Line #16 Music/LutherVandross


1	[[quoteright:345:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/lutherv_1936.jpg]]
2	[floatboxright: Influences:
3	+ Music/ArethaFranklin, Music/DianaRoss, Music/MarvinGaye, Music/PattiLabelle, Music/StevieWonder, Music/DionneWarwick, Music/RobertaFlack, Music/DonnyHathaway, Music/NatKingCole, Music/SamCooke, Music/PeaboBryson, Music/DavidBowie, Music/BetteMidler]
4	[floatboxright:Influenced:
5	+ Music/{{Usher}}, Music/JohnLegend, Music/NeYo, Music/RubenStuddard, Music/DAngelo, Music/HootieAndTheBlowfish, Music/DariusRucker, Music/BoyzIIMen, Music/BrianMcKnight, Music/JohnnyGill]
6
7	->''Oh my love,\
8	A thousand kisses from you is never too much,\
9	I just don't wanna stop.\
10	Oh my love,\
11	A million days in your arms is never too much,\
12	I just don't wanna stop too much, never too much, never too much, never too much.''
13	-->-- "Never Too Much"
14
15	Luther Ronzoni Vandross Jr. (April 21, 1951 -- July 1, 2005) was one of the defining singers and songwriters of R&B[=/=]{{Soul}} during TheEighties and TheNineties. Inspired by '60s and '70s icons such as Music/TheSupremes, Music/PattiLaBelle, and Music/DionneWarwick, Vandross got his start by writing “Everybody Rejoice” for the musical (later movie) ''Theatre/TheWiz''.
16
17	His big break took place when Music/DavidBowie overheard Vandross discussing vocal arrangements with guitarist Carlos Alomar. Vandross was invited by Bowie to sing and arrange background vocals on his ''Music/YoungAmericans'' album. (He also co-wrote one of the album's songs, "Fascination.") Shortly thereafter, Vandross found fairly steady work as a background and commercial jingle singer [[note]]particularly for early 1980s Creator/{{NBC}}; that's him singing the male leads on [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5vf7VRpsPhs both]][[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hlqgLSPUk7g versions]] (1979 and 1980, respectively) of "Proud As A Peacock", as well as on [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5HstxMcO2K4 "Be There"]] from 1983[[/note]], earning the occasional featured vocal credit along the way.
18
19	In 1981, Vandross released his first solo album, ''Never Too Much'', which quickly found admiration among R&B fans. His next five albums, ''Forever, For Always, For Love''; ''Busy Body'', ''The Night I Fell In Love'', ''Give Me The Reason'', and ''Any Love'', were also extraordinarily popular. His music is known for being deeply romantic and sensual; it is often joked that if you were born in the '80s or early '90s, there's a chance you owe your conception to him.
20
21	Vandross, however, also sought crossover success. Later hits such as “Here and Now”, “Power of Love/Love Power”, “The Best Things In Life Are Free” (a duet with Music/JanetJackson), and “Endless Love” (a duet with Music/MariahCarey and cover of the Music/LionelRichie and Music/DianaRoss song) proved very popular with both pop and R&B audiences. The coveted #1 pop spot eluded Vandross until 2003, when he released the title track from his album ''Dance With My Father'', a tribute to his father who passed away when he was eight.
22
23	Unfortunately, his own health troubles -- he had a notorious love of extremely unhealthy food[[note]]The "Luther burger", a bacon double cheeseburger with grilled Krispy Kreme doughnut halves in place of a regular hamburger bun, was named after Vandross and maligned by [[WesternAnimation/TheBoondocks Aaron McGruder]][[/note]] and otherwise lived a very unhealthy lifestyle -- had taken a serious toll on him. Vandross suffered a stroke shortly after completing ''Dance With My Father'', leaving him unable to personally accept the four Grammy Awards he won that year.
24
25	Vandross died in July of 2005 at the age of 54, leaving behind heartbroken fans and a legacy as one of the greatest solo R&B artists of all time.
26
27	!!Discography:
28	* ''Never Too Much'' (1981)
29	* ''Forever, For Always, For Love'' (1982)
30	* ''Busy Body'' (1983)
31	* ''The Night I Fell in Love'' (1985)
32	* ''Give Me the Reason'' (1986)
33	* ''Any Love'' (1988)
34	* ''Power of Love'' (1991)
35	* ''Never Let Me Go'' (1993)
36	* ''Songs'' (1994)
37	* ''Your Secret Love'' (1996)
38	* ''I Know'' (1998)
39	* ''[[SelfTitledAlbum Luther Vandross]]'' (2001)
40	* ''Dance with My Father'' (2003)
41	----
42	!!Tropes
43
44	* EightiesHair: In the music video for "Stop to Love", backup singer Lisa Fischer's mohawk weave comes with its own laws of physics. Luther's Jheri curl is also an example, but it pales in comparison to the mohawk.
45	* ChromaKey: Notably averted in the music video for "Stop to Love". One may assume that he and his backup singers are in front of a blue screen, but they are actually performing on a flatbed truck driving through the streets of Los Angeles. You occasionally see their police escort in the background.
46	* TheCoverChangesTheGender: Averted, Vandross covered "Killing Me Softly with His Song" in 1994 and he did not change the gender of the subject in the song. Considering that he was a closeted gay man, and most of his songs are written with women as the object of affection, there's a possibility there was more to this decision besides just for the sake of tradition.
47	* CoverVersion: "A House is Not a Home" was originally sung by Music/DionneWarwick. It's arguable this is a case of CoveredUp [[invoked]] as Vandross's version is more well-known and was more successful.
48	* EpicRocking: His cover of "A House Is Not a Home" clocks in at 7:11, which is especially unusual because that is the radio version that gets played on oldies stations to this day.
49	* GoodParents: "Dance With My Father" is about how wonderful his father was and how much he wished he was still alive.
50	* LineOfSightName: Luther ''Ronzoni'' Vandross was so named because his mother saw a commercial for Ronzoni brand pasta in the hospital.
51	* MelismaticVocals: One of the more prominent male soul singer examples.
52	* SillyLoveSongs: A majority of his catalog is comprised of these.
53	* TransparentCloset: Luther Vandross never came out as gay while he was alive. Of course, that didn't stop the constant speculation in regards of his love life as he never married nor had children. A few of his closest friends did know, and after his death, Music/PattiLabelle would confirm that he was gay.
54	* TruckDriversGearChange: "Dance With My Father" goes from B♭ to C towards the end.

Context Music / LutherVandross