Walter "Bunny" Sigler (March 27, 1941 – October 6, 2017) was an American R&B singer,

songwriter A songwriter is a musician who professionally composes musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music ...

, multi-instrumentalist and

record producer A record producer is a recording project's creative and technical leader, commanding studio time and coaching artists, and in popular genres typically creates the song's very sound and structure. Virgil Moorefield"Introduction" ''The Producer as ...

who did extensive work with the team of

Kenny Gamble Kenneth Gamble (born August 11, 1943, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) and Leon A. Huff (born April 8, 1942, Camden, New Jersey) are an American songwriting and production team credited for developing the Philadelphia soul music genre (also known as ...

and

Leon Huff Kenneth Gamble (born August 11, 1943, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) and Leon A. Huff (born April 8, 1942, Camden, New Jersey) are an American songwriting and production team credited for developing the Philadelphia soul music genre (also known as ...

, and was instrumental in creating the "

Philly Sound Philadelphia soul, sometimes called Philly soul, the Philadelphia sound, Phillysound, or The Sound of Philadelphia TSOP, is a genre of late 1960s–1970s soul music characterized by funk influences and lush instrumental arrangements, often featu ...

" in the early 1970s.

Career

Sigler was born in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

, United States, and was nicknamed "Bunny" by his family as a young child. He sang in churches, and joined several local doo-wop groups, including the Opals, in which he sang with his brother James Sigler, Ritchie Rome and Jack Faith. By the late 1950s he had started performing in local venues as a singer and pianist, and he first recorded for the V-Tone Records

label A label (as distinct from signage) is a piece of paper, plastic film, cloth, metal, or other material affixed to a container or product, on which is written or printed information or symbols about the product or item. Information printed ...

in 1959.

then recommended him to

John Medora John L. Medora (born May 28, 1936), also known as John or Johnny Madara, is an American singer, songwriter, composer and record producer best known to have teamed up with David White and Arthur Singer to write the 1957 hit song "At the Hop". ...

and Dave White at Cameo-Parkway Records. His second single for the Parkway label, a medley of two Shirley and Lee hits, " Let the Good Times Roll & Feel So Good", rose on both the national pop and

R&B chart The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by ''Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 p ...

s, reaching #20 R&B and #22 pop in 1967. The follow-up, another medley, this time of two doo-wop songs, " Lovey Dovey"/" You're So Fine", also reached the R&B chart in the same year. After Cameo-Parkway folded, around 1970 Sigler began working as a songwriter with

and Leon Huff at

Philadelphia International Records Philadelphia International Records (PIR) was an American record label based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1971 by songwriting and production duo Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff along with their longtime collaborator Thom Bell. ...

. In partnership with writer

Phil Hurtt Phil Hurtt is a musician, singer, songwriter and arranger who has written hits for The Detroit Spinners, The Ritchie Family and many others. His compositions have been recorded by many artists and he has worked as an arranger on recordings by w ...

, Sigler wrote songs for

the O'Jays The O'Jays are an American R&B group from Canton, Ohio, formed in 1958 and originally consisting of Eddie Levert, Walter Lee Williams, William Powell, Bobby Massey, and Bill Isles. The O'Jays made their first chart appearance with the minor ...

including "Sunshine" and "When the World Is at Peace". He also wrote songs solo and with Gamble, and his compositions were recorded by many of the Philadelphia International artistes. He discovered a group, Instant Funk, and began again recording as a singer. He had his first chart success for six years in 1973 with a remake of the

Bobby Lewis Robert Alan Lewis (February 9, 1925 – April 28, 2020) was an American rock and roll and rhythm and blues singer, best known for his 1961 hit singles " Tossin' and Turnin'" and "One Track Mind". Biography Lewis was born in Indianapolis, Indiana ...

hit " Tossin' and Turnin'" (#38 R&B, #97 pop), and had several further minor R&B chart hits on Philadelphia International in the mid-1970s, including his version of "

Love Train "Love Train" is a hit single by the O'Jays, written by Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff. Released in 1972, it reached No. 1 on both the R&B Singles and the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in February and March 1973 respectively, and No. 9 on the UK Singles Ch ...

", and "Keep Smilin'". He also released several albums in the mid-1970s, on which he was backed by the

MFSB MFSB, officially standing for "Mother Father Sister Brother", was a pool of more than 30 studio musicians based at Philadelphia's Sigma Sound Studios. They worked closely with the production team of Gamble and Huff and producer/arranger Thom ...

musicians as well as Instant Funk. Sigler continued to work as a songwriter and producer for artistes including

the Whispers The Whispers is an American band (music), group from Los Angeles, California, who have scored hit records since the late 1960s. They are best known for their two number one R&B singles, "And the Beat Goes On (The Whispers song), And the Beat G ...

, Ecstasy, Passion & Pain,

Carl Carlton Carl Carlton (born May 21, 1953) is an American R&B, soul, and funk singer-songwriter, best known for his hits "Everlasting Love" and " She's a Bad Mama Jama (She's Built, She's Stacked)". Career Carlton was born in Detroit, Michigan, and beg ...

, Jackie Moore,

Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes were an American soul and R&B vocal group. One of the most popular Philadelphia soul groups of the 1970s, the group's repertoire included soul, R&B, doo-wop, and disco. Founded in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in ...

, The Roots,

Billy Paul Paul Williams (December 1, 1934 – April 24, 2016), known professionally as Billy Paul, was a Grammy Award-winning American soul singer, known for his 1972 No. 1 single "Me and Mrs. Jones", as well as the 1973 album and single '' War of the Go ...

, Lou Rawls, Patti LaBelle, Stephanie Mills and

Curtis Mayfield Curtis Lee Mayfield (June 3, 1942 – December 26, 1999) was an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer, and one of the most influential musicians behind soul and politically conscious African-American music.

. He also appeared on "Soul Train" where he sang his song, "That's How Long I'll Be Loving You", and released a duo album with

Barbara Mason Barbara Mason (born August 9, 1947, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States) is an American soul singer with several R&B and pop hits in the 1960s and 1970s, best known for her self-written 1965 hit song "Yes, I'm Ready". She has released ...

. In 1977, he moved to the Gold Mind label, set up by MFSB musician Norman Harris and distributed by

Salsoul Records Salsoul Records is an American New York City based record label, founded by three brothers, Joseph Cayre, Kenneth Cayre, and Stanley Cayre (the Cayre brothers). Salsoul issued about 300 singles, including many disco/post-disco 12-inch releases, ...

. There, he had his biggest R&B hit, reaching #8 in early 1978 with "Let Me Party With You (Party, Party, Party)". He also continued to work with Instant Funk on their breakthrough hit "I Got My Mind Made Up (You Can Get It Girl)", and with other acts on Salsoul. In 1978, his recording with

Loleatta Holloway Loleatta Holloway (, ; November 5, 1946 – March 21, 2011) was an American singer known for disco songs such as "Hit and Run" and "Love Sensation". In December 2016, ''Billboard'' named her the 95th most successful dance artist of all time. Acco ...

, "Only You", reached #11 on the national R&B chart and #87 on the pop chart. From the 1980s, Sigler continued to write and produce for musicians including Patti LaBelle, and Shirley Jones of

the Jones Girls The Jones Girls were an American R&B vocal trio of sisters from Detroit, Michigan, United States. Consisting of Brenda, Shirley and Valorie Jones, the Jones Girls first signed and recorded for GM Records in 1970. The trio were best known for th ...

. He sang the 23rd Psalm at the ceremony awarding the

Congressional Gold Medal The Congressional Gold Medal is an award bestowed by the United States Congress. It is Congress's highest expression of national appreciation for distinguished achievements and contributions by individuals or institutions. The congressional pract ...

to the

Tuskegee Airmen The Tuskegee Airmen were a group of primarily African American military pilots (fighter and bomber) and airmen who fought in World War II. They formed the 332d Fighter Group and the 477th Bombardment Group (Medium) of the United States Army ...

on March 29, 2007, at the

United States Capitol The United States Capitol, often called The Capitol or the Capitol Building, is the seat of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, which is formally known as the United States Congress. It is located on Capitol Hill ...

. He also co-wrote "The Ruler's Back", the opening song on the

album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records co ...

The Blueprint ''The Blueprint'' is the sixth studio album by American rapper Jay-Z, released on September 11, 2001, through Roc-A-Fella Records and Def Jam Recordings. Its release was set a week earlier than initially planned in order to combat bootlegging. ...

'' by Jay-Z. Sigler died of a heart attack on October 6, 2017, at the age of 76.

Discography

Studio albums

*1967: ''Let the Good Times Roll & Feel So Good'' (Parkway PS-50,000) *1974: ''That's How Long I'll Be Loving You'' (Philadelphia International) *1975: ''Keep Smilin (Philadelphia International) *1976: ''My Music'' (Philadelphia International) *1977: ''Locked in This Position'' (with

) *1977: ''Let Me Party With You'' (Gold Mind) *1979: ''I've Always Wanted to Sing ... Not Just Write Songs'' (Gold Mind) *1980: ''Let It Snow'' (Sal-Soul) *2003: ''Let Me Love You Tonight'' (Grapevine Records) *2008: ''The Lord's Prayer'' (101 Distribution) *2012: ''From Bunny With Love & a Little Soul'' (Bun-Z Music & Records) *2012: ''"When You're in Love at Christmas Time" ''(Bun-Z Music & Records)' *2015: ''Bundino'' (Bun-Z Music & Records)

Compilation albums

*1996: ''The Best of Bunny Sigler: Sweeter Than the Berry'' (Sony/Legacy) *1998: ''Bunny Sigler'' (Sony Special Products) *2006: ''The Best of Philly Soul — Vol. 2'' (That Philly Sound) *2007: ''A Soulful Tale of Two Cities'' (Soul Renaissance Records) Songs performed by Sigler appear on 53 compilations

Singles

*1965 "For Crying Out Loud" US Decca *1966: "Comparatively Speaking" US Decca *1966: "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow" US Decca *1966: "Girl Don't Make Me Wait" *1967: "Let The Good Times Roll & Feel So Good" (#22 pop, #20 R&B) *1967: " Lovey Dovey / You're So Fine" (#86 pop) *1967: "Follow Your Heart" / "Can You Dig It" *1967: "There's No Love Left (In This Old Heart of Mine)" *1970: " Don't Stop Doing What You're Doing" *1970: " Where Do The Lonely Go" *1972: " Heaven Knows I've Changed" *1973: " Theme For Five Fingers of Death" *1973: " Tossin' and Turnin'" (#97 pop, #38 R&B) *1974: "

(Part 1)" (#28 R&B) *1974: "Keep Smilin'" (#46 R&B) *1975: "Shake Your Booty" *1976: "My Music" (#98 R&B) *1977: " Let Me Party With You (Party, Party, Party)" (#43 pop, #8 R&B) *1977: "Locked in This Position" (with

) *1978: "I Got What You Need" (#42 R&B) *1978: "Only You" (with

) (#87 pop, #11 R&B) *1978: "Don't Even Try (Give It Up)" (#94 R&B) *1979: "By The Way You Dance (I Knew It Was You)" (#37 R&B) *1979: " Glad To Be Your Lover" *1986: "What Would You Do Without Love" *2001: "Are You a Freak (Like Me?)" (with Prince Dred) *2007: "Got To Give It Up" *2015: "When I Think of You" *2015: "Buttermilk and Cornbread" *2016: "Lavada"

References

External links

*
Bunny Sigler
interview in Soul Express in July 2015
"Hanging With a Legend"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sigler, Bunny 1941 births 2017 deaths Philadelphia International Records artists African-American pianists American organists American male organists 20th-century American keyboardists African-American guitarists American multi-instrumentalists Songwriters from Pennsylvania Record producers from Pennsylvania Musicians from Philadelphia Northern soul musicians American male pianists 20th-century American male musicians African-American songwriters 20th-century African-American musicians 21st-century African-American people American male songwriters