Deon Estus

Deon Estus
Birth name	Jeffery Deon Estus
Born	1956 (age 54–55)
Origin	Detroit, Michigan, United States
Genres	Pop, Rhythm and Blues
Occupations	Singer, Songwriter, Bassist
Instruments	Bass Guitar
Years active	1975–present
Labels	PolyGram, EMI, Columbia, Epic
Associated acts	Wham!, George Michael, Boogie Box High
Notable instruments
Bass Guitar

Deon Estus (born Jeffery Deon Estus, 1956, Detroit, Michigan) is an American bassist and singer, best known as the bass player of Wham! and as George Michael's bassist on all of the latter's subsequent projects.

Biography

Estus was born in Detroit and graduated from Northwestern High School in 1974. He sang second tenor in the choir at Northwestern under the direction of Brazel Dennard. His bass teacher was the late James Jamerson of Motown's The Funk Brothers.

Estus joined the R&B band Brainstorm as a teenager, recording two albums with them and scoring a hit with "Popcorn." During the early 1980s, he appeared as a session bassist on several mainstream albums, including Marvin Gaye's 1982 comeback album, Midnight Love.^[1] After his bass talents were recognized, he was invited to join the UK pop group, Wham!. He went on to tour China with Wham! and later backed Wham frontman George Michael on his Faith tour. He also participated in the late-1980s collective, Boogie Box High, which was spearheaded by George Michael's cousin, Andros Georgiou, and featured Michael along with other high-profile musicians; Estus appears on the group's only album, Outrageous, released in 1989. Estus later performed with Michael at Rock in Rio and has continued to play bass as part of Michael's backing band.

In 1989, Estus released a solo album entitled Spell, produced by Colin Campsie & George McFarlane, with several tracks produced by George Michael. Released before the album, the single "Me or the Rumours" reached #15 on Billboard's Hot Dance Music/Club Play charts in 1988. In 1989, the album's title track hit #11 on the Adult Contemporary charts. However, the album's biggest hit was the #5 Billboard Hot 100 single "Heaven Help Me," for which Michael supplied backing vocals. It also peaked at #3 on both the Adult Contemporary and Hot R&B charts. The album itself ultimately reached #89 on the Billboard 200 and #44 on the Top R&B Albums charts.

He has also played with Marvin Gaye, Tina Turner, Frank Zappa, George Clinton, Annie Lennox, Edgar Winter, Aaron Neville, and Elton John. He most recently produced and co-wrote songs for aspiring singer Julie Anne, who boasts a five-octave range.

Solo discography

• 1989: Spell - #89 US

Singles

Year	Song	US Hot 100	US R&B	US A.C.	US Dance	Canada	UK Singles[2]	Album
1988	"Me or the Rumours"	-	-	-	15	-	-	Spell
1989	"Heaven Help Me"	5	3	3	-	4	41
	"Spell"	-	74	11	-	-	-

References

1. ^ Biography at Official Website Retrieved 11-6-2010.
2. ^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 187. ISBN 1-904994-10-5. 

External links

• Official Website

Persondata
Name	Estus, Deon
Alternative names
Short description	American bass guitarist and singer
Date of birth	1956
Place of birth	Detroit, Michigan, United States
Date of death
Place of death