Luther Ronzoni Vandross (1951 - 2005) is one of the most renowned R&B singers from the late twentieth century. He initially sang in the background choir for artists including David Bowie, performed as lead singer with the group Change, and later broke through as a solo artist. He won no fewer than eight Grammys and sold over 25 million records.
Luther Vandross began to break through as a singer with the group Change, but his real success started when he embarked on a solo career. In the 1980s, he released 'Never Too Much', 'Power of Love/Love Power', 'If Only For One Night' and 'Here and Now'. He won four Grammy Awards in the category Best Male R&B Vocal Performance. Later, with the song 'Dance With My Father', he won another four Grammys. In the 1990s, he scored hits with artists including Janet Jackson and, his biggest hit in the Netherlands, with Mariah Carey.
Luther Vandross suffered from diabetes. On 16 April 2003, he suffered a stroke from which he never fully recovered. He ultimately passed away two years later at the age of 54 in a hospital. In 2014, he was posthumously awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Top 2000
Unfortunately, we see no entries for Luther in the latest Top 2000. You might almost want to start a campaign because the man certainly deserves a place.
Sunday Morning Classic: Never Too Much
On 7 February 2021, Luther was our guest for Sunday Morning Classic.
Vandross was huge in the 1980s, but it was this album that marked the beginning of a brilliant solo career where soul, disco, funk and old-fashioned singing merged. The most important aspect of Vandross is, of course, his silky smooth voice.
The opening track of this album is the title track "Never Too Much". This is perhaps the most well-known song Vandross ever released, and even fans of non-soul music will probably know this song, given its heavy airplay over the past 30 years.
"Sugar and Spice" is another beautiful track. The live instrumentation feel of this song makes it.
"Don't You Know That" is a wonderfully beautiful song. It is a love song, but one of reaffirmation. His partner should already know how much he loves her, and the question he asks in the chorus "Don't you know that?" is tinged with a sadness she is unaware of.
On 'I've Been Working', Vandross seems to answer questions about not having a relationship and essentially leading a single life when it comes to romantic involvement. He basically says he has been working and needs some love tonight.
"She's A Supa Lady" features one of the all-time favourite bass guitar riffs. The bassline starts the song and for 35 seconds it’s all about the standard drum sound, with the bass finishing it off.
"You Stopped Loving Me" is a Motown-influenced track. Luther Vandross wrote the song for Roberta Flack, who performed it for the soundtrack of the film 'Bustin' Loose'.
The album closes with a cover of Burt Bacharach’s “A House Is Not A Home”. Vandross takes this song to a completely different place. Never has a song of over 7 minutes felt so short.
Luther Vandross was always praised as a brilliant singer – both in recordings and live performances. But he was never considered an 'album' artist like Marvin Gaye or Stevie Wonder. Perhaps it was because he was around in the 1980s and early 1990s, when soul music began to delve into more disco-oriented sounds that were not taken seriously by the music press. That’s a shame, because this album is simply fantastic. It lasts only 36 minutes but is packed with quality. There isn’t a track you’d skip, and that’s always high praise for any album.
Source: Jan Liebregts and NPO Photo: ModernAbolitionist
