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5 May 1938, Crawfordsville,
Arkansas, USA. Having left home at the age of 15, Taylor
surfaced as part of several gospel groups, including the
Five Echoes and the Highway QCs. From there he joined the
Soul Stirrers, replacing Sam Cooke on the
latter's recommendation. Taylor switched to secular music
in 1961; releases on Cooke's Sar and Derby labels
betrayed his mentor's obvious influence. In 1965 he
signed with Stax Records and had several R&B
hits before 'Who's Making Love' (1968) crossed over into Billboard
's pop Top 5. Further releases, including 'Take Care Of
Your Homework' (1969), 'I Believe In You (You Believe In
Me)' and 'Cheaper To Keep Her' (both 1973), continued
this success. Taylor maintained his momentum on a move to
Columbia. The felicitous 'Disco Lady' (1976) was
the first single to be certified platinum by the RIAA,
but although subsequent releases reached the R&B
chart they fared less well with the wider audience.
Following a short spell with Beverley Glenn, the singer
found an ideal niche on Malaco Records, a bastion
for traditional southern soul. Taylor's first album
there, This Is The Night (1984), reaffirmed his
gritty, blues-edged approach, a feature consolidated on Wall
To Wall, Lover Boy and Crazy 'Bout You.
It is Wanted: One Soul Singer, Who's Making
Love and Taylored In Silk that best illustrate
his lengthy period at Stax. Taylor had one of the great
voices of the era: expressive graceful and smooth, and
yet it is a mystery why he failed to reach the heights of
the likes of Otis Redding, Marvin Gaye and Wilson
Pickett. Somebody's Gettin' It compiles
several Columbia recordings while Taylor's early work on
Sar can be found on The Roots Of Johnnie Taylor.
In 1996 Taylor experienced something of a revival when
his Malaco album Good Love! became a huge hit and
reached the top of the Billboard blues chart. |
