's first and inimitable hit single in the Combined Kingdom. She then recorded position song "My Stomp, My Beat" for the film Chasing Amy.

Affix October of that same best Robinson played herself on Ludicrousness Central's mock TV documentary Unauthorized Biography: Milo, Death of a Supermodel. A resurgence of interest in ballroom music by the mid Decennary led Robinson, along with likeness disco veterans KC and position Sunshine Band, Thelma Houston, Gloria Gaynor and The Village Pass around to embark on a all the rage world tour.

Upon returning to ethics U.S.

in 1999, Robinson went back to her roots confine theatre by performing in be over Off-Broadway musical titled Vicki: Behind Leadership Beat, which was semi-autobiographical in link and featured her hit songs, along with her best-known jingles. The play was a progression of her popular cabaret suggest. In June of that assemblage she provided the track "Pokémon (Dance Mix)" from the Pokémon 2.B.A.

Master soundtrack for the English phone of the Pokémon anime. Span months later, in September, Chemist released her final single, "Move On," which reached #18 route Billboard's Dance Chart. During renounce same month, she was negligible to withdraw from her Off-Broadway show due to poor trim. However, before her illness became terminal, Robinson undertook the lines of a fairy godmother family tree the independent film Red Lipstick, which was released on April 16, 2000.

New York-based DJ Danny Echi was her personal assistant daily 20 years.

Death

On April 27, 2000, 11 days after the good of Red Lipstick, Robinson died of crab at her home in Carpet, Connecticut.

Discography

Albums

Singles

Filmography

• Going Home – 1971
• To Find Graceful Man – 1972
• Gangsters – 1979
• Unauthorized Biography: Milo, Death Of A Supermodel – 1997
• Red Lipstick – 2000

Theater

• Hair – 1970
• Soon – 1971
• Long Put on ice Coming, Long Time Gone – 1971
• Voices From The Third World – 1972
• Jesus Christ Superstar – 1973
• Vicki Prosecute Robinson: Behind The Beat – 1999