Harry Wayne Casey

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Harry Wayne Casey
Casey in 1998
Casey in 1998
Background information
Also known asK.C.
Born (1951-01-31) January 31, 1951 (age 73)
Opa-locka, Florida
OriginHialeah, Florida
GenresDisco, blue-eyed soul, pop, funk
Occupation(s)Musician, singer, songwriter, record producer
Instrument(s)Keyboards, vocals
Years active1973–present
LabelsRhino, Epic, Meca, TK, Sunshine Sound
Websitewww.heykcsb.com

Harry Wayne Casey (born January 31, 1951), better known by his stage name K.C., is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He is best known for his band, KC and the Sunshine Band, as a producer of several hits for other artists, and as a pioneer of the disco genre of the 1970s.[1]

Musical career

Harry Wayne Casey formed his band in 1973. He was introduced to Richard Finch, who was doing engineering work on records for TK Records. Thus began the Casey-Finch musical collaboration. The initial members were just Casey and Finch. They later added guitarist Jerome Smith (June 18, 1953 - July 28, 2000) and drummer Robert Johnson, both TK studio musicians.

The first few songs, "Blow Your Whistle" (September 1973) and "Sound Your Funky Horn" (February 1974), were released as singles, and did well enough on the U.S. R&B chart and overseas that TK wanted a follow-up single and album. However, while working on demos for K.C. & the Sunshine Band the song, "Rock Your Baby" (George McCrae) was created. The band's "Queen of Clubs" was a hit in the UK, peaking at No. 7, and they went on tour there in 1975.

K.C. and the Sunshine Band became prominent in the United States in 1975 with "Get Down Tonight" and "That's the Way (I Like It)." Other Casey-Finch favorites include "(Shake, Shake, Shake) Shake Your Booty," "I'm Your Boogie Man," "Keep It Comin' Love" and "Please Don't Go." "Boogie Shoes" appeared on the soundtrack album for Saturday Night Fever. He also joined Teri DeSario on her hit "Yes, I'm Ready" in 1979. Casey also part-wrote "I Ain't Lyin'" (a UK hit for George McCrae in late 1975).

As a result of the soaring popularity of New Wave and Synthpop in the early 1980s, Casey dissolved the Sunshine Band and recorded several pop-oriented solo albums. In January 1981, he survived a serious car accident — another car hit his car head-on. He was left partially paralyzed for six months, and had to re-learn how to walk, dance, and play the piano, but by the end of the year he was back in the recording studio. "Give It Up", was released as a solo hit, shot to Number One in the UK (but his U.S. label, Epic, refused to release it). However, it became a Top 20 hit in the United States (1984) when issued on the independent Meca label. In the mid-1990s, due to the revived interest in the music and fashions of the 1970s, Casey re-formed the Sunshine Band.

Personal life

Casey was born on January 31, 1951, at the Naval Hospital in Opa-locka, Florida. He grew up in Hialeah, FL and graduated from Hialeah High School.[2] In the 1990s and 2000s he split his time between Miami Lakes, Florida and Durham, NC.[3] He now lives in Miami Lakes.[citation needed]

Casey appeared in Season 25 of Diners, Drive Ins, and Dives.[citation needed]

Discography

Selected compilations

References

  1. ^ Randolph Heard, "An Interview with KC [Harry Wayne Casey]", in Shelton Waldrep, ed., The Seventies: The Age of Glitter in Popular Culture (London: Routledge, 2013), 283-92. ISBN 1136690611
  2. ^ Miami New Times (9 Sept. 1990): https://www.miaminewtimes.com/news/the-boogie-man-is-back-6365133
  3. ^ https://scholar.lib.vt.edu/VA-news/VA-Pilot/issues/1997/vp970828/08280067.htm; and http://calorielab.com/news/2005/06/22/weight-loss-pilgrims-flock-to-durham-nc/
  • Craig MacInnis, That's the Way I Like It (The Harry Wayne Casey Story), Team Power Publishing, 2002, ISBN 2-89568-059-0

External links

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