Linda Lyndell

Linda Lyndell (actually Linda Rowland ; born November 22, 1946 in Gainesville , Florida ) is an American soul singer who had her only hit with the song What a Man .

Life

As a child, Lyndell sang in gospel choirs. Although she was white, she sang in both white and black churches. As a teenager, she was a short-term member of the R&B band The Rare Breed , who recorded the song Let Me Call You Baby with her . In the 1960s she accompanied James Brown and Ike & Tina Turner as a background singer. In 1967 Lyndell released her first single. Bring Your Love Back to Me was produced by Isaac Hayes , David Porter from Stax Records and nightclub owner Dub Thomas and DJ Bob Norris from Ocala . Dave Crawford, DJ from Jacksonville , wrote the song Here Am I , published on the B-side . However, this single turned out to be a flop. In 1968 the single What a Man was recorded with Hayes and Porter , which reached number 50 on the Billboard R&B charts and subsequently developed into a soul classic. Following the success of What a Man , Linda Lyndell faced threats from white racist groups such as the Ku Klux Klan and subsequently retired from the music business for 35 years. 10 years after Salt Pepa 'n' the chorus of What a Man for the rap version Whatta Man sampled had joined Linda Lyndell 2003 at the opening of the Stax Museum for the first time with the song live on.

Discography

• Let Me Call You Baby (with The Rare Breed)
• Bring Your Love Back to Me / Here Am I (1967)
• What a Man / I Don't Know (1968)

Web links

• Biography at allmusic
• Brief biography at the North Florida Music Hall of Fame