Al Goodman (singer)
Encyclopedia
Willie Albert "Al" Goodman (March 30, 1943 – July 27, 2010) was an American singer who performed as part of the musical trio Ray, Goodman & Brown
, a group that was earlier called The Moments and was known for their songs "Love on a Two-Way Street
", "Sexy Mama" and "Look at Me (I'm in Love)
" as The Moments and later, "Special Lady
" after changing their name to Ray, Goodman and Brown.
and started singing a cappella
doo-wop
while he was in high school. He headed to New York City at 19 and got a job with record producer Sylvia Robinson
's All Platinum Records
at her studio in Englewood, New Jersey
, where Robinson first noticed him while he was singing to himself on the job. Robinson revamped the group The Moments on her Stang Records label, teaming Goodman's bass with the falsetto
of Billy Brown and sole surviving original member John Morgan after an earlier incarnation of the group scored its first R&B chart hit in 1968. One of their early songs, the ballad "Love On A Two-Way Street" reached number one on the Billboard R&B chart and hit third place on Billboard's pop chart. Months after their first album release, Sylvia's brother-in-law Johnny Moore, a swift replacement for John Morgan, was replaced with Harry Ray. Together, Ray, Goodman and Brown as The Moments went on to record such hits as "All I Have" and "Sexy Mama".
The Moments left Stang Records in 1979, citing creative differences with Joe and Sylvia Robinson, and signed up with Polydor Records
as Ray, Goodman & Brown, due to Stang Records owning the rights to the group's original name. With Polydor, the trio again had a chart-topping R&B hit with "Special Lady". The Billboard Book of American Singing Groups credited the group as having "left a noticeable mark on contemporary soul music" with 28 songs making the R&B charts and 11 hits on the pop charts. Terry Stewart of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum credit them as "one of those transitional tight-harmony love-ballad groups from the '60s that paved the way out of the doo-wop era to become one of the leaders of R&B for nearly two decades".
The group recorded many of their songs at the Sugar Hill Records
(formerly All Platinum) studio in Englewood, which was gutted by a fire in 2002 that destroyed many of the master tapes of their recordings. Goodman said the fire cost him $500,000 saying "I just stood there and watched 30 or 40 years of my life go by".
A resident of Englewood, New Jersey, Goodman died at age 67 on July 27, 2010, of heart failure after undergoing surgery at Hackensack University Medical Center
in Hackensack, New Jersey
. He was survived by his second wife, the former Henrietta Young, as well as by three daughters, three sons and a grandson. His earlier marriage to Alice Lewis ended in divorce
Ray, Goodman & Brown
Ray, Goodman & Brown is an American R&B vocal group. The group originated as The Moments, who formed in the mid-1960s and whose greatest successes came in the 1970s with hits including "Love on a Two-Way Street", "Sexy Mama" and "Look at Me "...
, a group that was earlier called The Moments and was known for their songs "Love on a Two-Way Street
Love on a Two-Way Street
"Love on a Two-Way Street" is a Soul ballad written by Sylvia Robinson and Bert Keyes in 1968. The song was originally recorded by Lezli Valentine, an artist signed to All Platinum, the record label that Sylvia Robinson co-owned with her husband, Joe...
", "Sexy Mama" and "Look at Me (I'm in Love)
Look at Me (I'm in Love)
"Look at Me " is a 1975 single by The Moments. In the United States, the single went to number one on the soul chart for one week and peaked at number thirty-nine on the Billboard Hot 100. According to the liner notes of The Moments' Greatest Hits album, the song's origins are in a conversation...
" as The Moments and later, "Special Lady
Special Lady (Ray, Goodman & Brown song)
"Special Lady" is a 1979 single by vocal trio Ray, Goodman & Brown, formerly known as The Moments. In the U.S., it was a number one R&B hit and reached number five on the Billboard Hot 100. The single marked their first release under the name Ray, Goodman & Brown. The song was written by Harry...
" after changing their name to Ray, Goodman and Brown.
Singing career
Goodman was born on March 30, 1943, in Jackson, MississippiJackson, Mississippi
Jackson is the capital and the most populous city of the US state of Mississippi. It is one of two county seats of Hinds County ,. The population of the city declined from 184,256 at the 2000 census to 173,514 at the 2010 census...
and started singing a cappella
A cappella
A cappella music is specifically solo or group singing without instrumental sound, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. It is the opposite of cantata, which is accompanied singing. A cappella was originally intended to differentiate between Renaissance polyphony and Baroque concertato...
doo-wop
Doo-wop
The name Doo-wop is given to a style of vocal-based rhythm and blues music that developed in African American communities in the 1940s and achieved mainstream popularity in the 1950s and early 1960s. It emerged from New York, Philadelphia, Chicago, Baltimore, Newark, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati and...
while he was in high school. He headed to New York City at 19 and got a job with record producer Sylvia Robinson
Sylvia Robinson
Sylvia Robinson was an American singer, musician, record producer, and record label executive, most notably known for her work as founder/CEO of the hip hop label Sugar Hill Records. She is credited as the driving force behind two landmark singles in the genre...
's All Platinum Records
All Platinum Records
All Platinum Records was one of the labels which was started by Sylvia Robinson before she started Sugar Hill Records.All Platinum purchased Chess Records in the early 1970s after the latter fell into bankruptcy; however, All Platinum was a much smaller label and was unable to keep releasing steady...
at her studio in Englewood, New Jersey
Englewood, New Jersey
Englewood is a city located in Bergen County, New Jersey. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city had a total population of 27,147.Englewood was incorporated as a city by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 17, 1899, from portions of Ridgefield Township and the remaining portions of...
, where Robinson first noticed him while he was singing to himself on the job. Robinson revamped the group The Moments on her Stang Records label, teaming Goodman's bass with the falsetto
Falsetto
Falsetto is the vocal register occupying the frequency range just above the modal voice register and overlapping with it by approximately one octave. It is produced by the vibration of the ligamentous edges of the vocal folds, in whole or in part...
of Billy Brown and sole surviving original member John Morgan after an earlier incarnation of the group scored its first R&B chart hit in 1968. One of their early songs, the ballad "Love On A Two-Way Street" reached number one on the Billboard R&B chart and hit third place on Billboard's pop chart. Months after their first album release, Sylvia's brother-in-law Johnny Moore, a swift replacement for John Morgan, was replaced with Harry Ray. Together, Ray, Goodman and Brown as The Moments went on to record such hits as "All I Have" and "Sexy Mama".
The Moments left Stang Records in 1979, citing creative differences with Joe and Sylvia Robinson, and signed up with Polydor Records
Polydor Records
Polydor is a record label owned by Universal Music Group, headquartered in the United Kingdom.-Beginnings:Polydor was originally an independent branch of the Deutsche Grammophon Gesellschaft. Its name was first used as an export label in 1924, the British and German branches of the Gramophone...
as Ray, Goodman & Brown, due to Stang Records owning the rights to the group's original name. With Polydor, the trio again had a chart-topping R&B hit with "Special Lady". The Billboard Book of American Singing Groups credited the group as having "left a noticeable mark on contemporary soul music" with 28 songs making the R&B charts and 11 hits on the pop charts. Terry Stewart of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum credit them as "one of those transitional tight-harmony love-ballad groups from the '60s that paved the way out of the doo-wop era to become one of the leaders of R&B for nearly two decades".
The group recorded many of their songs at the Sugar Hill Records
Sugar Hill Records (rap)
Sugar Hill Records was the name of a rap music record label that was founded in 1979 by husband and wife Joe and Sylvia Robinson with Milton Malden and financial funding of Morris Levy, the owner of Roulette Records.-History:...
(formerly All Platinum) studio in Englewood, which was gutted by a fire in 2002 that destroyed many of the master tapes of their recordings. Goodman said the fire cost him $500,000 saying "I just stood there and watched 30 or 40 years of my life go by".
A resident of Englewood, New Jersey, Goodman died at age 67 on July 27, 2010, of heart failure after undergoing surgery at Hackensack University Medical Center
Hackensack University Medical Center
Hackensack University Medical Center is a 775-bed non-profit, research and teaching hospital located seven miles west of New York City, in Hackensack, New Jersey, providing tertiary and healthcare needs for northern New Jersey and the New York metropolitan area...
in Hackensack, New Jersey
Hackensack, New Jersey
Hackensack is a city in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States and the county seat of Bergen County. Although informally called Hackensack, it was officially named New Barbadoes Township until 1921. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city population was 43,010....
. He was survived by his second wife, the former Henrietta Young, as well as by three daughters, three sons and a grandson. His earlier marriage to Alice Lewis ended in divorce