singer; songwriter; bandleader; music producer
Personal Information
Born in September of 1944, in Galveston, TX; died on July 4, 2003, in Los Angeles, CA; son of Melvin (a machinist) and Sadie Marie Carter (an actress and piano teacher) White; married Betty Smith (divorced); married Glodean James, 1973 (divorced, 1988); children: nine from various marriages and relationships.
Career
Sang with groups the Upfronts and the Atlantics, 1960s; Del-Fi, Mustang, and Bronco Records, songwriter, producer, A&R rep, 1960s; signed with 20th Century Records, 1972; Love Unlimited, producer and songwriter, 1972-79; solo singer, 1973-83, 1987-2003; Love Unlimited Orchestra, leader and producer, 1974-83.
Life's Work
Over the years people have come up with almost as many nicknames for Barry White as he has gold and platinum records. From Dr. Love to the Prince of Pillow Talk, he has heard it all. With his signature lushly orchestrated compositions and basso-profundo voice, White carved out a niche for himself in the 1970s as a disco king, and again in the 1990s as the father of the slow jam. As Ebony's Kevin Chappell summed it up, "He's come back strong, captivating a new generation of romantics with his unique brand of toe-curling, make-you-want-to-love-somebody ballads that give men courage and women chills."
White was born Barry Eugene Carter in September of 1944, in Galveston, Texas, but only because his mother, Sadie Marie Carter, had extended a family visit there. He was raised in California in the Watts area of south Los Angeles. White's father, machinist Melvin White, who already had a wife and children across town, never married Sadie Marie but was around occasionally. When White started school, his father happened to catch a glimpse of the boy's birth certificate with the name Carter on it. He crossed it out and wrote in White.
Youth Filled With Crime and Music
Sadie Marie had been forced onto welfare when chronic arthritis ended her three-film acting career. She gave piano lessons; and she taught White how to harmonize when he was just four. "I stayed glued to the phonograph when Mama played her records--symphonies, sonatas, melodies soaring through me," he told David Ritz for his press materials. He took up piano by age five after hearing his mother play Beethoven's "Moonlight Sonata" on their $50-upright piano. "That blew my mind," he told People's Jeremy Helligar. "I will never forget that day." But he also remembered to Michael A. Gonzales in Vibe, "My mother tried to teach me the scales, but I told her I wanted to learn it my way. One of the greatest gifts she gave me was when she said okay." White never did learn to read or write music, but he did become a multi-instrumentalist who can simultaneously create and arrang! e music in his head.
White had a brother just 13 months younger than he, though they looked like twins. Unfortunately Darryl liked trouble as much as White loved music. Growing up in Watts during the 1950s and 1960s, both boys easily found trouble. They were in and out of gangs, but were mostly considered a gang of two. Darryl went to jail--juvenile detention--for the first time when he was just eight. White himself went at age 16 after stealing thousands of dollars' worth of tires from Cadillacs on a lot. When he got out after seven months he vowed to never go to jail again.
White's voice had changed virtually over night, from the regular treble of a high school teen into a bass like he had never heard before. "It scared me and my mother when I spoke that morning," he told Chappell in Ebony. "It was totally unexpected. My chest rattled; I mean vibrations. My mother was staring at me, and I was staring at her. The next thing I knew her straight face broke into a beautiful smile. Tears came down her face and she said, 'My son's a man now.'" When some of the kids from John Adams Junior High formed a harmony group called the Upfronts, White was a natural choice for bass. They even recorded a song called "Little Girl." His mom kept a copy for his entire life.
Transitioned From Songwriter to Singer
After the Upfronts, White joined a quartet called the Atlantics, followed by a stint playing drums for Jackie Lee. He then went on to work for Bob Keene at his many labels--Del-Fi, Mustang, and Bronco Records--as a songwriter, producer, and A&R guy. But none of this was coming easily and White was struggling. He married his high school sweetheart, Betty Smith, fathered four children, and got divorced, all before the age of 21. He dropped out of high school in his senior year and supported his family mainly on low-wage jobs and welfare checks. His marriage failed under the strain of poverty.
In 1972 White finally got his first real break after years of struggling at the bottom rung of the recording industry's ladder. Having made somewhat of a reputation as a songwriter--he even wrote two songs for the kids show The Banana Splits--White signed a contract with 20th Century Records. He recorded the lilting instrumental "Love's Theme" with his newly formed Love Unlimited Orchestra. As he gained notice for his composing, White put together a girls' group called Love Unlimited. Under his tutelage their trio struck gold with their 1972 million-selling record "Walkin' in the Rain with the One I Love," penned by White. In 1973 White fell in love with one of his trio of singers, Glodean James, and they married.
Meanwhile the man most famous for his singing voice had yet to get around to solo work. Although it was never his first love--he really preferred writing, producing, and arranging--White finally got his solo recording career rolling in 1973 with his first number-one hit, "I'm Gonna Love You Just a Little More Baby." He sold $16 million worth of his music in 1973 alone.
"Critics argued," wrote Vibe's Gonzales, "that White's sound was overly repetitive and lacked the kind of social consciousness that fueled the works of Curtis Mayfield or power crooners like the man then known as Theodore Pendergrass, Jr. [Teddy Pendergrass]." From the beginning skeptics said his popularity could not last. Ebony quoted a 1974 reviewer calling White "a limited performer capitalizing on a gimmick" with his deep voice; but White was unstoppable, as was Love Unlimited. During the 1970s White had dozens of gold and platinum smashes including "Never Gonna Give You Up," "Ecstasy," and "I've Got So Much To Give."
Gained Fans With Unique Voice
Listeners could not get enough of White's voice; and his songs were the essence of seduction. The lyrics are not shocking by the standards of the 1990s; they are simply verbal foreplay backed up by heady swirling orchestrations. He was perhaps most famous when he simply spoke words of love during his songs, as if he were speaking directly to a single listener; and words of love were all he ever sang about. Although White had strong political feelings--he had a portrait of civil rights leader Malcolm X hanging in his living room--these are issues he rarely spoke about in the press, and never about in his work.
Not only did White's music become huge in the 1970s, it catapulted him to the lofty role of King of Disco. Every generation has had its dance music, and in the 1970s it was disco; artists like Donna Summer, the Bee Gees, and Abba had people dancing, but to White's music, they mostly made love. Jet quoted writer Adrian Deevoy as having said, "When he sings, strong men tremble and ladies are transported up the stairway of unparalleled ecstasy," and "children, they say, are often conceived that very night."
But in 1979 White left 20th Century and signed a lucrative contract with CBS Records. He felt strongly that the vibe was changing and record companies were ignoring it. To Ritz he said, "At that point, disco was exploited and overexposed, raped and ruined by a business that never knows when to stop. I listened to my accountants and lawyers. I signed the contract and put the advance in the bank, but inside my heart I felt something was wrong." This $8 million deal included White's own label, Unlimited Gold. Although he produced around ten albums on that label, for which he was credited with flashes of brilliance, sales were weak. White's relationship with CBS was not strong and in four years he failed to have any hits in the United States, something he still blames on the record company.
White knew that music was changing and all he wanted was to learn the new technologies of the 1980s. "I was locked into one style of recording.... In the middle of my 40s I had to shift my mind without losing my soul," he told Chappell. Although even after his contract with CBS Records and the fact that disco itself seemed to have gone by the wayside, offers still poured in for White but he would have none of it. He had saved enough money that he would be fine on his own, figuring out where the future of his music lay.
The 1980s were also difficult in other ways for White. In December of 1983 White's brother Darryl was murdered on the streets of south central Los Angeles. Although White had predicted such an occurrence, it was no less devastating to him. "No one could understand the bond between me and Darryl," he told Ritz. "I struggled to understand the forces that drove his soul in one direction and mine in another. That struggle continues." In 1988 White and his wife Glodean were divorced. By then music was his closest friend, and it had become time for that music to live again.
In 1987 White released The Right Night on A&M Records, a strong company in which White had confidence. Chappell said the album "successfully used the technology White had once so greatly feared without changing the music that made him famous." Skeptics wondered if White could survive the disco backlash that had slapped down recent comeback albums by the Bee Gees and Donna Summer. Although that album did not catch on, 1989's Barry White: The Man Is Back became a steady seller on the soul market.
"The Man Is Back"
With the 1990s, dance music returned and a great many young soul singers--black and white, in England and the United States--started touting Barry White as one of their greatest influences. In 1990 White won a Grammy award for his part in the Quincy Jones-produced song "Secret Garden." In 1991 Put Me in Your Mix fueled the fire, but it was his 1994 album The Icon Is Love that really caused White to explode full-force back on the scene.
Suddenly the big man was back in the U.S. spotlight--he had never really gone away to the rest of the world. The single "Practice What You Preach" became his first number-one hit in 17 years. He was all over television with his more sophisticated, but always sexy, 1990s look. He even appeared on David Letterman's late night talk show twice in one month, which was a rare occurrence for any artist. Valentine's Day saw him plugging prime time television shows with a message of love. Everybody was thrilled to see "Dr. Feel Good" back on top.
White knew what he was doing. He had embraced the new music technologies of the 1980s and he looked to young people, collaborating with hit-makers like Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis, and Gerald Levert & Tony Nicholas, as well as with his musical godson Chuckii Booker, and longtime musical partner Jack Perry. "I chose these people to work with," he told BRE, "because they are all masters at what they do." According to BRE, "In White's wise eyes, these producers are among the few who hold the future of black music in their hands."
White did not respect a good many of the young artists making music in the 1990s because they couldn't craft songs. But he did see a difference between his generation and the new generation of young stars--when he was a kid they burned Watts during the riots, but 1990s ghetto kids invented rap music. White realized that there were still kids killing each other, but there were also young people letting their anger out in song, taking power, and creating a place for themselves in the record industry. That was why White needed to learn what was new, because he knew change was inevitable. This resulted in his soulful slow raps being laid over a hip-hop beat.
As White's star grew bright again, so did disco, as did most everything representing the 1970s. He had reclaimed his old fans as well as picking up a younger set. And he still had that voice. As Jonathan Gold described a concert in the Los Angeles Times, "His basso molto profundo [was] so awesome that he could have read the phone book and gotten an ovation."
"The song is the most important thing. That hasn't changed," he told Dennis Hunt in the Los Angeles Times. "As long as I can still write a song, there'll be a place for me in music." Although he told Chappell in Ebony, "I don't know how much longer I'll be around, but when I leave next time that'll be it," he assured Jeremy Helligar in People, "I've got everything. Coming from the ghettos of Los Angeles, I've turned my life from negative to positive. I've lived. I've made my mark. I'm probably the happiest being you'll ever set with in your life."
And White's popularity continued to increase. He released the album Staying Power in 1999 for which he received Grammy Awards for both Best Male R&B Vocal Performance and Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance. He followed the success of his new album with his autobiography, Unlimited: Insights on Life and Love, co-written with Marc Eliot. In 2000 he was invited to join the ranks of such greats as W. B. Yeats, David Lloyd George, and Archbishop Desmond Tutu in being invited to speak at the prestigious Oxford Union Debating Society. And what did he talk about? Love. And what did the students think of him? "'I thought he was brilliant,' said student Elizabeth Hunt, 19," according to People Weekly. And that wasn't the end. Pavarotti invited White to sing with him for his annual charity concert "Pavarotti and Friends," a high honor for any performer, and one for which White received critical acclai! m. He also received a lot of exposure to a whole new generation through the television series Ally McBeal, in which one of the characters, John Cage, was constantly singing his songs to make himself feel better, sometimes accompanied by White himself. White was also seen, or at least heard, on Behind the Music, the popular show The Simpsons, and in a string of commercials for the fast food restaurant Arby's.
Unfortunately, White's health was not keeping up with the pace of his life. White was forced to cancel seven concerts when he went on tour in 1999 because his doctor told him the stress was causing him harm. Then White had a stroke in September of 2002, which left him hospitalized. On July 4, 2003, White died in Los Angeles of kidney failure. He was only 58 years old. Ally McBeal creator David E. Kelley put it well when he told Entertainment Weekly, "Bigger than life, [Barry White] was a legend who made us all smile." And he is certainly one who will not soon be forgotten.
Awards
Grammy Awards for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance and Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance, for Staying Power, 1999.
Works
Selected discography
Solo performances- I've Got So Much to Give, 20th Century, 1973.
- Can't Get Enough, 20th Century, 1974.
- Just Another Way to Say I Love You, 20th Century, 1975.
- Barry White's Greatest Hits, 20th Century, 1975.
- Let the Music Play, 20th Century, 1976.
- Is This Whatcha Wont?, 20th Century, 1976.
- Barry White Sings For Someone You Love, 20th Century, 1977.
- The Man, 20th Century, 1978.
- I Love to Sing The Songs I Sing, 20th Century, 1979.
- Barry White's Greatest Hits, Volume 2, 20th Century, 1980.
- The Message Is Love, Unlimited Gold, 1979.
- Sheet Music, Unlimited Gold, 1980.
- Barry & Glodean, Unlimited Gold, 1981.
- Beware!, Unlimited Gold, 1981.
- Change, Unlimited Gold, 1982.
- Dedicated, Unlimited Gold, 1983.
- The Right Night & Barry White, A&M, 1987.
- The Man Is Back!, A&M, 1989.
- Put Me in Your Mix, A&M, 1991.
- The Icon Is Love, A&M, 1994.
- Staying Power, Private Music, 1999.
- The Best of Barry White, Island/UMe, 2003.
As producer for Love Unlimited- From a Girl's Point of View We Give To You ..., Uni, 1972.
- Under the Influence of ..., 20th Century, 1973.
- In Heat, 20th Century, 1974.
- He's All I've Got, Unlimited Gold, 1977.
- Love Is Back, Unlimited Gold, 1979.
As producer and leader of Love Unlimited Orchestra- Rhapsody in White, 20th Century, 1974.
- Together Brothers--Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, 20th Century, 1974.
- White Gold, 20th Century, 1974.
- Music Maestro Please, 20th Century, 1975.
- My Sweet Summer Suite, 20th Century, 1976.
- My Musical Bouquet, 20th Century, 1978.
- Super Movie Themes, Just a Little Bit Different, 20th Century, 1979.
- Let Em Dance!, Unlimited Gold, 1981.
- Welcome Aboard (Presents Mr. Webster Lewis), Unlimited Gold, 1981.
- Rise, Unlimited Gold, 1983.
Further Reading
Books
- Contemporary Authors, Gale, 2003.
- St. James Encyclopedia of Popular Culture, St. James Press, 2000.
Periodicals- Advertising Age, April 16, 2001, p. 8.
- Billboard, December 24, 1994; July 3, 1999, p. 24; September 25, 1999, p. 96.
- BRE, October 28, 1994, pp. 23-26.
- Business Wire, February 23, 2000.
- Ebony, March 1990, p. 24; May 1995, pp. 52-58.
- Entertainment Weekly, October 21, 1994, p. 66; November 12, 1999, p. 74; July 18, 2003, p. 17.
- Europe Intelligence Wire, November 1, 2002.
- Jet, July 30, 1990, p. 37; January 9, 1995, pp. 54-58; December 11, 1995, p. 32; August 23, 1999, p. 39; June 18, 2001, p. 44; June 2, 2003, p. 53.
- Knight Ridder/Tribune News Service, June 20, 1996.
- Los Angeles Times, November 12, 1987; July 7, 1990, p. F5; July 10, 1990, p. F9.
- New York Times, July 9, 1995, sec. 2, p. 29; July 14, 1995, C3.
- People, January 23, 1995, pp. 66-67.
- People Weekly, January 22, 1996, p. 80; October 23, 2000, p. 21; July 21, 2003, p. 71.
- PR Newswire, December 1, 2000; July 10, 2003; July 23, 2003.
- Rolling Stone, February 9, 1995, p. 30.
- United Press International, July 6, 2003.
- Vibe, February 1995, pp. 60-61.
Other- Additional information for this profile was obtained from A&M Records press materials, 1992 and 1994.
— Joanna Rubiner and Catherine V. Donaldson
