Charlie Whitehead (September 6, 1942 – June 26, 2015) was an American

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 ...

singer from Newsoms, Virginia.

Life and career

Whitehead was born on September 6, 1942. He moved to

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

in 1962 and was subsequently signed to Musicor's R&B subsidiary, Dynamo Records, by

Charlie Foxx Inez Foxx (September 9, 1937 – August 25, 2022) and her elder brother Charlie Foxx (October 23, 1933 – September 18, 1998) were an American rhythm and blues and soul duo from Greensboro, North Carolina. Inez sang lead vocal, while Charlie ...

. At Dynamo, Whitehead was paired with

Jerry Williams, Jr. Jerry Williams Jr. (born July 12, 1942), generally credited under the pseudonym Swamp Dogg after 1970, is an American country soul and R&B singer, musician, songwriter and record producer. Williams has been described as "one of the great cult fi ...

, and the two wrote songs (often with Gary U.S. Bonds) for artists such as

Dee Dee Warwick Delia Juanita Warrick (September 25, 1942 – October 18, 2008), known professionally as Dee Dee Warwick, was an American soul singer. Born in East Orange, New Jersey, she was the sister of singer Dionne Warwick, the niece of Cissy Houston, a ...

and

Doris Duke Doris Duke (November 22, 1912 – October 28, 1993) was an American billionaire tobacco heiress, philanthropist, and socialite. She was often called "the richest girl in the world". Her great wealth, luxurious lifestyle, and love life attracted ...

, including Warwick's 1970 hit, "She Didn’t Know (She Kept on Talking)". Releasing only one single on Dynamo, Whitehead followed Williams when he left for

Canyon Records Canyon Records of Phoenix, Arizona, is a record label that has produced and distributed Native American music for 56 years. History Canyon was founded in 1951 by Ray and Mary Boley, who had opened the first recording studio in Phoenix, Arizon ...

. In 1970, using the name Raw Spitt, Whitehead released a self-titled album, produced and mostly written by Williams. An additional song recorded for, but not included on the album, "Songs to Sing" was also released as a single on

United Artists United Artists (UA) is an American film production and film distribution, distribution company owned by Amazon MGM Studios. In its original operating period, it was founded in February 1919 by Charlie Chaplin, D. W. Griffith, Mary Pickford an ...

. Whitehead released some material under his own name on Williams' Stone Dogg Records and in 1973, the album ''Charlie Whitehead and the Swamp Dogg Band'' on Williams' Fungus Records. In 1975, he made the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' R&B chart with "Love Being Your Fool" on

Island Records Island Records is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded in Jamaica by Chris Blackwell, Graeme Goodall, and Leslie Kong in 1959, and was eventually sold to PolyGram in 1989. Island and A&M Records, another ...

. He released one more album, 1977's ''Whitehead at Yellowstone'' before dropping from view. A CD compiling ''Raw Spitt'', ''Charlie Whitehead and the Swamp Dogg Band'', and various non-album tracks—called ''Songs to Sing: The Charlie Whitehead Anthology''—was released by Ace Records in 2006. Whitehead died in

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

, on June 26, 2015, at the age of 72.

References

External links

* 1942 births 2015 deaths American soul singers Songwriters from Virginia People from Franklin, Virginia Alive Naturalsound Records artists African-American male songwriters 20th-century African-American male singers 20th-century American male singers 20th-century American singers {{US-singer-stub