Luther Vandross passes at 54
By Bill Beene
Of the St. Louis American
Grammy award winner Luther Vandross, whose deep, lush voice on such hits as “Here and Now” and “Any Love” sold more than 25 million albums while providing the romantic backdrop for millions of couples worldwide, died last Friday. He was 54.
Vandross died at John F. Kennedy Medical Center in Edison, N.J., said hospital spokesman Rob Cavanaugh. He did not release the cause of death, but said in a statement that Vandross “never really recovered from” a stroke two years ago.
“I’m shell-shocked. It’s like when Tupac died – you walk around low and lamenting,” said Chaz Saunders, host of Majic 104.9’s Back in the Day Buffet, on which the legendary “Luther” had been a menu favorite.
“There’s no replacement; he was a once-in-a-lifetime voice. We’ve been playing Luther, and we’ll be playing him now that he is gone.”
Saunders recalled Luther as a grand showman, who incorporated humor and vocal antics in his concerts and brought his background singers to the forefront.
“I’ve never seen anyone showcase their background singers like Luther -they were co-singing with him, not just on stage, but on albums,” Saunders said.
Saunders, who was part of the staff at Majic 104.9 that sent Vandross a birthday song-gram sung by listeners this year, also recalled him as the “king of remakes.”
“He recreated it, and it was born again,” Saunders said.
Since the stroke in his Manhattan home on April 16, 2003, the R&B crooner stopped making public appearances, but managed to continue his recording career. In 2004, he captured four Grammys as a sentimental favorite, including best song for the bittersweet “Dance With My Father.”
Vandross also battled weight problems for years while suffering from diabetes and hypertension.
He was arguably the most celebrated R&B balladeer of his generation. He made women swoon with his silky yet forceful tenor, which he often revved up like a motor engine before reaching his beautiful crescendos.
Jeff O’Conner, Vandross’ publicist, said he received condolence calls Friday from music luminaries such as Aretha Franklin, Patti LaBelle, Michael Jackson and Quincy Jones.
Singer Roberta Flack, on tour in Japan, said she was mourning the loss of her friend of more than 20 years.
“He was a musician who couldn’t help but give you all he had,” she said. “He was the kind of guy who was born to do what he did musically and let the world know about it. He was not born to keep it smothered in the chest.”
Vandross was a four-time Grammy winner in the best male R&B performance category, taking home the trophy in 1990 for the single “Here and Now,” in 1991 for his album “Power of Love,” in 1996 for the track “Your Secret Love” and a last time for “Dance With My Father.”
The album, with its single of the same name, debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard charts while Vandross remained hospitalized from his stroke. It was the first time a Vandross album had topped the charts in its first week of release.
Vandross’ sound harkened back to a more genteel era of crooning. While many of his contemporaries and successors belted out tunes that were sexually explicit, Vandross preferred soft pillow talk and songs that spoke to heartfelt emotions.
“‘I’m more into poetry and metaphor, and I would much rather imply something rather than to blatantly state it,” he said.
A career in music seemed predestined for the New York native; both his parents were singers, and his sister, Patricia, was part of a 1950s group called the Crests.
He toiled in the musical background for years before his first hit. He wrote songs for projects as varied as David Bowie and the Broadway musical The Wiz, sang backup for Donna Summer and Barbra Streisand, and even became a leading commercial jingle singer.
Vandross credited Flack for prodding him to move into the spotlight after listening to one of his future hits, “Never Too Much.”
“She started crying,” he recalled. “She said, ‘I’m going to introduce you to some people and get your career started.'”
Vandross’ first big hit came as the lead vocalist for the group Change, with their 1980 hit, “The Glow of Love.” That led to a recording contract with Epic Records, and in 1981, he made his solo recording debut with the disc Never Too Much. The album, which contained his aching rendition of “A House is Not a Home,” became an instant classic.
Additional reporting provided by the NNPA.
