Biography
Early career
Percy Sledge worked in a series of blue-collar jobs in the fields in
Leighton, Alabama before taking a job as an orderly at
Colbert County Hospital in
Sheffield, Alabama. Through the mid 1960s, he toured the
Southeast with the Esquires Combo on weekends while working at the hospital during the week. A former patient and mutual friend of Sledge and
record producer Quin Ivy introduced the two. An audition followed, and Sledge was signed to a
recording contract.
[1]
Sledge's soulful
voice was perfect for the series of soul
ballads produced by Ivy and
Marlin Greene, which
rock critic Dave Marsh called "emotional classics for romantics of all ages."
"
When a Man Loves a Woman" was Sledge's first song recorded under the contract, and was released in 1966. The song's inspiration came when Sledge's girlfriend left him for a modeling career after he was laid off from construction job in late 1965.
[2] It reached #1 in the
U.S. and went on to become an international
hit. The song was also the first
gold record released by
Atlantic Records. The soul anthem became the cornerstone of Sledge's career, and was followed by "Warm and Tender Love" (Covered by UK songstress
Elkie Brooks in 1981), "It Tears Me Up", "Take Time to Know Her" (his second biggest U.S. hit, reaching #11), "Love Me Tender", and "Cover Me".
Sledge charted with "I'll Be Your Everything" and "Sunshine" during the 1970s, and has become an
international concert favorite throughout the world, especially in the
Netherlands,
Germany, and on the
African continent, and
South Africa in particular.
Later career
Sledge's career enjoyed a renaissance in the 1980s when "When a Man Loves a Woman" re-entered the
Top 10 in the
UK Singles Chart after being used in a
Levi's commercial.
In 1994, Saul Davis and Barry Goldberg produced his new album, the Grammy nominated
Blue Night
, which featured
Bobby Womack,
Steve Cropper, and
Mick Taylor among others.
In 2004, Davis and Goldberg also produced
Shining Through the Rain
.
Awards
Sledge was an inaugural
Rhythm and Blues Foundation Pioneer Award honoree in 1989. In 2005, he was inducted into the
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
In May 2007, Percy Sledge was inducted into the
Louisiana Music Hall of Fame for his contributions to the state's music. Sledge is also an inductee of the
Delta Music Museum in
Ferriday, Louisiana.
Trivia
- Singer-songwriter Robin Gibb wrote the lyrics to the song "I've Gotta Get a Message to You", with Sledge in mind, however, Robin, and his brothers, The Bee Gees recorded the song, and went to #1 on the UK Singles Chart in 1968. Sledge did
record the song in February, 1970 (Atlantic matrix #18674), but it has only been released 3 times; the Atlantic European-only lp, My Special Prayer
(Atlantic 588 220), the German best of from the 1980's (Atantic 50747) and on the Soul of The Bee Gees
CD (The Right Stuff 7243-8-35600-2-8) from 1996.
- Sledge recorded a Christmas single ("Silent Night" b/w 'Christmas Wish") during his Atlantic years (in 1969) specially for South Africa. It was subsequently released in Europe, but not in the US.
- Lee Atwater, a Republican political strategist who worked for Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush and was Karl Rove's mentor, briefly played backup guitar for Percy Sledge during the 1960s. [3]
- His cousin Jimmy Hughes hit the top 20 on Billboard's pop charts in 1964 with the hit "Steal Away".
Selected discography
Singles
| Release date
| Title
| Chart Positions
|
| U.S. Hot 100
| U.S. R&B
| Canada
| UK Singles Chart [4]
|
| 1966
| "When a Man Loves a Woman"
| 1
| 1
| 1
| 4
|
| "Warm and Tender Love"
| 17
| 5
| 10
| 34
|
| "It Tears Me Up"
| 20
| 7
| 12
|
|
| 1967
| "Baby, Help Me"
| 87
| 44
|
|
|
| "Out of Left Field"
| 59
| 25
|
|
|
| "Love Me Tender" (A-Side)
| 40
| 35
| 35
|
|
| ? "What Am I Living For" (B-Side)
| 91
|
|
|
|
| "Just out of Reach (Of My Two Empty Arms)"
| 66
|
|
|
|
| "Cover Me"
| 42
| 39
|
|
|
| 1968
| "Take Time to Know Her"
| 11
| 6
| 5
|
|
| "Sudden Stop"
| 63
| 41
|
|
|
| "You're All Around Me"
| 109
|
|
|
|
| 1969
| "My Special Prayer"
| 93
| 44
|
|
|
| "Any Day Now" (A-Side)
| 86
| 35
|
|
|
| ? "The Angels Listened In" (B-Side)
| 126
|
|
|
|
| "Kind Woman"
| 116
|
|
|
|
| "True Love Travels on a Gravel Road"
|
|
|
|
|
| 1970
| "Many Rivers to Cross"
|
|
|
|
|
| 1970
| "Help Me Make It Through the Night"
|
|
|
|
|
| 1971
| "Stop The World Tonight"
|
|
|
|
|
| 1972
| "Rainbow Road"
|
|
|
|
|
| "Sunday Brother"
|
|
|
|
|
| 1973
| "Sunshine"
|
| 89
|
|
|
| 1974
| "I'll Be Your Everything"
| 62
| 15
|
|
|
| 1987
| "When a Man Loves a Woman" (Re-issue)
|
|
|
| 2
|
Compilation albums
| Release date
| Title
| Chart Positions
|
| UK Singles Chart
|
| 1987
| When a Man Loves a Woman (The Ultimate Collection)
| 36
|
References
- Louisiana Music Hall of Fame - Percy Sledge - 2007
- Entertainment - Percy Sledge Inspired by Former Relationship, Wrote Hit Song
- Percy Sledge History, Charts, and Songs
- British Hit Singles & Albums