Donny Hathaway
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Donny Hathaway | |
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Background information | |
Birth name | Donny Edward Hathaway |
Also known as | Donny Pitts |
Born | Chicago, Illinois, U.S. | October 1, 1945
Origin | St. Louis, Missouri, U.S. |
Died | January 13, 1979 New York City, New York, U.S. | (aged 33)
Genres | |
Occupation(s) |
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Instrument(s) |
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Years active | 1967–1979 |
Labels |
Donny Edward Hathaway (October 1, 1945 – January 13, 1979)
Early life
Hathaway, the son of Drusella Huntley, was born into an
Career
Hathaway worked as a songwriter, session musician, and producer for
That year, Hathaway signed to Atco Records, then a division of Atlantic Records, after being spotted for the label by producer/musician King Curtis at a trade convention. He released his first single of note, "The Ghetto, Pt. 1", which he co-wrote with former Howard roommate Leroy Hutson, who became a performer, writer, and producer with Curtom. The track appeared the following year on his critically acclaimed debut LP, Everything Is Everything, which he co-produced with Ric Powell while also arranging all the cuts.
His second LP,
Perhaps Hathaway's most influential recording is his 1972 album, Live, which has been termed "one of the best live albums ever recorded" by Daryl Easlea of the BBC.[14] The album is on the British online music and culture magazine The Quietus' list of "40 Favourite Live Albums".[15] It was recorded at two concerts: side one at the Troubadour in Hollywood, and side two at The Bitter End in Greenwich Village, Manhattan.
Hathaway was the co-composer and performer of the Christmas standard, "
Hathaway followed this flurry of work with contributions to soundtracks, along with his recording of the
His final studio album, Extension of a Man came out in 1973 with two tracks, "Love Love Love" and "I Love You More Than You'll Ever Know" reaching both the pop and R&B charts. It also included his classic ballad, "Someday We'll All Be Free" and a six-minute symphonic-styled instrumental piece called "I Love The Lord, He Heard My Cry". He told UK music journalist David Nathan in 1973, "I always liked pretty music and I've always wanted to write it." Added the writer, "He declined to give one particular influence or inspiration but said that Ravel, Debussy and Stravinsky were amongst whom he studied."[16]
He returned to the charts in 1978 after again teaming up with Roberta Flack for a duet, "The Closer I Get to You" on her album, Blue Lights in the Basement. The song topped the R&B chart and reached the No. 2 spot on the Hot 100.[17] Atlantic then put out another solo single, "You Were Meant For Me" shortly before his sudden death.
Liner notes for later releases of his final solo album explain: "Donny is no longer here, but the song "Someday We'll All Be Free" gathers momentum as part of his legacy... Donny literally sat in the studio and cried when he heard the playback of his final mix. It's pretty special when an artist can create something that wipes them out." Edward Howard, lyricist of the song, adds, "It was a spiritual thing for me... What was going through my mind at the time was Donny, because Donny was a very troubled person. I hoped that at some point he would be released from all that he was going through. There was nothing I could do but write something that might be encouraging for him. He's a good leader for young black men".
Personal life
Family
In 1967, Hathaway married Eulaulah Vann.[18] The two met while attending Howard University where both were studying music.[18] They had two daughters, Eulaulah Donyll (Lalah) and Kenya Canc'Libra. Lalah has enjoyed a successful solo career, while Kenya is a session singer and one of the three backing vocalists on the hit TV program American Idol. Both daughters are graduates of the Berklee College of Music.[19][20][11]
Mental illness
During the peak of his career, Hathaway began experiencing severe bouts of depression and exhibiting unusual behavior.[
Death
Sessions for another album of duets were underway in 1979. On January 13, Hathaway began a recording session with producers/musicians Eric Mercury and James Mtume. Each reported that although Hathaway was singing fine, he began behaving irrationally, seeming to be paranoid and delusional. According to Mtume, Hathaway said that white people were trying to kill him and had connected his brain to a machine for the purpose of stealing his music and his voice.[11] Given Hathaway's behavior, Mercury said that he decided the recording session could not continue, so he aborted it and all of the musicians went home.[11]
Hours later, Hathaway was found dead on the pavement below the window of his 15th-floor room in New York City's Essex House hotel at 160 Central Park South.[1][21] It was reported that he had jumped from his balcony.[22] The glass had been neatly removed from the window and there were no signs of a struggle, leading investigators to rule that Hathaway's death was a suicide.[23] Flack was devastated and, spurred by his death, included the few duet tracks they had finished on her next album, Roberta Flack Featuring Donny Hathaway. According to Mercury, Hathaway's final recording, included on that album, was "You Are My Heaven", a song Mercury co-wrote with Stevie Wonder.
Hathaway's funeral was conducted by the Reverend Jesse Jackson.[10] Later in 1979, the Whispers recorded the tribute song "Song for Donny" for their self-titled album. The song reached No. 21 on the R&B chart. That same year, they used that tribute song's arrangement to do a cover of Hathaway's song "This Christmas", included on their Christmas album, Happy Holidays to You.
Influence
According to Allison Keyes from
Discography
Studio albums
Year | Album | Chart positions | Certifications | Record label | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
US [17] |
US R&B [17] |
AUS [28] |
UK [29] | ||||
1970 | Everything Is Everything | 73 | 33 | — | — | — | Atco |
1971 | Donny Hathaway | 89 | 6 | — | — | — | |
1972 | Roberta Flack & Donny Hathaway | 3 | 2 | 22 | 31 |
|
Atlantic |
1973 | Extension of a Man | 69 | 18 | — | — | — | Atco |
Live albums
Year | Album | Chart positions | Certifications | Record label | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
US [17] |
US R&B [17] | ||||
1972 | Live | 18 | 4 |
|
Atco |
1980 | In Performance | 201 | 68 | — | Atlantic |
2004 | These Songs for You, Live! | — | 78 | — | |
2014 | Live at the Bitter End, 1971 | — | — | — | |
"—" denotes the album failed to chart or was not certified |
Soundtrack albums
Year | Album | Chart positions | Record label |
---|---|---|---|
US [17] | |||
1972 | Come Back Charleston Blue | 198 | Atco |
Compilation albums
Year | Album | Chart positions | Record label | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
US [17] |
US R&B [17] |
KOR (Int.)
[31] | |||
1972 | The Most Beautiful Songs of Roberta Flack and Donny Hathaway | — | — | — | Atlantic |
1978 | The Best of Donny Hathaway | — | 51 | — | Atco |
1990 | A Donny Hathaway Collection | 108 [32] |
— | — | Atlantic |
2000 | Free Soul: The Classic of Donny Hathaway | — | — | — | WEA Int'l |
2010 | Someday We'll All Be Free | — | — | — | Atlantic |
Original Album Series | — | — | — | ||
2011 | Flashback with Donny Hathaway | — | — | — | |
2013 | Never My Love: The Anthology | — | — | 67 | Atco |
"—" denotes the album failed to chart or was not certified |
Singles
Year | Single | Chart positions | Certifications | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
US [33][17] |
US R&B
[17] |
US A/C [17] |
UK
[29] | |||
1969 | "I Thank You Baby" (with June Conquest) | — | 45 | — | — | |
1970 | "The Ghetto – Part 1" | 87 | 23 | — | — | |
"This Christmas" | 34 | — | — | 63 | ||
1971 | "You've Got a Friend" (with Roberta Flack) | 29 | 8 | 36 | — | |
"You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'" (with Roberta Flack) | 71 | 30 | — | — | ||
1972 | "Little Ghetto Boy" | 109 | 25 | — | — | |
"Giving Up" | 81 | 21 | — | — | ||
"I Thank You" (re-release) (with June Conquest) | 94 | 41 | — | — | ||
"Where Is the Love" (with Roberta Flack) | 5 | 1 | 1 | 29 |
| |
"Come Back Charleston Blue" (with Margie Joseph) | 102 | — | — | — | ||
"I Love You More Than You'll Ever Know" | 60 | 20 | — | — | ||
1973 | "Love, Love, Love" | 44 | 16 | — | — | |
"Come Little Children" | — | 67 | — | — | ||
1978 | "The Closer I Get to You" (with Roberta Flack) | 2 | 1 | 3 | 42 |
|
"You Were Meant for Me" | — | 17 | — | — | ||
1980 | "You Are My Heaven" (with Roberta Flack) | 47 | 8 | 46 | — | |
"Back Together Again" (with Roberta Flack) | 56 | 8 | — | 3 | ||
"—" denotes the single failed to chart or was not certified |
As guest
- Phil Upchurch – Upchurch (Cadet, 1969)
- Phil Upchurch – The Way I Feel (Cadet, 1970)
- Aretha Franklin – Young, Gifted and Black (Atlantic, 1972)
- Roberta Flack – Roberta Flack Featuring Donny Hathaway (Atlantic, 1980)
Tributes
- On the 1999 Rise album by Gabrielle, the track "When a Woman" references singing along to Roberta Flack and Donny Hathaway. Gabrielle also later went on to cover "This Christmas".
- On soul group the Whispers' 1979 self-titled album, the group paid homage with "Song for Donny", written by fellow soul singer Carrie Lucas. The song was set to the melody of Hathaway's "This Christmas".
- In 1999, Teddy Riley and Damion Hall
- In September 2001, Alicia Keys performed "Someday We'll All Be Free" on the 9/11 televised tribute concert America: A Tribute to Heroes.
- In 2005, neo-soul singer songwriter guitarist- Raul Midón (Blue Note) worked with Hathaway's longtime producer Arif Mardin (known for collaborations with the Bee Gees, Chaka Khan, Bette Midler, Norah Jones, and Aretha Franklin) and created a tribute song to Hathaway called "Sittin' in the Middle".
- In 2005, Donny Hathaway's standout version of the 1934 classic "For All We Know" was honored in a cover by R&B (Jive/RCA, Giant, Arista/Bad Boy) vocalist Anthony "Tony" Ulysses Thompson (1976-2007), on his Indie label (In-Depth) The Return album; Thompson's final solo-single recording, as tribute to Hathaway.
- In her 2006 song "Rehab", Amy Winehouse sings of learning from "Mr. Hathaway" instead of going to rehab.
- In 2007, Deniece Williams covered "Someday We'll All Be Free" for her Love, Niecy Style album. Williams later shared that she broke down in tears in the studio while recording.
- In 2008, Ed Pavlic published Winners Have Yet to Be Announced (University of Georgia Press), poems re-imagining the life of Donny Hathaway.
- The song "What a Catch, Donnie", from Fall Out Boy's fourth studio album, Folie à Deux (2008), is named for Hathaway and mentions Roberta Flack, his writing partner.
- Bizzy Bone's song entitled "A Song for You", is a track that includes an interpretation of Donny Hathaway's original recording of the same name.
- In 2010, Amy Winehouse sang one of Donny's songs, "We're Still Friends", for a live concert.
- In the 2013 song "Classic", band MKTO references writing songs "like Hathaway"
- In 2017, in the episode "The First Day of the Rest of Your Life" from AMC's The Walking Dead. The character of Sasha, played by Sonequa Martin-Green, dies by suicide while listening to "Someday We'll All Be Free."
- In 2019, in the episode "And Salt the Earth Behind You" from HBO's Euphoria. Hathaway's cover of "A Song for You" plays during a montage of the day of the death of the father of the character of Rue Bennett, played by Zendaya.
- In the 2019 song "Ladies, Ladies, Ladies", JID raps that he knew a girl who "used to love Donny Hathaway".
- In 2021, Hathaway's cover of John Lennon's "Jealous Guy" was used during the credits in episode 7 of the second season of Mythic Quest.[34]
References
- ^ ISBN 0-85112-733-9.
- Rolling Stone. November 8, 2013.
- ^ a b Lee Hildebrand (July 18, 2012). "Donny Hathaway: Live + In Performance". East Bay Express. Retrieved April 6, 2016.
- ^ "Shout! Factory to Reissue Two Acclaimed Donny Hathaway Live Albums July 17". allaboutjazz.com. July 12, 2012.
- ^ "Donny Hathaway". St. Louis Walk of Fame.
- ^ "Donny Hathaway". grammy.com. November 19, 2019. Archived from the original on July 17, 2020.
- ^ "Recording Academy™ to Honor Special Merit Awards Recipients With GRAMMY Salute to Music Legends™ on May 11" (Press release). PBS.
- ^ "Mister Soul – A Story About Donny Hathaway". IFFR. 2020. Archived from the original on September 19, 2020. Retrieved October 2, 2020.
- ISSN 0012-9011. Retrieved November 11, 2014.
- ^ a b c d e Tinsley, Justin (December 21, 2016). "Donny Hathaway's eternal Christmas gift". Andscape. ESPN Enterprises, Inc. Retrieved November 15, 2022.
- ^ TV One
- ^ Steve Huey, Rovi. "Donny Hathaway". VH1. Viacom International Inc. Archived from the original on August 22, 2002. Retrieved August 19, 2012.
- ISBN 0-214-20512-6.
- ^ "Music - Review of Donny Hathaway - Live". BBC. November 17, 1989. Retrieved August 26, 2015.
- ^ "Features | The Quietus Writers' 40 Favourite Live Albums". The Quietus. Retrieved August 26, 2015.
- ^ David Nathan (January 1, 2009). "Donny Hathaway: Reassessing His Musical Life". Soulmusic.com. Archived from the original on September 28, 2011. Retrieved August 19, 2012.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Donny Hathaway US chart history". AllMusic. Archived from the original on October 13, 2012. Retrieved March 9, 2011.
- ^ a b Edwards, Gavin (July 22, 2019). "Donny Hathaway's Daughter Lalah Is Finally Ready to Honor Him in Concert". The New York Times. Retrieved August 12, 2020.
- ^ Lordi, Emily (February 19, 2019). "Eulaulah Hathaway on Her Musical Marriage to Donny Hathaway". The New Yorker. newyorker.com. Retrieved August 12, 2020.
- ISBN 978-1-628-92981-2.
- ^ Goodman, Jr., George (January 15, 1979). "Donny Hathaway, 33, Pop and Blues Singer, Dead in Hotel Plunge". New York Times. Retrieved January 14, 2024.
- ^ Tobler, John (1992). NME Rock 'N' Roll Years (1st ed.). London: Reed International Books Ltd. p. 322. CN 5585.
- ^ "Medical Examiner Rules Hathaway Death A Suicide". books.google.com. Jet. February 15, 1979. Retrieved January 14, 2024.
- ^ a b Allison Keys (June 21, 2010). "Donny Hathaway: Neglected Heart Of Soul". National Public Radio. Retrieved April 6, 2016.
- ^ a b "100 Greatest Singers". Rolling Stone. December 2, 2010. Retrieved April 6, 2012.
- ^ "Island Records to release new Amy Winehouse album". National Post. October 31, 2011. Retrieved April 6, 2016.
- ISBN 0899190251. Retrieved March 15, 2017.
- ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
- ^ a b "Donny Hathaway - full Official Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 9, 2011.
- ^ a b c d "Donny Hathaway US certification history". riaa.com. Retrieved March 9, 2011.
- ^
- 2013: "Goan chart search: 2013: Donny Hathaway". Gaon(in Korean). Retrieved April 5, 2022.
- 2013: "Goan chart search: 2013: Donny Hathaway".
- ^ "Billboard 200 Chart: January 7, 2023". Billboard. Retrieved January 4, 2023.
- ^ "Donny Hathaway Chart History: Hot 100". Billboard. Retrieved January 3, 2024.
- ^ "Mythic Quest" Peter (TV Episode 2021) - IMDb, retrieved December 19, 2021
External links
- Donny Hathaway at AllMusic
- Donny Hathaway discography at Discogs
- Donny Hathaway at IMDb
- Donny Hathaway at Find a Grave