Wess (singer)

Wess (actually: Wesley Johnson ; born August 13, 1945 in Winston-Salem ; † September 21, 2009 ibid) was an Italian singer and bassist .

Wess was born in North Carolina and grew up in New York City . In the 1960s he became the electric bassist for the rhythm and blues band Rocky Roberts & The Airedales , which enjoyed international success. After leaving the band, Wess came to Italy in 1966 when he was offered a record deal. His first single, Senza luce , an Italian version of A Whiter Shade of Pale, was already a hit.

In 1972 he founded a duo with the singer Dori Ghezzi . He successfully participated with her at the Sanremo Festival and was also allowed to compete with her for Italy at the Eurovision Song Contest 1975 . With the funk title Era , they reached third place. By 1979 the duo had released seven albums.

In the 1980s, Wess ran a recording studio and record company in Canada. In the 2000s he was more and more on the road with his live band. He died suddenly in 2009 as a result of an asthma attack . He had toured Canada and the United States the weeks before.

Web links

• Wess at Discogs (English)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ e morto wess ( Memento of the original from September 25, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. at sorrisi.com