Canzetta Maria "Candi" Staton (, ) (born March 13, 1940) is an American singer–songwriter, best known in the United States for her 1970 cover of

Tammy Wynette Tammy Wynette (born Virginia Wynette Pugh; May 5, 1942 – April 6, 1998) was an American country music singer and songwriter, considered among the genre's most influential and successful artists. Along with Loretta Lynn, Wynette helped bring a ...

's "

Stand by Your Man "Stand by Your Man" is a song recorded by the American country music artist Tammy Wynette, co-written by Wynette and Billy Sherrill. It was released on September 20, 1968, as the first single and title track from the album '' Stand by Your Man''. ...

" and her 1976

disco Disco is a music genre, genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the late 1960s from the United States' urban nightclub, nightlife, particularly in African Americans, African-American, Italian-Americans, Italian-American, LGBTQ ...

chart-topper " Young Hearts Run Free". In Europe, Staton's biggest selling record is the anthemic "

You Got the Love "You Got the Love" is a song by British songwriting team the Source featuring American singer-songwriter Candi Staton. Originally released in 1986, the song was remixed and re-released in 1991, 1997, and 2006. It has reached number three on the ...

" from 1986, released in collaboration with

the Source The Source may refer to: Film and television * ''The Source'' (1918 film), 1918 American drama directed by George Melford * ''The Source'' (1999 film), a 1999 documentary film about the Beat generation * ''The Source'' (2002 film), a 2002 scienc ...

. Staton was inducted into the Christian Music Hall of Fame and is a four-time

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...

nominee.

Biography

Early life and career

Born in

Hanceville, Alabama Hanceville is a city in Cullman County, Alabama, United States. At the 2020 census, the population was 3,217. History Founded in Blount County, Hanceville was established in 1832 and incorporated in May 1879. At the time of Cullman County's ...

, Staton and her sister Maggie were sent to

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

at around age 11 or 12 for school. While attending Jewell Christian Academy, Staton's vocal abilities were soon noticed by her peers and the school's pastor. Amazed by her voice, the pastor paired Staton and her sister with a third girl, Naomi Harrison, and they formed the Jewell Gospel Trio. As teenagers, the group toured the traditional gospel circuit during the 1950s with

the Soul Stirrers The Soul Stirrers were an American gospel music group, whose career spans over eighty years. The group was a pioneer in the development of the quartet style of gospel, and a major influence on Soul, R&B, Doo-wop, and Southern soul, some of th ...

, C. L. Franklin and

Mahalia Jackson Mahalia Jackson ( ; born Mahala Jackson; October 26, 1911 – January 27, 1972) was an American gospel music, gospel singer, widely considered one of the most influential vocalists of the 20th century. With a career spanning 40 years, Jackson was ...

.from an interview o
episode 191 of the Americana Music Show
published May 12, 2014. They recorded several sides for Nashboro,

Apollo Apollo is one of the Twelve Olympians, Olympian deities in Ancient Greek religion, ancient Greek and Ancient Roman religion, Roman religion and Greek mythology, Greek and Roman mythology. Apollo has been recognized as a god of archery, mu ...

and

Savoy Records Savoy Records is an American record company and label established by Herman Lubinsky in 1942 in Newark, New Jersey. Savoy specialized in jazz, rhythm and blues, and gospel music. In September 2017, Savoy was acquired by Concord Bicycle Music. ...

between 1953 and 1963.

Solo career

In 1968, Staton was introduced to

Rick Hall Roe Erister "Rick" Hall (January 31, 1932 – January 2, 2018) was an American record producer, songwriter, and musician who became known as the owner of FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. As the "Father of Muscle Shoals Music", he was ...

Clarence Carter Clarence George Carter (born January 14, 1936) is an American singer, songwriter, musician and record producer. His most successful songs include "Slip Away (Clarence Carter song), Slip Away", "Back Door Santa" (both released 1968), "Patches (Ch ...

and launched her solo career as a

Southern soul Southern soul or country soul is a type of soul and country music that emerged from the Southern United States. The music originated from a combination of styles, including blues (both 12 bar and jump), country, early R&B, and a strong gospel ...

stylist, garnering 16 R&B hits for Rick Hall's

FAME Studios FAME (Florence Alabama Music Enterprises) Studios is a recording studio located at 603 East Avalon Avenue in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, United States, an area of northern Alabama known as the Shoals. Though small and distant from the main recording l ...

and gaining the title of "First Lady of Southern Soul" for her Grammy-nominated R&B renditions of the songs "

" and "

In the Ghetto "In the Ghetto" (originally titled "The Vicious Circle") is a 1969 song written by Mac Davis and recorded by Elvis Presley. It was a major hit released in 1969 as a part of Presley's comeback album, ''From Elvis in Memphis'', and was also relea ...

". Staton appeared on the September 23, 1972, edition (Season 2, Episode 1) of ''

Soul Train ''Soul Train'' is an American musical variety television show. After airing locally on WCIU-TV in Chicago, Illinois, for a year, it aired in syndication from October 2, 1971, to March 25, 2006. In its 35-year history, the show primarily featu ...

''. In 1976, Staton began collaborating with producer David Crawford on

songs such as " Young Hearts Run Free", which reached No. 1 on the US R&B charts, No. 2 in the UK Singles Chart and went Top 20 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 during the summer of 1976. It was remixed and re-released in 1986, reaching the UK Top 50. Follow up song "Destiny" hit the Top 50 in the UK. and her version of "

Nights on Broadway "Nights on Broadway" is a song by the Bee Gees from the ''Main Course'' album released in 1975. The second single released from the album, it immediately followed their number-one hit "Jive Talkin'". This track was credited to Barry, Robin an ...

" hit the UK Top 10 in 1977;. In 1978, Staton scored another Top 50 hit in the UK with "Honest I Do Love You". In 1979 from her album ''Chance'', Staton released the single "When You Wake Up Tomorrow" (co-written by Patrick Adams and Wayne K. Garfield) and the title song "Chance", a top 20 R&B charted record. Other dance club chart hits included "When You Wake Up Tomorrow" and "Victim". In 1982, Staton again hit the UK chart with a version of Mark James's "

Suspicious Minds "Suspicious Minds" is a 1968 song written and first recorded by the American songwriter Mark James. After this recording failed commercially, it was recorded by Elvis Presley with the producer Chips Moman. Presley's version reached No.1 on th ...

". In 1982, Staton returned to

gospel music Gospel music is a traditional genre of Christian music and a cornerstone of Christian media. The creation, performance, significance, and even the definition of gospel music vary according to culture and social context. Gospel music is compo ...

. Staton and her then-husband, John Sussewell, founded Beracah Ministries in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

, Georgia, with help from Jim and

Tammy Faye Bakker Tamara Faye Messner (née LaValley, formerly Bakker ; March 7, 1942 – July 20, 2007) was an American evangelist. She co-founded the televangelist program ''The PTL Club'' with her husband Jim Bakker in 1974. They had hosted their own puppet-s ...

's PTL Ministries. Staton has since recorded twelve gospel albums, two of which received

nominations. Staton appears on the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

Apartheid Apartheid ( , especially South African English: , ; , ) was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. It was characterised by an ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

Later

In 1991, Staton returned to UK popular charts by lending her vocals to

's British hit "

". Staton signed with Intersound Records in 1995. In 2000, she released her eleventh album, ''Here's a Blessing''. In 2004, the British record label Honest Jon's released a compilation album of her

soul The soul is the purported Mind–body dualism, immaterial aspect or essence of a Outline of life forms, living being. It is typically believed to be Immortality, immortal and to exist apart from the material world. The three main theories that ...

work from the late 1960s and early 1970s, the self-titled ''Candi Staton''. Staton followed it up with a

secular Secularity, also the secular or secularness (from Latin , or or ), is the state of being unrelated or neutral in regards to religion. The origins of secularity can be traced to the Bible itself. The concept was fleshed out through Christian hi ...

project in 2006 entitled ''His Hands'', produced by Mark Nevers of Lambchop and with the title track written by

Will Oldham Joseph Will Oldham (born January 15, 1970) is an American singer-songwriter and actor. From 1993 to 1997, he performed and recorded in collaboration with dozens of other musicians under variations of Palace (Palace, Palace Brothers, Palace Son ...

. Two of Staton's children, Cassandra Williams-Hightower (background vocals) and Marcus Williams (

drums The drum is a member of the percussion instrument, percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophones, membranophone. Drums consist of at least one Acoustic membrane, membrane, c ...

), joined her on the album. A second studio album for Honest Jon's, titled ''Who's Hurting Now?'', appeared in 2009. She and Rick Hall reunited to make a half dozen more tracks for Staton's 2014 southern soul album, ''Life Happens''. The lead

Americana Americana may refer to: *Americana music, a genre or style of American music * Americana (culture), artifacts of the culture of the United States Film, radio and television * ''Americana'' (1981 film), an American drama film * ''Americana'' (20 ...

radio single, "I Ain't Easy to Love", featured

Jason Isbell Michael Jason Isbell ( ; born February 1, 1979) is an American singer-songwriter and actor. One of the most celebrated contemporary songwriters in his genre, his lyrics are defined by their raw emotional honesty. Isbell began his career as a me ...

and

John Paul White John Paul White (born August 4, 1972) is an American musician and former member of the Grammy Award-winning duo the Civil Wars. He restarted his solo career with his 2016 release, ''Beulah''. Early life White was born in Muscle Shoals, Alabama ...

(formerly of The Civil Wars). The trio performed the track on ''

Late Show with David Letterman ''Late Show with David Letterman'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by David Letterman on CBS, the first iteration of the ''Late Show'' franchise. The show debuted on August 30, 1993, and was produced by Letterman's production com ...

''. Staton's television show ''New Direction'' aired on TBN. Staton has also made appearances on the '' Praise the Lord'' telecast with the late

Paul Crouch Paul Franklin Crouch (; March 30, 1934 – November 30, 2013) was an American televangelist. Crouch and his wife, Jan, founded the Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN) in 1973; the company has been described as "the world’s largest religious ...

and his late wife

Jan Crouch Janice Wendell Crouch () (née Bethany; May 14, 1938 – May 31, 2016) was an American religious broadcaster. Crouch and her husband, Paul, founded the Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN) in 1973. Early life and ministry Crouch was the daught ...

, as well as regularly performing on

Robert Tilton Robert Tilton (born June 7, 1946) is an American televangelist and the former pastor of the Word of Faith Family Church in Farmers Branch, Texas, Farmers Branch, Texas, a suburb of Dallas. At his ministry's peak in 1991, Tilton's infomercial-styl ...

's ''Success-N-Life'' show. In August 2018, Staton released her 30th album, ''Unstoppable'', which has been touted as a retro

psychedelic Psychedelics are a subclass of hallucinogenic drugs whose primary effect is to trigger non-ordinary mental states (known as psychedelic experiences or "trips") and a perceived "expansion of consciousness". Also referred to as classic halluci ...

R&B project.

NPR National Public Radio (NPR) is an American public broadcasting organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It serves as a national Radio syndication, syndicator to a network of more ...

music journalist, Alison Fensterstock, wrote that it, "Delivers the kind of forthright confidence and soul-girding power that can only be summoned by a grown woman who has learned a thing or two. And Staton has lived many lives. Creatively, the quadruple Grammy nominee and

Christian Music Christian music is a genre of music that has been written to express either personal or a communal belief regarding Christianity, Christian life and faith. Common themes of Christian music include praise, worship, penitence and lament, and its f ...

Hall of Famer has moved between soul and R&B, gospel, disco and even EDM before returning to her roots as an elder stateswoman."

Personal life

Staton has been married six times and has five children. She was first married to

Pentecostal Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a movement within the broader Evangelical wing of Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that emphasizes direct personal experience of God in Christianity, God through Baptism with the Holy Spirit#Cl ...

minister, Joe Williams, from 1960 until 1968. Together they had four children: Marcus Williams, Marcel Williams, Terry Williams and Cassandra Williams-Hightower. In 1970, Staton married singer

and together they had one child, Clarence Carter Jr. They divorced in 1973. Staton was married to Jimmy James, her then manager, from 1974 until 1977. Two years after divorcing James, Staton married John Sussewell, who was a

drummer A drummer is a percussionist who creates music using drums. Most contemporary western music ensemble, bands that play Rock music, rock, Pop music, pop, jazz, or Contemporary R&B, R&B music include a drummer for purposes including timekeepi ...

for

Ashford & Simpson Ashford & Simpson were an American husband-and-wife songwriting, production and recording duo composed of Nickolas Ashford (May 4, 1941 – August 22, 2011) and Valerie Simpson (born August 26, 1946). Ashford was born in Fairfield, South Carol ...

and also on

Dory Previn Dorothy Veronica "Dory" Previn (née Langan; October 22, 1925 – February 14, 2012) was an American lyricist, singer-songwriter and poet. During the late 1950s and 1960s, Previn was a lyricist on songs intended for motion pictures and, with h ...

's sixth album '' We're Children of Coincidence and Harpo Marx'' in 1980. They divorced in 1998 after 18 years of marriage. From 2010 until 2012, Staton was married to former

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

player

Otis Nixon Otis Junior Nixon (born January 9, 1959) is an American former professional baseball center fielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees (1983), Cleveland Indians (1984–87), Montreal Expos (1988–90), Atlanta Bra ...

. She has been married to Henry Hooper since 2017. On October 30, 2018, Staton announced that she had been diagnosed with

breast cancer Breast cancer is a cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a Breast lump, lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, Milk-rejection sign, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipp ...

. She lives in

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

Discography

Studio albums

* ''

I'm Just a Prisoner ''I'm Just a Prisoner'' is the debut album by American singer Candi Staton released in 1970 on Capitol Records. The album peaked at No. 37 on the US ''Billboard'' Top R&B Albums chart and No. 28 on the UK Independent Albums chart. Critical rece ...

'' (1970) * ''Stand By Your Man'' (1971) * ''Candi Staton'' (1972) * ''Candi'' (1974) * ''Young Hearts Run Free'' (1976) UK No. 34 * ''Music Speaks Louder Than Words'' (1977) * '' House of Love'' (1978) * '' Chance'' (1979) * ''Candi Staton'' (1980) * ''Nightlites'' (1982) * ''Make Me an Instrument'' (1983) * ''The Anointing'' (1985) * ''Sing a Song'' (1986) * ''Love Lifted Me'' (1988) * ''Stand Up and Be a Witness'' (1990) * ''Standing on the Promises'' (1991) * ''I Give You Praise'' (1993) * '' It's Time!'' (1995) * ''Cover Me'' (1997) * ''Outside In'' (1999) * ''Here's a Blessing'' (2000) * ''Christmas in My Heart'' (2000) * ''Glorify'' (2001) * ''Proverbs 31 Woman'' (2002) * ''His Hands'' (2006) * ''I Will Sing My Praise to You'' (2008) * ''Who's Hurting Now?'' (2009) * ''Life Happens'' (2014) * ''It's Time to Be Free'' (2016) * ''Unstoppable'' (2018) * ''Back to My Roots'' (2025)

Compilations

* ''The Best of Candi Staton'' (1995 Warner Archives) Originals (not re-recorded) * ''The Ultimate Gospel Collection'' (2006) * ''Evidence: The Complete Fame Records Masters'' (2011) – For the first time ever all 48 of the tracks she made for Rick Hall's label between 1969 and 1974 are together in one place. 22 have never been on CD before and 12 are previously unreleased.

Singles (non comprehensive)

* "I'd Rather Be an Old Man's Sweetheart (Than a Young Man's Fool)" (1969) R&B No. 9 US No. 46, CAN No. 51 * "I'm Just a Prisoner (Of Your Good Lovin')" (1969) R&B No. 13 US No. 56, CAN No. 74 * "Sweet Feeling" (1970) R&B No. 5 US No. 60, CAN No. 78 * "

" (1970) R&B No. 4 US No. 24, CAN No. 22 * "He Called Me Baby" (1971) R&B No. 9 US No. 52, CAN No. 67 * "

" (1972) R&B No. 12 US No. 48 * " Do It in the Name of Love" (1973) R&B No. 17 US No. 80 * "As Long as He Takes Care of Home" (1974) R&B No. 6 US No. 51, CAN No. 56 * " Young Hearts Run Free" (1976) US No. 20 UK No. 2 R&B No. 1 (1986 re-release No. 47, 1999 re-release #29) CAN No. 21 * "Destiny" (1976) UK No. 41 * "

" (1977) UK No. 6 R&B No. 16 US No. 102 * "Honest I Do Love You" (1978) UK No. 48 R&B No. 77 * "Victim" (1978) R&B No. 17 * "When You Wake Up Tomorrow" (1979) R&B No. 13 * "

" (1982) UK No. 31 * "You Got the Love" (1986) UK No. 95 R&B No. 88 * "

" (

The Source The Source may refer to: Film and television * ''The Source'' (1918 film), 1918 American drama directed by George Melford * ''The Source'' (1999 film), a 1999 documentary film about the Beat generation * ''The Source'' (2002 film), a 2002 scienc ...

featuring Candi Staton – 1991) UK No. 4 (1997 re-release UK No. 3 (Now Voyager Mix), 2005 import release UK No. 60, 2006 "You Got the Love (New Voyager Mix)" (featuring Candi Staton – re-release) No. 7 UK) * "Love On Love" (1999) UK No. 27 * "Young Hearts Run Free" (re-recording) (1999) UK No. 29 * "I Just Can't Get to Sleep at All" (2000)

Energise Records Energise Records is a British independent record label established in 1993. The label specialises in uptempo dance covers and compilations of HI-NRG/POP based releases. The label has released records for artists such as Sean Smith, Nicki Fre ...

, UK; limited release * "Love Sweet Sound"

Groove Armada Groove Armada are an English electronic music duo, composed of Andy Cato and Tom Findlay. They achieved chart success with their singles " At the River", " I See You Baby" and " Superstylin'". The duo have released nine studio albums, four of ...

featuring Candi Staton (2007) UK No. 77 * "Wilder Side" Rasmus Faber & Alf Tumble featuring Candi Staton (2010) * "Hallelujah Anyway" (2012) * "It's Your Season (B.W.Ø Remix)" (2016)

References

External links

Candi Staton website

{{DEFAULTSORT:Staton, Candi 1940 births Living people People from Hanceville, Alabama American dance musicians American house musicians American gospel singers American contraltos Georgia (U.S. state) Democrats 21st-century African-American women singers 21st-century American women singers Positiva Records artists Warner Records artists 20th-century African-American women singers 20th-century American women singers 20th-century American singers Trinity Broadcasting Network people