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Biography
about|the singer|the New Hampshire state representative|Gene G. ChandlerBLP sources|date=December 2011Infobox musical artist|name = Gene Chandler|image =|caption =|background = solo_singer|birth_name = Eugene Dixon|birth_date = Birth date and age|mf=yes|1937|7|6|birth_place = Chicago , Illinois , United States|genre = Rhythm and blues|R& B , soul music|soul |occupation = Singer-songwriter , record producer , record company executive|years_active = 1957& ndash;present|Aliases = "The Duke of Earl", "The Duke"|First_album = Duke of Earl |Notable songs = " Duke of Earl "|website = http://www.genechandler.com/ www.genechandler.com Gene Chandler (born Eugene Dixon , July 6, 1937)citation|url=Allmusic|class=artist|id=p3869/biography|pure_url=yes| author=Unterberger, Richie| title=Gene Chandler, biography|publisher=allmusic.com| accessdate=2010-11-02 also known as "The Duke of Earl" or simply "The Duke" , is an American R& B and soul singer-songwriter, producer and record executive. He is one of the leading exponents of the 1960s Chicago soul scene. He is best known for his million-selling hits, " Duke Of Earl ," and " Groovy Situation ," and his associations with the Dukays , the Impressions and Curtis Mayfield . A Grammy Hall Of Fame inductee, and winner of the NationalAssociation of Television and Radio Announcers Producer of the Year Award, and the Rhythm and Blues Foundation 's Pioneer Award, and one of the few artists to chart hit records during the doo-wop , rhythm and blues , Soul music|soul , and disco eras. Between 1961 and 1986 Chandler has had forty Pop and R& B record chart|chart hits.
Early years
Chandler attended Englewood High School on Chicago 's south side. He began performing in the early 1950s with the Gaytones. In 1957, he joined a doo-wop group, The Dukays , with James Lowe, Shirley Jones, Earl Edwards (songwriter)|Earl Edwards and Ben Broyles, soon becoming their lead singer. After his draft into the United States Army|US Army he returned to Chicago in 1960 and rejoined the Dukays.
Career
The Dukays were offered a recording contract by Nat Records and recorded a single with producers Carl Davis and Bill "Bunky" Sheppard, "The Girl Is a Devil" (1961). This recording was followed with a session in August 1961 with four sides, most notably "Nite Owl" and "Duke of Earl." Nat Records chose to release "Nite Owl," and it became a sizable r& b hit at the end of 1961. Meanwhile, Davis and Sheppard shopped the "Duke of Earl" recording to Vee-Jay Records , which picked it but released it as by a solo artist, Eugene Dixon, who was renamed "Gene Chandler." "Duke of Earl" sold a million copies in just over one month. http://www.livinblues.com/bluesrooms/genechandler.asp Livinblues.com
After spending three weeks at Chart-topper|number one on the Billboard Magazine charts, Chandler purchased a cape, a monocle , a top hat and a Cane (tool)|cane and became "The Duke of Earl". Chandler can be seen in the full 'Duke' outfit singing "The Duke of Earl" in the movie '' Don't Knock the Twist '' 1962, starring Chubby Checker . His concerts became popular and he performed encores, usually "Rainbow '65," one of his collaborations with Curtis Mayfield . This song was recorded by Chandler three times during his career, becoming a hit each time.
Chandler left Vee-Jay Records|Vee Jay in the fall of 1963 and recorded for Constellation Records . After Constellation went under in 1966, he was signed first to Chess Records and then Brunswick Records . For a time Chess and Brunswick alternated with each other when releasing Chandler's recordings. He had a Top 20 Pop hits on Constellation with "Just Be True" (1964) and "Nothing Can Stop Me" (1965), both songs written by Curtis Mayfield and produced by Carl Davis. Other hits included "What Now", "Rainbow", "I Fooled You This Time", "Think Nothing About It"', "A Man's Temptation", "To Be A Lover", "Rainbow '65" (recorded live at Chicago's Regal Theater), "Bless Our Love", and "You Can't Hurt Me No More." These songs enabled Gene to successfully shed his "Duke Of Earl" typecasting, and go on to become a major R& B star.cite web|url= http://www.enotes.com/topic/Gene_Chandler |title=Gene Chandler - eNotes.com Reference |publisher=Enotes.com |date= |accessdate=2012-05-05 Chandler also had success with his hit cover version|cover of James Brown 's "There Was A Time" and "You Threw A Lucky Punch", which was released as an "answer" song to Mary Wells 's Motown Records|Motown hit "You Beat Me To The Punch". In 1970, Chandler recorded the album Gene and Jerry: One on One , with Jerry Butler (singer)|Jerry Butler .
After a number of years on the road, Chandler decided to become more involved with production of music. He produced, wrote, arranged and had a major hit with "Groovy Situation" (1970), which reached #12 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and #8 on the Billboard (magazine)|Billboard Hot R& B/Hip-Hop Songs|R& B chart, becoming his second biggest hit since "Duke Of Earl". "Groovy Situation" sold more than a million copies, and received a music recording sales certification|gold disc awarded by the Recording Industry Association of America|R.I.A.A. in November 1970.cite book | first= Joseph | last= Murrells | year= 1978 | title= The Book of Golden Discs | edition= 2nd | publisher= Barrie and Jenkins Ltd | location= London | page= 275 | isbn= 0-214-20512-6
The hits he recorded and produced earned him The NationalAssociation of Television and Radio Announcers Producer of the Year Award in 1970, against competition from other nominees including Kenneth Gamble , Leon Huff and Norman Whitfield .cite web|url= http://www.soulwalking.co.uk/Gene%20Chandler.html |title=Gene Chandler Page |publisher=Soulwalking.co.uk |date=1937-07-06 |accessdate=2012-05-05 He also appeared with The Impressions and Curtis Mayfield on the live album Curtis in Chicago (1973). Chandler appeared on Arthur Louis 's album ''Knocking on Heaven's Door'' (1974) alongside Eric Clapton . Later he had success with disco music, creating hits such as "Get Down" (1978), "When You're #1", "Does She Have A Friend? " and "Rainbow '80". During this time he was also the Executive Vice President of Chi Sound Records and worked with reggae star Johnny Nash . In the late 1970s, an interest in older musicians inspired the US Disc jockey|DJ WolfmanJack to put together a tour including vintage acts such as Chandler.
"Duke of Earl" was sampling (music)|sampled by Cypress Hill , on the song "Hand on the Pump" from their album Cypress Hill (album)|Cypress Hill (1991); plus Chandler's song "Hallelujah, I Love Her So" was sampled on their album Black Sunday (album)|Black Sunday (1993). In Argentina, where :es:Cris Morena|Cris Morena was the host of a popular teenage programe Jugate Conmigo , the song was included on the main intro on the fiction novel, inside the program called: "Life College" (1994). In 1997, Chandler was inducted as a Pioneer Award honoree into the Rhythm and Blues Foundation . Chandler's "Tomorrow I May Not Feel the Same" was sampled by ReflectionEternal on the song "Ghetto Afterlife" from Train of Thought (Reflection Eternal album)|Train of Thought (2000).
In 1988, "Duke of Earl" was included on the soundtrack of Hairspray (1988 film)|Hairspray . "Groovy Situation" appeared on Anchorman: Music from the Motion Picture (2004). In 2002, "Duke Of Earl" was inducted into the List of Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients A-D|Grammy Hall Of Fame . http://www.grammy.org/recording-academy/awards/hall-of-fame#d Grammy Hall of Fame Groovemaster K. and 88-Keys sampled Chandler's "When You're #1" for their song "Frisco Disco".cite web|url=Allmusic|class=artist|id=p3869|pure_url=yes|title=Gene Chandler, credits|publisher=allmusic.com| accessdate=2010-11-02 His smash # 1 hit "Duke Of Earl" has also been selected by The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as one of the 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll . http://www.scribd.com/doc/86280552/500-Songs-That-Shaped-Rock-Roll http://www.futurerocklegends.com/The_Songs_That_Shaped_Rock_and_Roll.php
Chandler still performs in Chicago, Las Vegas Valley|Las Vegas and elsewhere in the US.
Discography
Chart singles
Year
Single
Chart Positions
US Pop cite book
US R& B cite book
UK cite book
1961
"The Girl's A Devil" The Dukays
64
-
-
1962
" Duke of Earl "
1
1
-
"Nite Owl" The Dukays
73
-
-
"Walk On With The Duke" The Duke of Earl
91
-
-
"Rainbow" / "You Threw A Lucky Punch"
47 49
11 25
-
1963
"Man's Temptation"
71
17
-
1964
"Soul Hootenanny"
92
n/ aNo Billboard R& B chart was published during this period
http://www.youtube.com/watch? v=j9PoUsRibtE Duke Of Earl vintage 1962 video- YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch? v=obaugJUClr8 Nothing Can Stop Me - Gene Chandler (1965) YouTube video
http://www.youtube.com/watch? v=OCc4EWp5RBo There Was A Time (live in England- early 1990s)-by Gene Chandler - YouTube video
http://www.youtube.com/watch? v=Gh32LxsH98U& feature=PlayList& p=5DD3D020883F9D70& playnext=1& playnext_from=PL& index=20 Duke Of Earl -by Gene Chandler (live-early 2000s)
http://www.soulwalking.co.uk/Gene%20Chandler.html Gene Chandler - A history on the Soulwalking U.K. website
Persondata | NAME = Chandler, Gene | ALTERNATIVE NAMES = | SHORT DESCRIPTION = | DATE OF BIRTH = 1937-07-06 | PLACE OF BIRTH = Chicago , Illinois , United States | DATE OF DEATH = | PLACE OF DEATH = DEFAULTSORT:Chandler, Gene Category:1937 births Category:Living people Category:African American singers Category:American rhythm and blues singers Category:American rhythm and blues musicians Category:American soul musicians Category:People from Chicago, Illinois Category:Vee-Jay Records artists Category:Northern soul musicians Category:Wearers of monocles
