Bernard Edwards (October 31, 1952 – April 18, 1996) was an American bass player and record producer, known primarily for his work in disco music with guitarist

Nile Rodgers Nile Gregory Rodgers Jr. (born September 19, 1952) is an American musician, record producer and composer. The co-founder of Chic, Rodgers has written, produced, and performed on records that have sold more than 500 million albums and 75 million ...

, with whom he co-founded Chic. In 2017, Edwards was selected as the 53rd greatest bassist of all time by ''

Bass Player A bassist (also known as a bass player or bass guitarist) is a musician who plays a bass instrument such as a double bass (upright bass, contrabass, wood bass), bass guitar (electric bass, acoustic bass), synthbass, keyboard bass or a low br ...

'' magazine.

Biography

Edwards was born in Greenville, North Carolina and grew up in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

, New York City, where he met

in the early 1970s. At the time, Edwards was working at a post office with the mother of Rodgers' girlfriend. The two formed the Big Apple Band (active 1972–1976) and then united with drummer Tony Thompson to eventually form Chic together with singer Norma Jean Wright. With Chic (active 1976–1983), Edwards created era-defining hits such as " Dance, Dance, Dance", " Everybody Dance", "

Le Freak "Le Freak" is a 1978 funk / disco song by American R&B band Chic. It was the band's third single and first ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and R&B number-one hit song. Along with the tracks " I Want Your Love" and "Chic Cheer", "Le Freak" scored number ...

", " I Want Your Love" and "

Good Times ''Good Times'' is an American television sitcom that aired for six seasons on CBS, from February 8, 1974, to August 1, 1979. Created by Eric Monte and Mike Evans and developed by executive producer Norman Lear, it was television's first Afric ...

". Edwards also worked with Nile Rodgers to produce and write for other artists, using Chic to perform everything musically and vocally except lead vocals. Those productions with Norma Jean Wright,

Sister Sledge Sister Sledge is an American musical vocal group from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Formed in 1971, the group consisted of sisters Debbie, Joni, Kim, and Kathy Sledge. The siblings achieved international success at the height of the disco era. I ...

, Sheila and B. Devotion,

Diana Ross Diana Ross (born March 26, 1944) is an American singer and actress. She rose to fame as the lead singer of the vocal group the Supremes, who became Motown's most successful act during the 1960s and one of the world's best-selling girl groups ...

Johnny Mathis John Royce Mathis (born September 30, 1935) is an American singer of popular music. Starting his career with singles of standard music, he became highly popular as an album artist, with several dozen of his albums achieving gold or platinum s ...

Debbie Harry Deborah Ann Harry (born Angela Trimble; July 1, 1945) is an American singer, songwriter and actress, best known as the lead vocalist of the band Blondie. Four of her songs with the band reached on the US charts between 1979 and 1981. Born in ...

and

Fonzi Thornton Alfonso "Fonzi" Thornton is a U.S. songwriter/producer and vocal contractor. In a career spanning 40 years, Thornton has sung backing vocals for top artists across many genres of music. His vocal credits can be found on the recordings of Aret ...

led to more hits such as "Saturday", "He's The Greatest Dancer", " We Are Family", "Spacer", " Upside Down", "

I'm Coming Out "I'm Coming Out" is a song recorded by American singer Diana Ross. It was written and produced by Chic members Bernard Edwards and Nile Rodgers, and released on August 22, 1980, as the second single from Ross' self-titled tenth album '' Diana'' ...

" and "Backfired". In the song "We Are Family," Kathy Sledge gives Edwards a brief shout-out, singing "Yeah, come on Bernard, play...play your funky bass, boy!". As a lone songwriter/producer, he gave

her Top 15 hit, "Telephone" from her 1985 platinum " Swept Away" album released on

RCA The RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded as the Radio Corporation of America in 1919. It was initially a patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse, AT&T Corporation and United Fruit Comp ...

and Ross' international label, Capitol-EMI. Edwards released a solo album, "Glad To Be Here" in 1983, and in 1985 he was instrumental in the formation of the supergroup

Power Station A power station, also referred to as a power plant and sometimes generating station or generating plant, is an industrial facility for the generation of electric power. Power stations are generally connected to an electrical grid. Many ...

. The band's first album was produced by Edwards and featured Chic drummer Tony Thompson, and

Duran Duran Duran Duran () are an English rock band formed in Birmingham in 1978 by singer and bassist Stephen Duffy, keyboardist Nick Rhodes and guitarist/bassist John Taylor. With the addition of drummer Roger Taylor the following year the band we ...

members

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Secon ...

and Andy Taylor as well as singer Robert Palmer. Edwards followed this by producing Robert Palmer's hit album ''

Riptide A rip tide, or riptide, is a strong offshore current that is caused by the tide pulling water through an inlet along a barrier beach, at a lagoon or inland marina where tide water flows steadily out to sea during ebb tide. It is a strong tidal flo ...

''. He continued to produce artists throughout the 1980s and 90s, including Diana Ross,

Adam Ant Stuart Leslie Goddard, better known as Adam Ant (born 3 November 1954), is an English singer, musician, and actor. He gained popularity as the lead singer of new wave group Adam and the Ants and later as a solo artist, scoring 10 UK top ten ...

Rod Stewart Sir Roderick David Stewart (born 10 January 1945) is a British rock and pop singer and songwriter. Born and raised in London, he is of Scottish and English ancestry. With his distinctive raspy singing voice, Stewart is among the best-selling ...

Jody Watley Jody Vanessa Watley (born January 30, 1959) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and artist,USA Today (February 16, 1996), Best Bets: Albums Jody Watley Greatest Hits, "Few singers fired up the disco like Jody Watley who set trends ...

Grayson Hugh Grayson Hugh (born October 30, 1960) is an American singer-songwriter, pianist, Hammond B3 organ player and composer. He is best known for his 1988 hit "Talk It Over", and his other blue-eyed soul hits "Bring It All Back" and "How 'Bout Us?". Ea ...

Air Supply Air Supply is a soft rock duo formed in Melbourne, Australia, in 1975. It consists of Englishman Graham Russell (vocals, guitar) and Australian Russell Hitchcock (vocals). They had a succession of hits worldwide, including eight top-five ...

, ABC and Duran Duran. Edwards was the father of multi-platinum record producer Bernard "Focus..." Edwards, Jr. who has produced songs for

Jennifer Lopez Jennifer Lynn Affleck (' Lopez; born July 24, 1969), also known as J.Lo, is an American singer, actress and dancer. In 1991, she began appearing as a Fly Girl dancer on the sketch comedy television series '' In Living Color'', where she re ...

Beyoncé Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter ( ; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Beyoncé's boundary-pushing artistry and vocals have made her the most influential female musician of the 21st century, according to ...

Busta Rhymes Trevor George Smith Jr. (born May 20, 1972), known professionally as Busta Rhymes, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer and actor. Chuck D of Public Enemy gave him the moniker Busta Rhymes, after NFL and CFL wide receiver ...

Bishop Lamont Philip Brandon Martin (born October 31, 1978), better known as Bishop Lamont, is an American rapper from Carson, California. He was signed to Dr. Dre's Aftermath Entertainment record label and released one project under the label, eventually le ...

Tony Yayo Marvin Bernard (born March 31, 1978), better known by his stage name Tony Yayo, is an American rapper. He is best known as a member of G-Unit, a hip hop group he formed with his childhood friends 50 Cent and Lloyd Banks. Yayo released his debu ...

and more. Edwards teamed up with Nile Rodgers again for the Chic reunion in the early 1990s and released the album ''

Chic-Ism ''Chic-ism'' is the eighth studio album by American Rhythm and blues, R&B band Chic (band), Chic, released on the Warner Brothers Records, Warner Bros label in 1992. The album includes singles "Chic Mystique" (#1 US Club Play, #48 R&B) and "Your ...

'' in 1992.

Death

In 1996, Nile Rodgers was named Tobacco Superproducer of the Year in Japan, and was invited to perform there with Chic in April of that year. Just before the concert at the Budokan Arena in Tokyo, Edwards fell ill, but despite Rodgers' insistence, refused to cancel the gig. He managed to perform but had to be helped at times. At one point, Edwards blacked out for a few seconds before resuming his playing. Rodgers assumed the absence of bass was a deliberate improvisation and did not learn the truth until after the show. After the concert, Nile went to check on Bernard and asked how he was doing, to which he replied "I'm fine, I just need to rest." This was the last time Nile spoke to Bernard. Edwards retired to his hotel room where he was later found dead by Rodgers. The medical examiner determined the cause of death was

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severit ...

. Edwards' final performance was issued in 1996 as the album '' Live at the Budokan''.

Influence

His bass line from Chic hit "Good Times" has become one of the most copied pieces of music in history, and had a huge influence on musicians of many

genres Genre () is any form or type of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially-agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other for ...

when released and was the inspiration for "

Another One Bites the Dust "Another One Bites the Dust" is a song by the British rock band Queen. Written by bassist John Deacon, the song was featured on the group's eighth studio album '' The Game'' (1980). It was a worldwide hit, charting number one on the US ''Bil ...

" by

Queen Queen or QUEEN may refer to: Monarchy * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a Kingdom ** List of queens regnant * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Queen mother, a queen dowager who is the mother ...

. The Chic song "Good Times" was credited on

Sugarhill Gang Sugar Hill may refer to: Places In the United States: * Sugar Hill, Georgia, a city * Sugar Hill, New Hampshire, a town * Sugar Hill, Manhattan, New York, a section of Harlem * Sugar Hill (New York), a mountain in Schuyler County * Sugar Hi ...

's "

Rapper's Delight "Rapper's Delight" is a 1979 hip-hop track by the Sugarhill Gang, produced by Sylvia Robinson. Although it was shortly preceded by the Fatback Band's "King Tim III (Personality Jock)", "Rapper's Delight" is credited for introducing hip-hop mus ...

" in 1979 (the vinyl label reads "based on the music from the song 'Good Times' N. Rogers / B. Edwards") – the first rap song to become a mainstream hit. The following decades saw it sampled by artists of diverse genres, from rap to

punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...

and

techno Techno is a Music genre, genre of electronic dance music (EDM) which is generally music production, produced for use in a continuous DJ set, with tempo often varying between 120 and 150 beats per minute (bpm). The central Drum beat, rhythm is typ ...

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop!, a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Albums * ''Pop'' ( ...

bassist John Taylor often played the song in homage during his solo performances and cited Edwards as his primary influence. Edwards was nominated for four

Grammy Awards The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pre ...

for his work with Chic, Sister Sledge, Diana Ross, and Robert Palmer. On September 19, 2005, Edwards was honored posthumously for his outstanding achievement as a producer, when he was inducted into the

Dance Music Hall of Fame The Dance Music Hall of Fame was an organization established in 2003 to honor and remember significant contributors to the genre of dance music. It had its first inductions in 2004 but went inactive after the 2005 induction ceremony. History The Da ...

at a ceremony held in New York.

Selected discography

Chic

* '' Chic'' (1977) * ''

C'est Chic ''C'est Chic'' is the second studio album by American R&B band Chic (band), Chic, released on Atlantic Records in 1978. Release ''C'est Chic'' includes the band's signature hit "Le Freak", which topped the US Hot 100 chart, US R&B, ''and'' ...

'' (1978) * '' Risqué'' (1979) * ''

Real People ''Real People'' is an American reality television series that originally aired on NBC from 1979 to 1984, Wednesdays from 8 pm to 9pm Eastern Time. Its initial episodes aired live in the Eastern and Central time zones. ''Real People'' featured "r ...

'' (1980) * '' Take It Off'' (1981) * '' Tongue in Chic'' (1982) * '' Believer'' (1983) * '' Dance, Dance, Dance: The Best of Chic'' (1991) * ''

'' (1992) * '' The Best of Chic, Volume 2'' (1992) * '' Live at the Budokan'' (1999)

Solo

* ''Glad to Be Here'' (1983)

Production

* '' Norma Jean'', Norma Jean Wright (1978) * '' We Are Family'',

(1979) * '' King of the World,'' Sheila and B. Devotion (1980) * ''

Love Somebody Today ''Love Somebody Today'' is the fourth studio album by the American R&B vocal group Sister Sledge, released on March 16, 1980 by Cotillion Records. The album includes three singles: "Got to Love Somebody", "Reach Your Peak", and "Let's Go on Vac ...

'', Sister Sledge (1980) * '' diana'',

(1980) * ''

I Love My Lady ''I Love My Lady'' is an album by American pop singer Johnny Mathis that was completed in 1981 but not released in its entirety until December 8, 2017, when it was included in the box set '' The Voice of Romance: The Columbia Original Album Collec ...

'',

(1981, released in 2017) * ''

Koo Koo ''KooKoo'' is the debut solo album by American singer Debbie Harry, released on July 27, 1981, by Chrysalis Records. Produced by Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards of Chic, the album was recorded whilst Harry took a break from her band Blondie. It ...

'',

(1981) * unknown title, Fonzi Thornton (1982) (Unreleased) * '' Swept Away'', Diana Ross (1984) * '' Like a Virgin'',

Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...

(1984) * '' The Power Station'', The Power Station (1985) * "A View to a Kill" (single),

(1985) * ''The Heat'',

Nona Hendryx Nona Bernis Hendryx (born October 9, 1944) is an American vocalist, record producer, songwriter, musician, and author. Hendryx is known for her work as a solo artist as well as for being one-third of the trio Labelle, who had a hit with "Lady ...

(1985) * ''

'', Robert Palmer (1985) * " Round, Round",

Belouis Some Belouis Some (born Neville Keighley; 12 December 1959) is a British singer, songwriter and musician. He had UK and Worldwide hits in the 1980s with " Some People", "Imagination" and " Round, Round" from the John Hughes film ''Pretty in Pink''. ...

(1985) * '' Cocker'',

Joe Cocker John Robert "Joe" Cocker (20 May 1944 – 22 December 2014) was an English singer known for his gritty, bluesy voice and dynamic stage performances that featured expressive body movements. Most of his best known singles were recordings of son ...

(1986) * '' Color in Your Life'',

Missing Persons A missing person is a person who has disappeared and whose status as alive or dead cannot be confirmed as their location and condition are unknown. A person may go missing through a voluntary disappearance, or else due to an accident, crime, ...

(1986) * ''Hearts in Motion'',

(1986) * ''

Alphabet City Alphabet City is a neighborhood located within the East Village in the New York City borough of Manhattan. Its name comes from Avenues A, B, C, and D, the only avenues in Manhattan to have single-letter names. It is bounded by Houston St ...

'', ABC (1987) * ''If'', Hollywood Beyond (1987) * ''Contact'', Platinum Blonde (1987) * ''

'',

(1987) * '' Out of Order'',

(1988) * ''Under the One Sky'',

Distance Distance is a numerical or occasionally qualitative measurement of how far apart objects or points are. In physics or everyday usage, distance may refer to a physical length or an estimation based on other criteria (e.g. "two counties over"). ...

(1989) * ''Step into the Heat'',

James Freud James Randall Freud (born Colin Joseph McGlinchey; 29 June 1959 – 4 November 2010) was an Australian rock musician-songwriter. He was a member of Models during the 1980s and wrote their two most popular singles, "Barbados" and " Out of Mind, Ou ...

(1989) * ''YUI Orta'', Ian Hunter/The Hunter Ronson Band (1990) * ''Break the Silence'',

The Triplets The Triplets ( ca, Les tres bessones; es, Las tres mellizas; oc, Es tres bessones) are three fictional characters (Anna, Teresa and Helena) created by Spanish illustrator Roser Capdevila. The Triplets were created in 1983, based on Capdevila ...

(1990) * ''

Vagabond Heart ''Vagabond Heart'' is the sixteenth studio album by British recording artist Rod Stewart, released on 26 March 1991 by Warner Bros. Records. The album reached No. 10 in the US, and reached No. 2 in the UK. The album features five singles, among ...

'',

(1991) * ''

Persuasion Persuasion or persuasion arts is an umbrella term for influence. Persuasion can influence a person's beliefs, attitudes, intentions, motivations, or behaviours. Persuasion is studied in many disciplines. Rhetoric studies modes of persua ...

'',

(1991) (Unreleased) * ''Road to Freedom'' (Grayson Hugh album),

(1992) * '' Living in Fear'', The Power Station (1996)

Collaborations

* ''

KooKoo ''KooKoo'' is the debut solo album by American singer Debbie Harry, released on July 27, 1981, by Chrysalis Records. Produced by Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards of Chic, the album was recorded whilst Harry took a break from her band Blondie. I ...

'' -

(1981) * '' Let's Dance'' -

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...

(1983) * '' Hearts and Bones'' -

Paul Simon Paul Frederic Simon (born October 13, 1941) is an American musician, singer, songwriter and actor whose career has spanned six decades. He is one of the most acclaimed songwriters in popular music, both as a solo artist and as half of folk roc ...

(1983) * '' Like a Virgin'' -

(1984) * ''

'' - Robert Palmer (1985) * ''

She's the Boss ''She's the Boss'' is the debut solo album by English singer Mick Jagger, released in 1985. When Jagger's group The Rolling Stones signed with Columbia/CBS Records in 1983, one of the options available to them was for individual projects, a ...

'' -

Mick Jagger Sir Michael Philip Jagger (born 26 July 1943) is an English singer and songwriter who has achieved international fame as the lead vocalist and one of the founder members of the rock band the Rolling Stones. His ongoing songwriting partnershi ...

(1985) * '' Cocker'' -

(1986) * ''

She She most commonly refers to: *She (pronoun), the third person singular, feminine, nominative case pronoun in modern English. She or S.H.E. may also refer to: Literature and films *'' She: A History of Adventure'', an 1887 novel by H. Rider Hagga ...

'' -

Dalbello Lisa Dal Bello (born 22 May 1959), also known as Dalbello, is a Canadian musician. She released three albums in the pop and pop/rock genre in her late teens, from 1977 through 1981 under her full name. In 1984, she re-emerged as Dalbello, wit ...

(1987) * '' Out of Order'' -

(1988) * '' Move to This'' -

Cathy Dennis Catherine Roseanne Dennis (born 25 March 1969)Gregory, Andy (2002) ''International Who's Who in Popular Music 2002'', Europa; , p. 133 is a British singer, songwriter, record producer and actress. She was the vocalist for D Mob, which had the s ...

(1990) * ''

'' -

(1991) * ''

A Spanner in the Works '' A Spanner in the Works '' is the seventeenth studio album released by Rod Stewart on 29 May 1995. It ended a four-year gap since his previous studio album. At that time, it was Stewart's longest break between albums. It was released on Warne ...

'' -

(1995)

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Edwards, Bernard People from Greenville, North Carolina American rhythm and blues bass guitarists Record producers from North Carolina Songwriters from North Carolina American funk bass guitarists American male bass guitarists African-American guitarists Guitarists from North Carolina 1952 births 1996 deaths Chic (band) members The Power Station (band) members Deaths from pneumonia in Japan American rock bass guitarists American session musicians 20th-century American businesspeople 20th-century American bass guitarists 20th-century American male musicians African-American songwriters 20th-century African-American musicians American male songwriters