Post by Rob Durkee on May 17, 2012 20:09:18 GMT -5
By ROCKIN' ROBIN
INGLEWOOD, FLORIDA (RTDP) 5/17/12 -- Donna Summer, the Queen of Disco whose string of hits never had the word "disco" in their lyrics or titles, died of cancer on Thursday, May 17, 2012. She was 63. In recent years, she'd been living here with her husband, Bruce Sudano.
Donna Summer had 28 Cash Box pop chart hits, with 19 of them making the top 40, 13 in the top 10 and four #1's. She won five Grammys and sang the 1978 Oscar Award-winning movie song of the year, "Last Dance" (from "Thank God It's Friday").
Her four chart-toppers, all at the height of the disco craze in 1978-79, were "MacArthur Park," "Hot Stuff," "Bad Girls" and the duet with Barbra Streisand, "No More Tears (Enough Is Enough)." On the Cash Box chart of June 30, 1979, Donna Summer pulled a chart rarity with two songs in the top five. ""Hot Stuff" was at #3 and "Bad Girls" at #5.
Donna Summer was born LaDonna Andrea Gaines on New Year's Eve, 1948, in suburban Boston. After singing in Boston area gospel groups and a rock band called Crow (not to be confused with the upper Midwest band of the same name), she honed her music skills over in Europe for about three years about the early 1970's. Her overseas career started with a role in the Broadway Musical, "Hair," over in Munich, Germany. That's where she met her first husband, Helmut Sommer. Although they eventually divorced, she took his last name and turned it into the last name of her professional name.
Summer's even bigger break, though, was meeting legendary producer Georgio Moroder. Together, they came up with the sultry, seductive "Love To Love You Baby," which was originally a 17-minute long song. An edited down 4:57-long version would be released as a single. It would cross over and reach #3 on the Cash Box pop chart. Not only did the song put Donna Summer on the music map for good, it also saved a then-struggling Oasis record label that was the subsidiary of the label that made Summer famous, Casablanca Records.
"I Feel Love" (1977) and "Last Dance" were both #4 hits before Summer scored her first #1 with "MacArthur Park," a remake of a 1968 Richard Harris hit of 10 years earlier. After more #1 success with "Hot Stuff" and "Bad Girls," Summer reached #3 with "Dim All The Lights." After "No More Tears" topped the charts, Summer ushered in the 1980's with two more top tenners in 1980 with "On The Radio" (#4) and "The Wanderer" (#2).
A few years later, Summer came across an older woman sleeping on the job as a bathroom attendant. It became the inspiration for the #3 hit, "She Works Hard For The Money," in 1983. Summer's last major hit was the #6-peaking "This Time I Know It's For Real" in 1989. Summer was active as recently as four years ago in 2008, when she sang on "American Idol." That year, she also released "Crayon," her first full studio LP in 17 years.
Commentator Rush Limbaugh took the news of Summer's passing hard. "It is really sad," Limbaugh said. "We grew up with Donna Summer. I met Donna Summer and her husband on an airplane one time. She and her husband, after the flight took off, came up to me and introduced themselves. We had a nice conversation. They were as nice as they could be."
Summer's family, in a statement issued by her label, Universal Music, said in part, "She was a woman of many gifts, the greatest being her faith. While we grieve her passing, we are at peace celebrating her extraordinary life and her continued legacy. Words truly can't express how much we appreciate your prayers and love for our family at this sensitive time."
INGLEWOOD, FLORIDA (RTDP) 5/17/12 -- Donna Summer, the Queen of Disco whose string of hits never had the word "disco" in their lyrics or titles, died of cancer on Thursday, May 17, 2012. She was 63. In recent years, she'd been living here with her husband, Bruce Sudano.
Donna Summer had 28 Cash Box pop chart hits, with 19 of them making the top 40, 13 in the top 10 and four #1's. She won five Grammys and sang the 1978 Oscar Award-winning movie song of the year, "Last Dance" (from "Thank God It's Friday").
Her four chart-toppers, all at the height of the disco craze in 1978-79, were "MacArthur Park," "Hot Stuff," "Bad Girls" and the duet with Barbra Streisand, "No More Tears (Enough Is Enough)." On the Cash Box chart of June 30, 1979, Donna Summer pulled a chart rarity with two songs in the top five. ""Hot Stuff" was at #3 and "Bad Girls" at #5.
Donna Summer was born LaDonna Andrea Gaines on New Year's Eve, 1948, in suburban Boston. After singing in Boston area gospel groups and a rock band called Crow (not to be confused with the upper Midwest band of the same name), she honed her music skills over in Europe for about three years about the early 1970's. Her overseas career started with a role in the Broadway Musical, "Hair," over in Munich, Germany. That's where she met her first husband, Helmut Sommer. Although they eventually divorced, she took his last name and turned it into the last name of her professional name.
Summer's even bigger break, though, was meeting legendary producer Georgio Moroder. Together, they came up with the sultry, seductive "Love To Love You Baby," which was originally a 17-minute long song. An edited down 4:57-long version would be released as a single. It would cross over and reach #3 on the Cash Box pop chart. Not only did the song put Donna Summer on the music map for good, it also saved a then-struggling Oasis record label that was the subsidiary of the label that made Summer famous, Casablanca Records.
"I Feel Love" (1977) and "Last Dance" were both #4 hits before Summer scored her first #1 with "MacArthur Park," a remake of a 1968 Richard Harris hit of 10 years earlier. After more #1 success with "Hot Stuff" and "Bad Girls," Summer reached #3 with "Dim All The Lights." After "No More Tears" topped the charts, Summer ushered in the 1980's with two more top tenners in 1980 with "On The Radio" (#4) and "The Wanderer" (#2).
A few years later, Summer came across an older woman sleeping on the job as a bathroom attendant. It became the inspiration for the #3 hit, "She Works Hard For The Money," in 1983. Summer's last major hit was the #6-peaking "This Time I Know It's For Real" in 1989. Summer was active as recently as four years ago in 2008, when she sang on "American Idol." That year, she also released "Crayon," her first full studio LP in 17 years.
Commentator Rush Limbaugh took the news of Summer's passing hard. "It is really sad," Limbaugh said. "We grew up with Donna Summer. I met Donna Summer and her husband on an airplane one time. She and her husband, after the flight took off, came up to me and introduced themselves. We had a nice conversation. They were as nice as they could be."
Summer's family, in a statement issued by her label, Universal Music, said in part, "She was a woman of many gifts, the greatest being her faith. While we grieve her passing, we are at peace celebrating her extraordinary life and her continued legacy. Words truly can't express how much we appreciate your prayers and love for our family at this sensitive time."
