Carl Carlton
Encyclopedia
Carl Carlton is an American
R&B
, soul, and funk
singer and songwriter
, best known for his hits
"Everlasting Love
" and "She's a Bad Mama Jama (She's Built, She's Stacked)".
in the late 1960s as "Little Carl" Carlton, a marketing ploy to capitalize on some vocal
similarities to Stevie Wonder
, who recorded under the name "Little Stevie Wonder" in the early 1960s. After scoring some minor local hits, Carlton was signed by Don D. Robey and moved to Houston, Texas
, the home of his new record label
, Back Beat Records
. Carlton saw some success with the new label including his first major hit, a cover version
of Robert Knight's
"Everlasting Love
", that went to #6 on the U.S.
Billboard Hot 100
chart
in 1974.
Robey sold his labels to ABC Records
in 1972, and in 1976 Carlton became embroiled in a royalty
dispute with the new ownership that caused him to stop recording for some time. He then signed with Mercury Records
in 1977, but only released one single
on that label. Carlton was unable to land a new recording contract
for several years until Leon Haywood
helped him get a singles deal with 20th Century Records
. A Haywood-penned single, "She's a Bad Mama Jama (She's Built, She's Stacked)", became a major hit, peaking at #2 on the soul chart and earning Carlton a Grammy Award
nomination for Best R&B Vocal Performance, Male
. The track peaked at #34 in the UK Singles Chart
. Carlton's subsequent album
, Carl Carlton, went gold
in 1981. "She's a Bad Mama Jama" has since become a staple of compilation album
s and soundtrack
s and is often sample
d in rap music.
Carlton released several more albums in the 1980s but had only a few minor R&B hits. After 1985's Private Property, he did not release another album until 1994's Main Event, which also failed to chart.
In late 2002, Carlton appeared with many R&B stars
on the "Rhythm, Love, and Soul" edition of the PBS
series American Soundtrack. His performance of "Everlasting Love" was included on the accompanying live album
that was released in 2004.
On August 1, 2010, Carlton released his first gospel
single entitled: "God is Good". He is currently in the studio completing his yet to be titled new album. Carlton has recently been nominated locally for a Detroit Music Award in Gospel Performance category.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
R&B
Rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues, often abbreviated to R&B, is a genre of popular African American music that originated in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly to urban African Americans, at a time when "urbane, rocking, jazz based music with a...
, soul, and funk
Funk
Funk is a music genre that originated in the mid-late 1960s when African American musicians blended soul music, jazz and R&B into a rhythmic, danceable new form of music. Funk de-emphasizes melody and harmony and brings a strong rhythmic groove of electric bass and drums to the foreground...
singer and songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
, best known for his hits
Hit record
A hit record is a sound recording, usually in the form of a single or album, that sells a large number of copies or otherwise becomes broadly popular or well-known, through airplay, club play, inclusion in a film or stage play soundtrack, causing it to have "hit" one of the popular chart listings...
"Everlasting Love
Everlasting Love
"Everlasting Love" is a song written by Buzz Cason and Mac Gayden that has been a hit for various artists, including Robert Knight, Carl Carlton, Love Affair, and Gloria Estefan.- Overview :...
" and "She's a Bad Mama Jama (She's Built, She's Stacked)".
Career
Carlton first sangSound recording and reproduction
Sound recording and reproduction is an electrical or mechanical inscription and re-creation of sound waves, such as spoken voice, singing, instrumental music, or sound effects. The two main classes of sound recording technology are analog recording and digital recording...
in the late 1960s as "Little Carl" Carlton, a marketing ploy to capitalize on some vocal
Human voice
The human voice consists of sound made by a human being using the vocal folds for talking, singing, laughing, crying, screaming, etc. Its frequency ranges from about 60 to 7000 Hz. The human voice is specifically that part of human sound production in which the vocal folds are the primary...
similarities to Stevie Wonder
Stevie Wonder
Stevland Hardaway Morris , better known by his stage name Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer and activist...
, who recorded under the name "Little Stevie Wonder" in the early 1960s. After scoring some minor local hits, Carlton was signed by Don D. Robey and moved to Houston, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, the home of his new record label
Record label
In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...
, Back Beat Records
Back Beat Records
Back Beat Records was the soul sub-label of Duke Records started in 1957. It was later acquired by ABC Records in the 70's. The label's biggest hits included "Treat Her Right" by Roy Head & The Traits, "Tell Me Why" by Norman Fox and The Rob Roys, and "Everlasting Love" by Carl Carlton...
. Carlton saw some success with the new label including his first major hit, a cover version
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
of Robert Knight's
Robert Knight (musician)
Robert Knight is an American singer best known for the 1967 recording of the song "Everlasting Love".-Career:Born in Franklin, Tennessee, Knight made his professional vocal debut with the Paramounts, a harmony quintet consisting of schoolfriends...
"Everlasting Love
Everlasting Love
"Everlasting Love" is a song written by Buzz Cason and Mac Gayden that has been a hit for various artists, including Robert Knight, Carl Carlton, Love Affair, and Gloria Estefan.- Overview :...
", that went to #6 on the U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
chart
Record chart
A record chart is a ranking of recorded music according to popularity during a given period of time. Examples of music charts are the Hit parade, Hot 100 or Top 40....
in 1974.
Robey sold his labels to ABC Records
ABC Records
ABC Records was an American record label, founded in New York City in 1955 as ABC-Paramount Records. It originated as the main popular music label operated the Am-Par Record Corporation, the music subsidiary of the American Broadcasting Company . ABC-Paramount Records' first president was Samuel H....
in 1972, and in 1976 Carlton became embroiled in a royalty
Royalties
Royalties are usage-based payments made by one party to another for the right to ongoing use of an asset, sometimes an intellectual property...
dispute with the new ownership that caused him to stop recording for some time. He then signed with Mercury Records
Mercury Records
Mercury Records is a record label operating as a standalone company in the UK and as part of the Island Def Jam Motown Music Group in the US; both are subsidiaries of Universal Music Group. There is also a Mercury Records in Australia, which is a local artist and repertoire division of Universal...
in 1977, but only released one single
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
on that label. Carlton was unable to land a new recording contract
Recording contract
A recording contract is a legal agreement between a record label and a recording artist , where the artist makes a record for the label to sell and promote...
for several years until Leon Haywood
Leon Haywood
Otha Leon Haywood is an American funk and soul singer, songwriter and record producer. He is best known for his 1975 hit single "I Want'a Do Something Freaky To You", which has been much sampled by Dr. Dre and others....
helped him get a singles deal with 20th Century Records
20th Century Records
20th Century Fox Records, also known as 20th Fox Records and 20th Century Records, was a subsidiary of film studio 20th Century Fox.-History:It began in 1958 as 20th Fox Records. In 1963, 20th Fox Records became 20th Century-Fox Records...
. A Haywood-penned single, "She's a Bad Mama Jama (She's Built, She's Stacked)", became a major hit, peaking at #2 on the soul chart and earning Carlton a Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
nomination for Best R&B Vocal Performance, Male
Grammy Award for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance
The Grammy Award for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance was awarded between 1968 and 2011. The award has had several minor name changes:*In 1968 it was awarded as Best R&B Solo Vocal Performance, Male...
. The track peaked at #34 in the UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
. Carlton's subsequent album
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
, Carl Carlton, went gold
Music recording sales certification
Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,...
in 1981. "She's a Bad Mama Jama" has since become a staple of compilation album
Compilation album
A compilation album is an album featuring tracks from one or more performers, often culled from a variety of sources The tracks are usually collected according to a common characteristic, such as popularity, genre, source or subject matter...
s and soundtrack
Soundtrack
A soundtrack can be recorded music accompanying and synchronized to the images of a motion picture, book, television program or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack of a film or TV show; or the physical area of a film that contains the...
s and is often sample
Sampling (music)
In music, sampling is the act of taking a portion, or sample, of one sound recording and reusing it as an instrument or a different sound recording of a song or piece. Sampling was originally developed by experimental musicians working with musique concrète and electroacoustic music, who physically...
d in rap music.
Carlton released several more albums in the 1980s but had only a few minor R&B hits. After 1985's Private Property, he did not release another album until 1994's Main Event, which also failed to chart.
In late 2002, Carlton appeared with many R&B stars
Celebrity
A celebrity, also referred to as a celeb in popular culture, is a person who has a prominent profile and commands a great degree of public fascination and influence in day-to-day media...
on the "Rhythm, Love, and Soul" edition of the PBS
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
series American Soundtrack. His performance of "Everlasting Love" was included on the accompanying live album
Live album
A live album is a recording consisting of material recorded during stage performances using remote recording techniques, commonly contrasted with a studio album...
that was released in 2004.
On August 1, 2010, Carlton released his first gospel
Gospel music
Gospel music is music that is written to express either personal, spiritual or a communal belief regarding Christian life, as well as to give a Christian alternative to mainstream secular music....
single entitled: "God is Good". He is currently in the studio completing his yet to be titled new album. Carlton has recently been nominated locally for a Detroit Music Award in Gospel Performance category.