Brook Benton

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Brook Benton (born Benjamin Franklin Peay on September 19, 1931 in Camden , South Carolina , † April 9, 1988 in New York City ) was an American singer and songwriter . The African-American artist had with songs like It's Just a Matter of Time and Endlessly numerous, especially in the 1950s and -60er years crossover hits in the pop and rhythm - & - blues charts .

Life

Benton attended Jackson High School in Lugoff, South Carolina until 1947. During this time he first sang in the Efuces Methodist Church Choir and later joined the Camden Jubilee Singers gospel choir . In 1948 he moved to New York to work as a truck driver. He became a member of the Jerusalem Stars, a gospel choir led by later Drifters member Bill Pinkney. In 1955 he founded the rhythm and blues group The Sandmen, with which he also recorded two records for the record company Okeh Records , which were produced by the then 22-year-old Quincy Jones . In 1956 he brought out his first solo single with the title Bring Me Love / Some of My Best Friends with Okeh, now under his stage name Brook Benton . In the same year he worked with Little Richard and Chuck Berry in the music film Mr. Rock'n Roll . This was followed by two singles with Epic Records and in 1957 and 1958 four releases with the record company Vik Records . At Vik he got his entry into the Billboard Hot 100 in 1958 with the title A Million Miles from Nowhere, with the highest ranking at number 82.

At the same time, Benton joined Clyde Otis' songwriting team and wrote the hit titles Looking Back for Nat King Cole (Billboard # 6) and A Lover's Question for Clyde McPhatter . In addition, he made additional income with numerous demo versions. After a brief interlude with a record at the RCA Victor record company , Benton signed a long-term contract with Mercury Records in late 1958 . Already his first Mercury single was a great success, with the title It's Just a Matter of Time , written by the Otis team , he made it to 3rd place on the Hot 100 and 1st place in rhythm and blues -Charts. The single was sold over a million times. With the title Endlessly , a joint production by Otis and Benton, Benton entered the British charts for the first time in 1959 , and reached number 28 on New Musical Express . In 1960, two singles appeared with the successful jazz and blues singer Dinah Washington , which excelled placed in the Hot 100. The title baby landed on the 5th place and A Rockin 'Good Way reached No. 7. In the US rhythm and blues charts (R & B) captured both titles the top position.

Benton landed another million-dollar success with the 1961 title The Boll Weevil Song . With his version of an old folk song, he came in second place on the Hot 100, the best rating of his career, and R&B also put him in second place. In Great Britain, The Boll Weevil Song was ranked 28th. Famous for its chart listings in Great Britain, he had several public appearances there in 1963, for example in the Beatles TV show Sunday Night at the London Palladium and in the Greatest Record Show of 1963 . A year later, he performed at New York's Apollo Theater for a week for $ 25,000. He also had numerous appearances in American television series.

By 1965, Benton was able to place itself regularly in the Hot 100 with 44 titles. His last Hot 100 success for the time being was the title Mother Nature, Father Time , another co-production by Benton-Otis, which reached number 58. The single had already appeared on RCA Victor after Benton's contract with Mercury expired after seven years. In the meantime, the so-called British invasion and their pop groups had reached North America and Benton's records, like those of other US stars, no longer sold. After no further successes at RCA, Benton changed record labels in quick succession ( Reprise , Cotillion, MGM and others). At Cotillion he had another successful title in 1970 with Rainy Night in Georgia , which reached number 4 on the Hot 100 and number 1 on the R&B chart and also became a million-dollar hit. With his relaxed style and extensive repertoire, Brook Benton became one of the most successful ballad singers in the United States. He died in 1988 at the age of 56, debilitated by pneumonia , of meningitis in New York's Mary Immaculate Hospital.

Discography

Albums

year title Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements
(Year, title, rankings, weeks, awards, notes) 		Remarks
UK UK US US R&B R&B
1967 Laura (What's He Got That I Ain't Got) - US156 (4 weeks)
US 		-
1969 Do your own thing - US189 (2 weeks)
US 		-
1970 Brook Benton Today - US27 (23 weeks)
US 		R&B4 (21 weeks)
R&B
Home style - US199 (2 weeks)
US 		-

literature

  • Dafydd Rees & Luke Crampton: Q Rock Stars Encyclopedia, Dorling Kindersley London 1999, ISBN 0-7513-1113-8 .
  • Frank Laufenberg: Rock- und Poplexikon Vol. 2, Econ Taschenbuch Verlag, Düsseldorf 1998, p. 130, ISBN 3-612-26206-8 .
  • Günter Ehnert: British Chart Singles 1950-1965, Taurus Press Hamburg 1995, p. 171, ISBN 3-922542-32-8 .
  • Herwig Gradischnig & Hans Maitner: Brook Benton. There Goes That Song Again. Attempt at a portrait. Overall discography. edition winterwork, Grimma 2009. ISBN 978-3-940167-68-2 .

swell

  1. ↑ Chart sources: Charts UK Charts US

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Benton, Brook
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Peay, Benjamin Franklin (real name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American R&B singer and songwriter
DATE OF BIRTH September 19, 1931
PLACE OF BIRTH Camden , South Carolina , USA
DATE OF DEATH April 9, 1988
Place of death New York City