Gene McFadden

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Gene McFadden (born July 2, 1948 - January 27, 2006 in Mount Airy ) was an American singer, songwriter and producer .

McFadden often worked with John Whitehead , with whom he founded the group "The Epsilons" in his hometown of Philadelphia at a young age , which was later discovered by Otis Redding and which also emerged from Lloyd Parkes , who would later work with Harold Melvin .

After the breakup of the Epsilons , McFadden and Whitehead founded the successor group Talk Of The Town in 1971 , which was signed by the Philadelphia songwriter duo Gamble & Huff for the Philly International Records (PIR) label . After persistent unsuccessfulness, however, they retreated into the background for the time being to write and produce songs for other artists based on the Gamble & Huff model. They had their first successes with Bad Luck and Wake Up Everybody for Harold Melvin and Back Stabbers for The O'Jays . Other well-known "Philly" artists such as Teddy Pendergrass , Archie Bell , The Fortunes or The Jones Girls also used the duo.

It wasn't until 1979, when the "Philly" wave was already subsiding, that McFadden and Whitehead stepped back into the limelight as a duo. With the now often copied and sampled dance number Ain't No Stoppin 'Us Now they delivered their first and at the same time greatest success as an interpreter. The piece was even nominated for a Grammy . After that, things calmed down around the duo, followed by a few more collaborations, including for Willie Collins or the sons of John Whitehead - The Whitehead Brothers , but they also had their most successful days as songwriters; the end of the duo was heralded when Whitehead was sentenced to prison for tax evasion.

In the 80s and 90s, McFadden tried to build on the old songwriting successes, but his name only rarely appeared in the charts, including in connection with Mary J. Blige ( Never Been ), Freddie Jackson ( It's Gonna Take A Long, Long Time ) or Destiny's Child ( Is She The Reason ). In addition, there were always cover versions of Ain't No Stoppin 'Us Now , including the Spice Girls feat. Luther Vandross and If You Don't Know Me By Now , by Simply Red and Freddie Jackson , among others .

In the year of John Whitehead's assassination, 2004, McFadden officially announced his liver and lung cancer. On January 27, 2006, he succumbed to cancer. He left a wife, two sons and two daughters.