Cecil Womack

Cecil Dale Womack (September 25, 1947 – February 1, 2013) was an American R&B singer, songwriter and record producer. He was one of the musical Womack brothers, and had success both as a songwriter and recording artist, notably with his wife Linda as Womack & Womack. In later years he took the name Zekuuba Zekkariyas.

Career

Cecil Womack was born in Cleveland, Ohio. He and his brothers Bobby (1944–2014), Harry (1945–1974), Friendly and Curtis, were a gospel group appearing on the gospel circuit in the mid 50s where they were seen by Sam Cooke of the Soul Stirrers. As Cooke's protégés they changed their name to the Valentinos and in 1961 began to sing and record for secular audiences. The Valentinos had hit records with "Lookin' for a Love" and "It's All Over Now", the latter being covered by the Rolling Stones. Cooke's death at a L.A. motel in December 1964, had dramatic consequences for the Womack Brothers as SAR folded and Bobby Womack, who was now married to Sam Cooke's widow, Barbara, left the group for a solo career. The Valentinos briefly disbanded before regrouping as a quartet in 1966, signing with Chess Records where they recorded the Northern Soul hit, "Sweeter than the Day Before", written by Cecil Womack and Mary Wells. However, the group got dropped from Chess in 1968 after only two singles and Cecil Womack who had married former Motown artiste Mary Wells decided to leave the Valentinos. The remaining trio of Harry, Curtis and Friendly Jr. signed with Jubilee Records where they recorded the Cecil-composed "Two Lovers History" and "Tired Of Being Nobody" before being dropped in 1970

Womack & Womack

Womack & Womack was the singing and songwriting partnership of American musicians Cecil Womack and his wife, Linda Womack. The duo were successful as songwriters for other artists, and had several international hits as a singing duo in the 1980s and 1990s. Later recordings, with other members of their family, were credited to The House of Zekkariyas.

Background

Cecil Womack was born in 1947 in Cleveland, Ohio, and performed with his older brothers Bobby (1944–2014), Harry (1945–1974), Friendly and Curtis, as a gospel group. After meeting Sam Cooke, they changed their name to The Valentinos and in 1961 began to sing and record "the devil's music" for secular audiences, to the horror of their religious father. The Valentinos had a hit record with "Lookin' for a Love," selling two million copies, later becoming a no. 39 U.S. hit for The J. Geils Band in 1971. They toured with James Brown and scored another crossover hit with “It's All Over Now”, a song which subsequently reached no. 1 in the UK when covered by The Rolling Stones in 1964. But the fall-out from Cooke's death – he was shot by a motel manager in Los Angeles in December 1964 – and Bobby Womack's marriage halted their progress.

Sam Cooke

Samuel Cook (January 22, 1931 – December 11, 1964), known professionally as Sam Cooke, was an American singer, songwriter, and entrepreneur.

Influential as both a singer and composer, he is commonly known as the King of Soul for his distinctive vocals and importance within popular music. His pioneering contributions to soul music contributed to the rise of Aretha Franklin, Bobby Womack, Al Green, Curtis Mayfield, Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, and Billy Preston, and popularized the likes of Otis Redding and James Brown.AllMusic biographer Bruce Eder wrote that Cooke was "the inventor of soul music", and possessed "an incredible natural singing voice and a smooth, effortless delivery that has never been surpassed".

Cooke had 30 U.S. top 40 hits between 1957 and 1964, plus three more posthumously. Major hits like "You Send Me", "A Change Is Gonna Come", "Cupid", "Chain Gang", "Wonderful World", and "Twistin' the Night Away" are some of his most popular songs. Cooke was also among the first modern black performers and composers to attend to the business side of his musical career. He founded both a record label and a publishing company as an extension of his careers as a singer and composer. He also took an active part in the civil rights movement.

Bobby Womack

Robert Dwayne "Bobby" Womack (/ˈwoʊmæk/; March 4, 1944 – June 27, 2014) was an American singer-songwriter and musician, and producer. Since the early 1960s, when he started his career as the lead singer of his family musical group The Valentinos and as Sam Cooke's backing guitarist, Womack's career spanned more than 50 years, during which he played in the styles of R&B, soul, rock and roll, doo-wop, gospel, and country.

Womack wrote and originally recorded the Rolling Stones' first UK No. 1 hit, "It's All Over Now" and New Birth's "I Can Understand It" among other songs. As a singer he is most notable for the hits "Lookin' For a Love", "That's The Way I Feel About Cha", "Woman's Gotta Have It", "Harry Hippie", "Across 110th Street", and his 1980s hit "If You Think You're Lonely Now".

Biography

1944–1966: Early life and career: The Valentinos

Born in Cleveland's Fairfax neighborhood, near East 85th Street and Quincy Avenue, to Naomi Womack and Friendly Womack, Bobby was the third of five brothers. Friendly Jr. and Curtis were the older brothers, Cecil and Harry were his younger brothers. They all grew up in the Cleveland slums, so poor that the family would fish pig snouts out of the local supermarket's trash. He had to share a bed with his brothers. His mother told him he could "sing his way out of the ghetto". Bobby recalls:

Baby I

"Baby I" is a song recorded by American singer Ariana Grande for her debut studio album, Yours Truly (2013). It was written by Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds, Antonio Dixon and Patrick "J. Que" Smith and produced by the first two. The song was released by Republic Records on July 22, 2013, as the second single from the album.

Background and release

In an interview with Complex, Grande reveals that "Baby I" was originally written by Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds for Beyoncé. Grande also stated that it was actually Mac Miller who picked "Baby I" to be the second single for her album.

Grande opined that "Baby I" was more "sophisticated" and "mature" and showed off her musicality and vocals more than her previous hit single "The Way", which was part of what made her excited to release the song. She was revealing snippets of the song days before its release. The single was released to the digital retailer iTunes on July 22, 2013.

Composition

"Baby I" is an uptempo pop and R&B song that runs for a duration of three minutes and seventeen seconds. "Baby I" is set in common time at a tempo of 102 BPM in the key of C♯ major, and D Major after the bridge. It was written and produced by Babyface, Tony Dixon and j.Que. A writer from Rap-Up describes the track as a "summertime record" which features Grande's "big vocals" over a "breezy beat". Several critics noted the '90s R&B music influence demonstrated in "Baby I", which will also be musically present on the rest of her album, Yours Truly. Additionally, '70s disco energy is also present in the song, with PopCrush describing it as "Mariah Carey gone retro".