The Life and Times of Dan Seals ~ 2/8/1948 – 3/25/2009

The Life and imes of Remembering Dan Seals Dan Seals, a revered pop and later, country music star, who lent his voice to fans around the world for over four decades, passed away on March 25, 2009, in Nashville, Tennessee after a battle with lymphoma. He was 61. The younger brother of Seals & Crofts member Jim Seals, he first gained fame as the England Dan half of the soft rock duo England Dan and John Ford Coley. However Dan found greater commercial success and popularity after changing directions and breaking into the country music field as a solo artist. Born in McCamey, TX, on February 2, 1948, his brother was Jim Seals, later of another successful soft rock duo, Seals & Crofts. Both brothers played music with their parents in the Seals Family Band, with Dan learning string bass. After their parents divorced, Dan spent several years moving around with his mother. They eventually settled in Dallas, Texas in 1958. Seals spent his teen years playing in garage bands with classmate John Coley. They formed a group with three other students called the Playboys. Seals’ cousins include country music artists Johnny Duncan (10/5/1938 – 8/14/ 2006), Troy Seals and Brady Seals (Little Texas). Seals and Coley left the group to form a duo in 1969. They kicked around for a while, landing an early-1970s contract with A&M Records that fell apart. They finally hit big with the soft rock hits, I’d Really Love to See You Tonight (No. 1, 1976), Nights Are Forever Without You (No. 6, 1976 …
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Biography by Steve Huey: Best remembered for her number one R&B hit “Rockin’ Chair” from 1975, Gwen McCrae was a gutsy Southern soul diva with a particular affinity for dance tracks. Along with her husband George (“Rock Your Baby”), Gwen was part of the Miami-based TK Records stable, which laid a great deal of groundwork for the disco explosion. Born Gwen Mosley in Pensacola, FL, in 1943, she grew up singing in her Pentecostal church and later discovered secular singers like Sam Cooke and Aretha Franklin. She began performing in local clubs as a teenager, also singing with local groups like the Lafayettes and the Independents. In 1963, she met a young Navy sailor named George McCrae, whom she married within a week. When George was discharged, he re-formed an earlier group he’d sung with called the Jivin’ Jets, and invited Gwen to join as well. Soon, however, George and Gwen split off to form a duo — aptly dubbed George & Gwen — and moved to West Palm Beach to perform in clubs all over South Florida. George & Gwen were discovered in 1967 by singer Betty Wright, who helped get them signed to Henry Stone’s Alston label. Their debut single, “Three Hearts in a Tangle,” was released in 1969; the follow-up, “Like Yesterday Our Love Is Gone,” marked the first time they worked with the writing team of Clarence Reid (who would later morph into the bawdy comic Blowfly) and Willie Clarke. Both were regional hits, as was third single, “No One Left to Come Home,” although none of …
Video Rating: 5 / 5