Steve Arrington
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| Steve Arrington | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Steven Ralph Arrington |
| Born | March 5, 1956 |
| Origin | Dayton, Ohio, United States |
| Genres | Funk, soul, R&B, gospel, pop |
| Occupations | Singer, songwriter, drummer, producer, engineer, minister |
| Years active | 1979-90 2009-present |
| Labels | Stones Throw, Atlantic, Manhattan, God Factor Records |
| Associated acts | Slave, Steve Arrington's Hall of Fame |
| Website | godfactorrecords.com |
Steve Arrington (born Steven Ralph Arrington, March 5, 1956), is an American singer, songwriter, drummer, record producer, engineer and minister, who grew up in Dayton, Ohio.[1]
Contents |
[edit] Biography
Arrington played in various local bands before joining and touring with The Murphy's, a lounge band out of Toledo, Ohio, in 1975. Approximately a year later, Arrington relocated from Ohio to San Francisco, California where he learned Latin percussion and drumming as well as played with Coke Escovedo and Pete Escovedo and Sheila E.
He joined the funk group Slave (founded 1975) on their third LP called, The Concept in 1978 originally to play percussion, then later becoming the drummer and a backing vocalist. Eventually Arrington took over lead vocals, singing on the hit singles "Just a Touch of Love", "Watching You" (which has been sampled by Snoop Dog) and "Wait for Me".
Arrington left Slave in 1982, forming Steve Arrington's Hall of Fame,[2][3] and had hit singles such as "Weak At The Knees" (which was sampled by Jay-Z, Jermaine Dupri, N.W.A, and others), and "Nobody Can Be You But You".
His most successful album was his 1985 solo work, Dancin' in the Key of Life, whose title track became a Top Ten R&B hit. The single also spent three weeks at number two on the dance charts.[4] Another single from the album, "Feel So Real" reached #6 in the UK Singles Chart in May that year.[5] He was nominated for the NAACP Image Award for Best Male Artist of 1986.
In 1984, Arrington experienced a religious conversion, later becoming a minister and, in 1990, he left pop music until his re-emergence in October 2009, when he released the R&B, Funk, spiritual album Pure Thang.
In September 2010, Stones Throw Records announced that Arrington was working with producer Dâm-Funk on a new album.[6] In February, Arrington did an interview with The Revivalist[7] and told them his new album, "Love, Peace and Funky Beatz" was due out late summer early fall 2011.
[edit] Discography
[edit] Solo albums
*2009: Pure Thang - (God Factor Records)
- 1987: Jam Packed (Manhattan) - (aka Stone Love)
- 1986: The Jammin' National Anthem (Atlantic)
- 1985: Dancin' In The Key Of Life (Atlantic)
- 1984: Steve Arrington's Hall Of Fame: Positive Power (Atlantic)
- 1983: Steve Arrington's Hall Of Fame, Vol.1 (Atlantic)
[edit] Solo singles
*2011: "Goin Hard" maxi-single (Stones Throw Records)
- 1990: "No Reason" (RCA)
- 1988: "Lost and Found (You Can Find Me Present)" (Nubian)
- 1986: "Homeboy" (Atlantic)
- 1985: "She Just Don't Know" (Atlantic)
- 1985: "Turn Up The Love" (Atlantic)
- 1985: "Dancin' in the Key of Life" (Atlantic)
- 1985: "Feel So Real" (Atlantic)
- 1984: "Mellow as a Cello" (Atlantic)
- 1983: "Nobody Can Be You" (Atlantic)
- 1983: "Way Out" (Atlantic)
- 1983: "You Meet My Approval" (Atlantic)
- 1983: "Weak at the Knees" (Atlantic)
- 1980: "Summertime Lovin'" / "Special Effects From Mars" (Salsoul)
[edit] Compilation albums
- 2006: Slave: The Definitive Collection" -
- 2003: Party Lights - Rhino / Atlantic - Rhino - Atlantic
- 1994: Stellar Fungk : The Best Of Slave Featuring Steve Arrington - Atlantic Rhino Entertainment Company
[edit] Albums with Steve Arrington's Hall of Fame
- 1984: Positive Power (Atlantic)
- 1983: I (Atlantic)
[edit] Singles with Steve Arrington's Hall of Fame
- 1984: "Hump to the Bump" (Atlantic)
- 1984: "15 Rounds" (Atlantic)
- 1983: "Weak at the Knees" (Atlantic)
- 1983: "Nobody Can Be You" (Atlantic)
- 1982: "Pocket Full of Air" (Konglather)
- 1982: "Way Out" (Konglather)
[edit] Albums with Slave
- 1981: Showtime (Cotillion)
- 1980: Stone Jam (Cotillion)
- 1979: Just a Touch of Love (Cotillion)
- 1978: The Concept (Cotillion)
[edit] References
- ^ "Steve Arrington Biography". http://pluto.matrix49.com/15777/?subpages/bio.shtml.
- ^ Vincent, Rickey (1996). FUNK The Music, the People, and the Rhythm of The One. St Martin's Griffin. pp. 228 and 283.
- ^ Wynn, Ron. "Biography: Steve Arrington". Allmusic. http://www.allmusic.com/artist/p15477/biography. Retrieved 20 July 2010.
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Hot Dance/Disco: 1974-2003. Record Research. p. 23.
- ^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 30. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
- ^ "Steve Arrington & Dam-Funk "I Be Trippin"". http://www.stonesthrow.com/news/2010/09/steve-arrington-dam-funk-i-be-trippin.
- ^ Gao, Boyaun (March 2, 2011). "Steve Arrington’s Revival: Exclusive Audio, Video, & Funk". http://revivalist.okayplayer.com/2011/03/02/steve-arringtons-revival-exclusive-audio-video-funk/. Retrieved March 2, 2011.
[edit] External links
- Godfactorrecords.com
- Stones Throw Records
- Myspace.com
- Cdbaby.com
- Soul Bible - Feel so good
- Steve Arrington @ Discogs
- Steve Arrington's Hall Of Fame @ Discogs
- Official Site of Wayne "Buddy" Hankerson (bass-player for Steve Arrington's Hall Of Fame)
- Steve Arrington 2011 Interview on Soulinterviews.com
- 1956 births
- Living people
- African American drummers
- African American record producers
- African American singer-songwriters
- American male singers
- American rhythm and blues singers
- American Christian ministers
- Musicians from Ohio
- People from Dayton, Ohio
- American funk musicians
- American session musicians
- Atlantic Records artists
