Ronald White
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Ronald White
- Genres: Rhythm & Blues
Biography
Ronald White, along with Smokey Robinson, was one of the founding members of the Motown group the Miracles. He co-wrote with Robinson the classics "My Girl," "Don't Look Back," and "You Beat Me to the Punch." He also played a key role in the career of Stevie Wonder. Robinson met White when both were preteens. White was the neighborhood paper boy. As adults, the two recorded as the duo Ron and Bill for Chess Records.White, Robinson, Bobby Rogers, Pete Moore, and Claudette Rogers founded the Matadors in 1955 while still in high school in Detroit, MI. They later became the Miracles and, after 1967, Smokey Robinson and the Miracles. The group was among the first that Berry Gordy signed to his Motown record label. White co-wrote "You Beat Me to the Punch," a number one R&B/number nine pop hit for Mary Wells. The Temptations' recording of "My Girl" parked at number one R&B for six weeks and went to number one pop on Billboard's charts in early 1965. It was included on the album The Temptations Sing Smokey, which held the number one R&B spot for 18 weeks and made it to number 35 pop in spring 1965. A sample from "My Girl" was used as the basis of the group's hit "Stay" from their 1998 platinum album Phoenix Rising. Another Temptations hit White co-wrote, "Don't Look Back," the flip side of "My Baby" (number four R&B), made it to number 15 R&B in late 1965 and was on the LP Temptin' Temptations. They were also featured in the high-rated 1999 NBC-TV bio series The Temptations. After being bolstered by his little brother, White brought 11-year-old Stevie Wonder to the attention of Berry Gordy.
Robinson and White also collaborated on "Fork in ihe Road," the radio-aired B-side of "Tears of a Clown," a 1965 number two R&B hit for Smokey Robinson and the Miracles. Other songs White co-wrote include "Got a Job" and "Bad Girl" for the Miracles and "One More Heartache" for a 1966 number four R&B smash for Marvin Gaye.
A Ronald White-related release is the movie soundtrack to My Girl. At the age of 57, Ronald White died on August 26, 1995, at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, MI. ~ Ed Hogan, Rovi
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Ronald White
For other people named Ronald or Ronnie White, see Ronald White (disambiguation).
| Ronald White | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Ronald White |
| Born | April 5, 1939 Detroit, Michigan, United States |
| Died | August 26, 1995 (aged 56) |
| Occupations | Singer, Songwriter, Entrepreneur |
| Years active | 1955–1995 |
| Associated acts | The Miracles |
Ronald "Ronnie" White (5 April 1939 – 26 August 1995) was an African American soul singer and songwriter, notable as a founding member of The Miracles, and the only member to survive all of that group's line-up changes. He is also noted as the man who discovered Stevie Wonder, then White's 11-year-old neighbor, and brought him to the attention of Motown head, Berry Gordy Jr.
White was a childhood friend of fellow Miracle William "Smokey" Robinson. The pair began singing together in grade school and released a few singles while with the Miracles as a duo called Ron & Bill.[1]
White collaborated with Robinson on several of his most notable compositions, including The Temptations' "Don't Look Back" and their #1 hit "My Girl"; Marvin Gaye's Top-10 "Ain't That Peculiar"; and Mary Wells' Top-10 "You Beat Me To The Punch".
White died of leukemia in August 1995. His first wife, Earlyn, with whom he had two daughters, Michelle and Pamela, succumbed to breast cancer several years earlier. White was also predeceased by his first-born, Michelle, who, like him, died of leukemia. White is survived by his second wife, Gloria, daughter Pamela White English (and her daughter Maya), and son Ronnie White II.
White can be seen performing with the Miracles on the 2006 DVD release: Smokey Robinson & The Miracles:The Definitive Performances 1963-1987 and in The T.A.M.I. Show (1964).
In 1987, Smokey Robinson was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a solo artist. Controversially, Ronnie White and the other original members of The Miracles, Bobby Rogers, Marv Tarplin, Pete Moore and Claudette Robinson, were not.[2] They would later be retroactively inducted into the hall by a special committee in 2012, alongside Smokey Robinson.
White was posthumously awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on 20 March 2009 along with the other original members of The Miracles. His second wife, Gloria, daughter Pamela, and granddaughter Maya were present. He has also been a winner of The BMI Award for Songwriting.[3]
On February 9th 2012, it was announced that Ronnie White would be posthumously inducted with the rest of The Miracles into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.[1]
References
- ^ Smokey Robinson and David Ritz, Smokey: Inside My Life.
- ^ "The Miracles", Not in Hall of Fame, accessed 16 November 2011.
- ^ Ebony, October 1971, p. 169.
External links
- Ronald White at Find a Grave
- Ronnie White, songwriter, co-founder of Motown group The Miracles, dies in Detroit
- Ronnie White of The Miracles eulogy, from The New York Daily News
- From the New York Daily News: The Death of Miracle Ronnie White
- A Tribute to Miracle Ronnie White...from the Soulful Detroit website
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