Percy Sledge
Percy Sledge | |
---|---|
Background information | |
Birth name | Percy Tyrone Sledge |
Born | Leighton, Alabama, U.S. | November 25, 1940
Died | April 14, 2015 Baton Rouge, Louisiana, U.S. | (aged 74)
Genres | R&B, soul, traditional pop |
Instrument(s) | Vocals |
Years active | 1960–2014 |
Labels | Atlantic, Capricorn, Monument, Point Blank, Diablo Records, Sledgehammer Records, Virgin |
Percy Tyrone Sledge (November 25, 1940 – April 14, 2015) was an American
After working as a hospital orderly in the early 1960s, Sledge achieved his greatest success in the late 1960s and early 1970s with a series of emotional soul songs. In 1989, Sledge received the
Biography
Early career
Sledge was born on November 25, 1940, in Leighton, Alabama.[1][2] He worked in a series of agricultural jobs in the fields near Leighton, before taking a job as an orderly at Colbert County Hospital in Sheffield, Alabama. Through the mid-1960s, he toured the Southeast with the Esquires Combo on weekends,[3] while working at the hospital during the week. A former patient and mutual friend of Sledge and record producer Quin Ivy introduced the two. An audition followed, and Sledge was signed to a recording contract.[4]
Sledge's soulful voice was perfect for the series of soul
Sledge charted with "I'll Be Your Everything" and "Sunshine" during the 1970s, and became an international concert favorite throughout the world, especially in the Netherlands, Germany, and on the African continent; he averaged 100 concerts a year in apartheid-era South Africa.[8][9]
Later career
Sledge's career enjoyed a renaissance in the 1980s when "When a Man Loves a Woman" re-entered the
In 1994, Saul Davis and
In 2004, Davis and Goldberg also produced the Shining Through the Rain album, which preceded his induction into the
In May 2007, Percy was inducted into The Louisiana Music Hall Of Fame in Baton Rouge, LA.
In December 2010,
Personal life
Sledge married twice and had twelve children, three of whom became singers.[12]
Death
Sledge died of
Accolades
Sledge was:
- An inaugural Rhythm and Blues Foundation Pioneer Award honoree in 1989.[15]
- Inducted into the Alabama Music Hall of Fame in 1993.[16]
- The recipient of the Blues Music Award in 1996 for best Soul/Blues album of the year with his record Blue Night.[15]
- Inducted into the Carolina Beach Music Hall of Fame in November 2004.[17]
- Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2005.[9]
- Inducted into the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame for his contributions by the State of Louisiana in May 2007.[15]
- Inducted into the Delta Music Museum in Ferriday, Louisiana.[15]
- In 2021, Inducted into the National Rhythm & Blues Hall of Fame.
- In 2022 Sledge's hometown of Leighton, Alabama announced it would be having an annual event labeled as "Sledgefest".
Selected discography
Albums
Year | Title | Chart positions | Label | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
US 200 [18] |
US R&B [18] |
UK [19] | |||
1966 | When a Man Loves a Woman | 37 | 2 | — | Atlantic 8125 |
Warm & Tender Soul | 136 | 9 | — | Atlantic 8132 | |
1967 | The Percy Sledge Way | 178 | — | — | Atlantic 8146 |
1968 | Take Time to Know Her | 148 | 27 | — | Atlantic 8180 |
The Best of Percy Sledge | 133 | 27 | — | Atlantic 8210 | |
1970 | Percy Sledge in South Africa | — | — | — | Atlantic ATC 9257 |
1974 | I'll Be Your Everything | — | 48 | — | Capricorn CP 0147 |
1987 | When a Man Loves a Woman (The Ultimate Collection) | — | — | 36 | Atlantic |
1994 | Blue Night | — | — | — | Sky Ranch Records/Virgin |
2004 | Shining Through the Rain | — | — | — | Varèse Sarabande |
2013 | The Gospel of Percy Sledge | — | — | — | Elevate |
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory. |
Singles
Year | Title | Chart positions | Certifications
| |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
US Hot 100 [18] |
US R&B [18] |
CAN |
UK
[19] | |||
1966 | "When a Man Loves a Woman" | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | |
"Warm and Tender Love" | 17 | 5 | 10 | 34 | ||
"It Tears Me Up" | 20 | 7 | 12 | — | ||
1967 | "Baby, Help Me" | 87 | 44 | — | — | |
"Out of Left Field" | 59 | 25 | — | — | ||
"Love Me Tender" (A-Side) | 40 | 35 | 35 | — | ||
→ "What Am I Living For" (B-Side) | 91 | — | — | — | ||
" Just Out of Reach (of My Two Empty Arms) "
|
66 | — | — | — | ||
"Cover Me" | 42 | 39 | — | — | ||
1968 | "Take Time to Know Her" | 11 | 6 | 5 | — | |
"Sudden Stop" | 63 | 41 | — | — | ||
"You're All Around Me" | 109 | — | — | — | ||
1969 | "My Special Prayer" | 93 | 44 | — | — | |
"Any Day Now" (A-Side) | 86 | 35 | — | — | ||
→ "The Angels Listened In" (B-Side) | 126 | — | — | — | ||
"Kind Woman" | 116 | — | — | — | ||
"True Love Travels on a Gravel Road" | — | — | — | — | ||
1970 | "Many Rivers to Cross" | — | — | — | — | |
"Help Me Make It Through the Night" | — | — | — | — | ||
1971 | "Stop the World Tonight" | — | — | — | — | |
1972 | "Rainbow Road" | — | — | — | — | |
"Sunday Brother" | — | — | — | — | ||
1973 | "Sunshine" | — | 89 | — | — | |
1974 | "I'll Be Your Everything" | 62 | 15 | — | — | |
1987 | "When a Man Loves a Woman" (Re-issue) | — | — | — | 2 | |
Source:[3] "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory. |
- 1994: "I Wish It Would Rain" (Sky Ranch / Virgin, Sweden) duet with Mikael Rickfors produced by Saul Davis & Barry Goldberg.
- 1994 "You Got Away with Love" (Pat Robinson & Rocky Burnette) / "Why Did You Stop?" (Carla Olson) (Sky Ranch / Virgin, France) produced by Saul Davis & Barry Goldberg.[3]
In popular culture
Sledge is sometimes cited as the inspiration behind the
References
- ^ "PERCY SLEDGE Alabama Black History Month". Alabama Local News. Archived from the original on December 3, 2013. Retrieved September 6, 2021.
- ^ "Percy Sledge". Museum of the Gulf Coast. Archived from the original on April 26, 2012. Retrieved September 6, 2021.
- ^ ISBN 1-84195-017-3.
- ^ Aswell, Tom. "Louisiana Music Hall of Fame - Percy Sledge - 2007". Louisiana Music Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on August 14, 2011. Retrieved February 25, 2008..
- ^ "Percy Sledge, Who Sang 'When a Man Loves a Woman,' Dies". ABC News. Archived from the original on April 15, 2015. Retrieved April 14, 2015.
- ^ a b "Percy Sledge". Rockhall.com. Retrieved February 3, 2010.
- ISBN 0-214-20512-6.
- ^ "Percy Sledge, When a Man Loves a Woman singer, dead at 74". CBC News. Archived from the original on April 29, 2015. Retrieved April 14, 2015.
- ^ a b "Soul singer Percy Sledge dies aged 74". BBC News. April 14, 2015. Retrieved April 14, 2015.
- ^ Campbell, Al. "Shining Through the Rain". AllMusic. Retrieved April 14, 2015.
- ^ Hann, Michael (October 27, 2011). "Cliff Richard – review". The Guardian. Retrieved April 14, 2015.
- ^ Roberts, Frank (September 18, 2008). "Sledge's 'When a Man Loves a Woman' hit it big". HamptonRoads.com. Archived from the original on April 14, 2015.
- Washington Post. Retrieved April 15, 2015.
- ^ "Percy Sledge Obituary - Baton Rouge, LA". Obits.theadvocate.com.
- ^ a b c d "Soul singer Percy Sledge dies at 73". Irish Examiner. April 14, 2015. Retrieved April 14, 2015.
- ^ "Alabama Music Hall of Fame :: Percy Sledge". Alamhof.org. Archived from the original on September 18, 2012. Retrieved October 26, 2017.
- ^ "CBMA Hall of Fame". Cammy.org. Retrieved February 3, 2010.
- ^ a b c d "Percy Sledge - Awards". AllMusic. Archived from the original on November 5, 2013. Retrieved March 24, 2022.
- ^ ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
- ^ "Percy Sledge—When a Man Loves a Woman". bpi.co.uk. Retrieved August 21, 2022.
- ^ Bull, Andy (October 18, 2016). "Cricket's laboured 'art' of sledging has been going downhill for years | The Spin". The Guardian. Retrieved September 25, 2018.
External links
- Percy Sledge at IMDb
- Percy Sledge at AllMusic
- Percy Sledge discography at Discogs
- "Percy Sledge". Find a Grave. Retrieved April 14, 2015.