Leon Sylvers III

Leon Frank Sylvers III, singer, writer, producer and multi-instrumentalist. He was one of the most successful producers in black music in the late 1970's to the mid 1980's.

Biography

Born on March 7, 1953 in Memphis Tennessee, Leon Frank Sylvers III wrote the first hit ("Wish That I Could Talk to You") for his family's singing group The Sylvers, his brother Foster Sylvers' Top Ten RB/Top 30 pop debut single "Misdemeanor," and later, hits for artists signed to Dick Griffey's Solar Records. The Sylvers, whose million-selling single "Boogie Fever" was a number one R&B hit in March 1976 and number one pop hit in May 1976, were flippantly called "The West Coast answer to the Jackson 5." A more accurate overall comparison would be with the 5th Dimension. Their harmonies were quite similar as well as the timbre of their core material and, like the 5th Dimension, the Sylvers had a natural middle America appeal. Sylvers is famous for his ubiquitous 2 bar hook soul/funk bass lines which drove the groove of his many hits.

Sylvers wrote and produced big hits for Shalamar ("The Second Time Around", "A Night To Remember"), The Whispers (the gold single "And the Beat Goes On,", "It's A Love Thing", "I Can Make It Better", "In The Raw", "Tonight"), Dynasty ("I've Just Begun to Love You"), Gladys Knight & The Pips ("Save the Overtime (For Me)"), Evelyn "Champagne" King ("Flirt," "Hold on to What You Got"), Stacy Lattisaw, the Spinners, Gina Foster, Krystol, The Brothers Johnson, Glenn Jones, Howard Hewett, Gene Page, Lakeside, and Real to Reel.

In 1989, Leon F. Sylvers III made a solo album for Motown," Leon Sylvers III", whose "Let's Go Thru It" became a steppers classic. Many rap and hip-hop acts have sampled Sylvers' material.

References and External links

* [http://www.allmusic.com/leon_silversIII Leon F. Sylvers III biography]
* [http://www.soulfunkspecial.com/sylvers.htm Leon F. Sylvers III biography and discography]