Wilson, Jackie

Wilson, Jackie enormously successful and influential R&B singer of the late 1950s and early 1960s; b. Detroit, Mich., June 9, 1934; d. Mount Holly, N.J., Jan. 21, 1984. A Golden Gloves boxing champion in Detroit at the age of 16, Jackie Wilson was “discovered” by Johnny Otis at a talent show in 1951. He sang with The Thrillers, an R&B quartet, and recorded for Dizzy Gillespie’s Dee Gee label, eventually replacing Clyde McPhatter in Billy Ward’s Dominoes in 1953. The group’s first release with Wilson, “You Can’t Keep a Good Man Down,” became a near-smash R&B hit and was soon followed by the R&B smash “Rags to Riches.” Wilson was lead singer on The Dominoes first pop hit, “St. Thérèse of the Roses” in 1956, but opted for a solo career in late 1957, to be replaced by Eugene Mumford.

Signing with Brunswick Records, Jackie Wilson recorded in N.Y. and soon achieved a minor pop hit with “Reet Petite,” co-written by Berry Gordy Jr., who later formed the immensely successful Motown organization. Gordy also co-wrote Wilson’s major pop and R&B smash hits “To Be Loved,” “That’s Why” and “I’ll Be Satisfied,” and his top R&B and smash pop hit classic “Lonely Teardrops.” Wilson also appeared in the 1959 film Go, Johnny, Go, singing “You’d Better Know It.”

Performing engagements at major Los Angeles, Las Vegas and N.Y. nightclubs and recording a variety of material, including bland pop material and classical adaptations such as “Night,” “Alone at Last” and “My Empty Arms,” Jackie Wilson suffered through intrusive arrangements and critical neglect in the early 1960s. Nonetheless, he scored four two-sided crossover hits in 1960-61 with “Night”/“Doggin’ Around,” “(You Were Made for) All My Love”/”A Woman, a Lover, a Friend,” “Alone at Last”/”Am I the Man,” and “My Empty Arms”/The Tear of the Year.” “Night” was a pop smash, while “Alone at Last” and “My Empty Arms” were near-smash pop hits. “Doggin’ Around” and “A Woman, a Lover, a Friend” were top R&B hits. Later in 1961 Wilson achieved major pop and R&B hits with “Please Tell Me Why” and “I’m Comin’ Back to You,” followed by the moderate pop hits “Years from Now” and “The Greatest Hurt.” He subsequently formed a songwriting partnership with Alonzo Tucker that yielded a top R&B and smash pop hit with “Baby Workout” in 1963. Later major R&B and moderate pop hits included “Shake a Hand” (with Linda Hopkins) and “Shake! Shake! Shake!” Although he continued to score hits over the next three years, Jackie Wilson didn’t achieve another major pop and smash R&B hit until he began recording in Chicago with producer Carl Davis. Under Davis, Wilson staged a dramatic comeback with “Whispers (Gettin’ Louder)”; the classic “(Your Love Keeps Lifting Me) Higher and Higher,” a top R&B and smash pop hit; and “I Get the Sweetest Feeling.” He recorded with Count Basie in 1968 and managed his last near-smash R&B and moderate pop hit with late 1970’s “This Love Is Real” He was subsequently relegated to the oldies revival circuit, despite continued R&B hits into 1975. On the night of Sept. 29,1975, while performing at the Latin Casino near Cherry Hill, N.J., Wilson had a massive heart attack that left him in a coma. He remained hospitalized until his eventual death on Jan. 21, 1984, at the age of 49. Jackie Wilson was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987.

Discography

BILLY WARD AND THE DOMINOES: Billy Ward and The Dominoes (1956); 21 Original Greatest Hits Featuring Clyde McPhatter and Jackie Wilson (1960); 14 Hits (1951-1965) (1977); 14 Original Greatest Hits (1978); 21 Hits (1977); Sixty Minute Man: The Best of Billy Ward and The Dominoes; Meet Billy Ward and His Dominoes (1993). THE DOMINOES: Have Mercy Baby (1985). IACKIE WILSON AND THE DOMINOES: 14 Hits (1977). JACKIE WILSON: He’s So Fine (1958); Lonely Teardrops (1959); So Much (1960); Sings the Blues (1960); My Golden Favorites (1960); A Woman, a Lover, a Friend (1960); You Ain’t Heard Nothin’ Yet (1961); By Special Request (1961); Body and Soul (1962); Sings the World’s Greatest Melodies (1962); At the Copa (1962); Baby Workout (1963); Merry Christmas (1963); My Golden Favorites, Vol. 2 (1964); Somethin’ Else (1964); Soul Time (1965); Spotlight on Jackie Wilson (1965); Soul Galore (1966); Whispers (1967); Higher and Higher (1967); 7 Get the Sweetest Feeling (1968); Greatest Hits (1969); Do Your Thing (1969); It’s All a Part of Love (1970); You Got Me Walking (1971); This Love Is Real (1973); Beautiful Day (1973); Nowstalgia (1974); Nobody but You (1977); The Jackie Wilson Story (1983); The Jackie Wilson Story, Vol. 2 (1985); The Soul Years (1966); Reet Petite (1985); Very Best (1987); Through the Years: A Collection of Rare Album Tracks and Single Sides (1987); Merry Christmas from Jackie Wilson (1991); Mr. Excitement (1992); Very Best (1994). JACKIE WILSON AND LINDA HOPKINS: Shake a Hand (1963). JACKIE WILSON AND COUNT BASIE: Manufacturers of Soul (1968).

—Brock Helander