Tyrone "Ty" Hunter (July 14, 1940 – February 24, 1981) was an American R&B singer best known for his work as solo artist on Anna Records, Chess Records, and Check Mate Records. Hunter became a member of The Glass House on the Invictus Records label. Hunter later became member of the Originals on the Motown label, charting hits such as the #1 Dance hit, "Down to Love Town" and R&B hit, "Oooh, You Put a Crush On Me."

Biography

Born in

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

, he formed the Counts at Mackenzie High School. His bandmates were

Leon Ware Leon Ware (February 16, 1940 – February 23, 2017) was an American songwriter, producer, composer, and singer. Besides a solo career as a performer, Ware was best known for producing hits for other artists including Michael Jackson, Quincy ...

Lamont Dozier Lamont Herbert Dozier (; June 16, 1941 – August 8, 2022) was an American singer, songwriter, and record producer from Detroit. He co-wrote and produced 14 US '' Billboard'' number-one hits and four number ones in the UK. Career Dozier was a ...

, Gene Dyer, and Kenny Johnson. The group later changed their name to the Romeos, and the group later evolved as a trio. They recorded four singles for Fox Records in 1957, and briefly for

Atco Records ATCO Records is an American record label founded in 1955. It is owned by Warner Music Group and operates as an imprint of Atlantic Records. After several decades of dormancy and infrequent activity under alternating Warner Music labels, the com ...

, however they disbanded later. He joined the Voice Masters, and his bandmates were Lamont Dozier, Walter Gaines, C.P. Spencer, Melvin Franklin, and

David Ruffin David Eli Ruffin (born Davis Eli Ruffin;Ribowsky, p. 88 January 18, 1941 – June 1, 1991) was an American soul singer most famous for his work as one of the lead singers of the Temptations (1964–1968) during the group's "Classic Five" p ...

. They secured a recording deal with

Gwen Gordy Fuqua Gwen Fuqua (born Gwendolyn Gordy; November 26, 1927 – November 8, 1999) was an American businesswoman, songwriter and composer, most notably writing hit songs such as " Lonely Teardrops", " All I Could Do Was Cry" and " Distant Lover". She ac ...

's Anna Records, with a single, "Benny the Skinny Man", however it did not chart. In 1961, the group disbanded after Dozier left to join

Motown Motown is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. Founded by Berry Gordy, Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on January 12, 1959, it was incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau ...

, and when Anna Records merged with Motown. Hunter and the Voice Masters had a hit with "Everything About You" in 1960, which peaked at No. 18 on the R&B charts. Another single, "Free", peaked at No. 110 on the Bubbling Under chart. He had another hit in 1962 with "Lonely Baby", which peaked at No. 22 on the R&B charts. After that, he joined the Glass House, who scored a hit with "Crumbs Off the Table". By 1971, he joined the Originals. At the same time,

Scherrie Payne Scherrie Ann Payne (born November 4, 1944) is an American singer. Payne is best known as a member and the co lead singer of the R&B/Soul vocal group the Supremes from 1973 until 1977. Payne is the younger sister of singer Freda Payne. Payne con ...

, who was a member, joined

the Supremes The Supremes were an American girl group formed in Detroit, Michigan, in 1959 as the Primettes. A premier act of Motown Records during the 1960s, the Supremes were the most commercially successful of Motown's acts and the most successful Amer ...

Personal life and death

Ty had a son, Ty Hunter Jr., who followed his path of music, and his beloved daughter, Nora Dawn Hunter remained in Los Angeles in the remaining years of his life. He died on February 24, 1981 at

UCLA Medical Center Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center (also commonly referred to as UCLA Medical Center, RRMC or Ronald Reagan) is a hospital located on the campus of the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), in Westwood, Los Angeles, California, United S ...

in Los Angeles, California of

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma, is a malignant tumor that begins in the lung. Lung cancer is caused by genetic damage to the DNA of cells in the airways, often caused by cigarette smoking or inhaling damaging chemicals. Damaged ...

. His wife "Moonyean" preceded him in death, and he was survived by his son Tyrone Hunter Jr. and daughter Nora Hunter. His memorial service was held in Detroit. Ty Hunter was buried at Forest Lawn, Hollywood Hills.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hunter, Ty 1940 births 1981 deaths Singers from Detroit 20th-century African-American male singers 20th-century American male singers 20th-century American singers