Gene Chandler
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Biography
R&B singer, songwriter, and producer Eugene Dixon â better known as Gene Chandler â was born on July 6, 1937 in Chicago, Illinois. He is best known for his singles âDuke of Earlâ and âGroovy Situationâ. His musical career began in the early â50s performing with the band The Gaytones. He then joined The Dukays in 1957, eventually moving into the lead singer position. He was drafted into the U.S. Army but was discharged in 1960 and returned to The Dukays line-up. The group recorded their debut single, âThe Girl Is a Devilâ, which was released in 1961. They went into the studio again and recorded four tracks. The first single from these sessions was âNite Owlâ, which reached Number 73 on the chart. One of the other tracks from that recording session was âDuke of Earlâ, which was released as a solo track on Vee Jay Records under the artist name Gene Chandler. The âDuke of Earlâ single became a huge hit, selling a million copies in a month. Chandler released his debut album, The Duke of Earl, in 1962. After the big success of the single, and his popular live show, Chandler left Vee Jay and signed with Constellation Records. He scored hits with two songs written by Curtis Mayfield - âJust Be Trueâ (1964) and âNothing Can Stop Meâ (1965). Signing to Chess Records and Brunswick Records, he continued to release charting singles but they barely entered the Top 50. His album releases were less prolific than his single releases, only releasing a total of seven albums throughout the â60s. In 1970, he released the single âGroovy Situationâ, which reached Number 12, his highest selling single since âDuke of Earlâ. During this period, he began to focus on production, setting up his own production company and two record labels â Bamboo Records and Mister Chand Records. Chandler produced Mel & Timâs single âBackfield in Motionâ, which reached the Top 10 on Billboardâs Hot 100 chart. He continued to work behind the scenes as well as release his own records. During the rest of his career, he was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame, won the National Association of Television and Radio Announcerâs Producer of the Year Award as well as the Rhythm and Blues Foundationâs Pioneer Award. In August 2014, he was inducted into the Rhythm and Blues Music Hall of Fame.
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Albums
Top Tracks
- Track Popularity
- Duke of Earl
- I Fooled You This Time
- Groovy Situation
- I'm The Traveling Kind
- I Wake Up Crying
- Turn On Your Love Light
- Mr. Big Shot
- To Be A Lover
- Festival Of Love
- Daddy's Home
- Get Down
- Duke of Earl
- I Can Take Care of Myself
- Stand By Me
- Walk On With The Duke
- London Town
- Moon Of Manakoora
- So Many Ways
- Lonely Island
- The Big Lie
- Such a Pretty Thing
- Kissin' in the Kitchen
- Nite Owl
- I'll Follow You
