Archie Lee Bell (born September 1, 1944) is an American solo singer and former lead singer of

Archie Bell & the Drells Archie Bell & the Drells was an American R&B vocal group from Houston and one of the main acts produced by Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff in the late 1960s before the duo formed their highly successful label Philadelphia International Records ...

Background

Born to

African-American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. ...

parents Langston and Ruthie Bell in

Henderson, Texas Henderson is a city and the county seat of Rusk County, Texas, United States. Its population was 13,271 at the 2020 census. Henderson is named for James Pinckney Henderson, the first governor of Texas. The city has functioned as a major crossr ...

, United States, Archie is the second oldest of seven brothers, including

USC USC may refer to: Education United States * Universidad del Sagrado Corazón, Santurce, Puerto Rico * University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina ** University of South Carolina System, a state university system of South Carolina * ...

and

NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The N ...

football player Ricky Bell and Jerry Bell, a former world

karate (; ; Okinawan language, Okinawan pronunciation: ), also , is a martial arts, martial art developed in the Ryukyu Kingdom. It developed from the Okinawan martial arts, indigenous Ryukyuan martial arts (called , "hand"; ''tī'' in Okinawan) un ...

champion and singer in the bands

New Birth To be born again, or to experience the new birth, is a phrase, particularly in evangelical Christianity, that refers to a "spiritual rebirth", or a regeneration of the human spirit. In contrast to one's physical birth, being "born again" is d ...

and the

Dazz Band Dazz Band is an American R&B/funk band most popular in the early 1980s. Emerging from Cleveland, Ohio, the group's biggest hit songs include " Let It Whip" (1982), " Joystick" (1983), and "Let It All Blow" (1984). The name of the band is a por ...

. He also is related to the record producer,

Thom Bell Thomas Randolph Bell (January 26, 1943 – December 22, 2022) was an American record producer, arranger, and songwriter known as one of the creators of Philadelphia soul in the 1970s. Hailed as one of the most prolific R&B songwriters and prod ...

Career

Bell was singing in Houston night clubs at age ten, and credits seeing the performances of Jackie Wilson and Sam Cooke as influencing him to become a singer. He formed the Drells in 1956 while in junior high school. Bell became known around the world for the hit that he had with the Drells, " Tighten Up". He has pursued a solo career since the breakup of the Drells in 1980. Bell later released one solo album (''I Never Had It So Good'' – 1981) on Beckett Records and continued to perform with The Drells off and on for the next twenty years. During the 1990s the line-up also included Steve "Stevie G." Guettler (guitar, vocals), Jeff "JT" Strickler (bass guitar, vocals), Steve Farrell (guitar, vocals), Mike Wilson (keyboards, vocals) and Wes Armstrong (drums, vocals) of the Atlanta-based group The Rockerz. In more recent times Bell has been diversifying his repertoire to include

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form that originated among African Americans in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues has incorporated spiritual (music), spirituals, work songs, field hollers, Ring shout, shouts, cha ...

, and has recorded a blues album. He has also recorded some

country music Country (also called country and western) is a popular music, music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and American southwest, the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is p ...

, having professed a love for that genre.

Tommy Allsup Thomas Douglas Allsup (November 24, 1931 – January 11, 2017) was an American rockabilly and swing musician. Personal life Allsup was born near Owasso, Oklahoma, in 1931, and was an enrolled member of the Cherokee Nation. Allsup had a son, ...

, country producer and former member of

Bob Wills James Robert "Bob" Wills (March 6, 1905 – May 13, 1975) was an American musician, songwriter, and bandleader. Considered by music authorities as the founder of Western swing, he was known widely as the King of Western Swing (although Spade C ...

' Texas Playboys, recruited Bell to sing "Warm Red Wine", which appeared on an album with songs from

Glen Campbell Glen Travis Campbell (April 22, 1936 – August 8, 2017) was an American country musician and actor. He was best known for a series of hit songs in the 1960s and 1970s, and for hosting ''The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour'' on CBS television from ...

Tanya Tucker Tanya Denise Tucker (born October 10, 1958) is an American country music singer and songwriter who had her first hit, "Delta Dawn", in 1972 at the age of 13. During her career Tucker became one of the few child performers to mature into adulthood ...

and

Roy Clark Roy Linwood Clark (April 15, 1933 – November 15, 2018) was an American singer, musician, and television presenter. He is best known for having hosted '' Hee Haw'', a nationally televised country variety show, from 1969 to 1997. Clark wa ...

. On May 5, 2021 Bell suffered a stroke on the right side of his body.

Discography

Singles

Archie Bell & The Drells * "She's My Woman, She's My Girl" / "Love Will Rain on You" – Ovide 222

967 Year 967 ( CMLXVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * Spring – Emperor Otto I (the Great) calls for a council at Rome, to present the new government under Pope John XIII. He ...

* "A Soldier's Prayer" / "One in One" – Ovide 226

* " Tighten Up" / "Dog Eat Dog" – Ovide 228

* "She's My Woman, She's My Girl" / "The Yankee Dance" – East West 55102

* "She's My Woman, She's My Girl" / "The Yankee Dance" – East West 2048

968 Year 968 ( CMLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * Emperor Nikephoros II receives a Bulgarian embassy led by Prince Boris (the son of Tsar Peter I of Bulgaria), wi ...

* "Tighten Up" / "Dog Eat Dog" – Atlantic 2478

* "Tighten Up" / "pt II" – Atlantic 2478

* "I Can't Stop Dancing" / "You're Such A Beautiful Child" – Atlantic 2534

(#17

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

) * "Love Will Rain on You" / "Do The Choo Choo" – Atlantic 2559

("Do The Choo Choo" #44

) * "There's Gonna Be A Showdown" / "Go For What You Know" – Atlantic 2583

(#14

) * "Just A Little Closer" / "Love My Baby" – Atlantic 2612

969 Year 969 ( CMLXIX) was a common year starting on Friday of the Julian calendar, the 969th year of the Common Era (CE) and ''Anno Domini'' (AD) designations, the 969th year of the 1st millennium, the 69th year of the 10th century, and the 10th ...

* "Girl You're Too Young" / "Do The Hand Jive" – Atlantic 2644

(#47

) * "Dancing To Your Music" / "Count The Ways" - Glades 1707

973 Year 973 ( CMLXXIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * Spring – The Byzantine army, led by General Melias ( Domestic of the Schools in the East), continues the op ...

* "I Could Dance All Night" / "King Of The Castle" - TSOP ZS8 4767

975 Year 975 ( CMLXXV) was a common year starting on Friday of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * Arab–Byzantine War: Emperor John I raids Mesopotamia and invades Syria, using the Byzantine base at Antioch to pres ...

* "Soul City Walk" / "King Of The Castle" - TSOP ZS8 4774

* "Let's Groove" (Part 1) / "Let's Groove" (Part 2) - TSOP ZS8 4775

976 Year 976 ( CMLXXVI) was a leap year starting on Saturday of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * January 10 – Emperor John I Tzimiskes dies at Constantinople, after returning from a second campaign against ...

* The Kays Band featuring Archie Bell – "Soul'd Out" – Major Records MR 906 (12") * "Any Time Is Right" / "Without You" – Becket Records BKA 45-4 – 1981 (7") * "Any Time Is Right" / "Why Didja Do Me" – Becket BKD-501 – 1981 (12") * "Touchin' You" / "Touchin' You" (Instrumental) – WMOT Records WMOT-101 – 1982 (12")

Albums

* ''I Never Had It So Good'' – Becket 013 – 1981

References

External links

Archie Bell Interview
at NAMM Oral History Collection (2017) {{DEFAULTSORT:Bell, Archie 1944 births Living people African-American male singer-songwriters American male singer-songwriters American rhythm and blues singer-songwriters American soul singers American funk singers People from Henderson, Texas Singer-songwriters from Texas 20th-century African-American male singers 20th-century American male singers 20th-century American singers 21st-century African-American male singers 21st-century American male singers