Vincent Calloway

Vincent Calloway. (b. January 5^th, 1957). Vocalist, trombonist, songwriter & producer who came to prominence as part of the R&B duo Calloway as well as member of the funk band Midnight Star.

Midnight Star is an American group that had a string of hits in the 1980s.

Band history

The group was formed in 1976 at Kentucky State University by trumpeter Reggie Calloway, vocalist Belinda Lipscomb, guitarist/drummer/vocalist Melvin Gentry, bassist Kenneth Gant, multi-instrumentalist Bill Simmons, keyboard player/vocalist Bo Watson and guitarist/keyboardist Jeff Cooper, as a self-contained group. They later added non-KSU student trombonist Vincent Calloway (Reginald's younger brother). A 1978 New York City showcase inspired SOLAR Records chief Dick Griffey to sign the group. They released their debut album The Beginning (1980) with some guest studio musicians. In 1981 their second album, released on Solar Records, Standing Together, reached position #54 on the U.S. R&B chart. In 1982 they released a third album, Victory.

Using elected band leader Reggie Calloway's production skills, Midnight Star hit the U.S. R&B chart with early singles "Hot Spot" and "I've Been Watching You". Drummer Bobby Lovelace joined the group in late 1982, freeing Gentry to sing and play guitar exclusively. Their fourth album, No Parking on the Dance Floor, was released in 1983, and its first single, "Freak-A-Zoid", went to number two on the U.S. Black Singles chart. Other singles from the album included "Wet My Whistle", and the title track. These singles, along with the hit album tracks "Slow Jam" (co-written by Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds) and "Electricity" led the album to double platinum status. Their next album, Planetary Invasion also went platinum and made the pop Top 20 and the number one spot on the R&B chart with its first single, "Operator". This song remains the band's only Billboard Hot 100 Top 40 hit to date.

In 1985, Kool & the Gang, Midnight Star, Shalamar and Klymaxx performed at the Marriott Convention Center in Oklahoma City. The band continued on to concerts in San Antonio and Little Rock. Then in 1986 the band released their sixth album, Headlines, which was their third album to sell at least gold. It was to be their last with the Calloway brothers. Due to irreconcilable differences with the other members, Reggie was out of the group and Vincent left shortly thereafter. They achieved their biggest success in the UK with "Midas Touch", which made #8, and "Headlines", a #16 hit earlier the same year. Without the Calloways (who formed the group Calloway and release an album that spawned the 1990 hit single "I Wanna Be Rich"), Midnight Star recorded two more albums, the self-titled Midnight Star and Work It Out. These two albums proved not as successful as their previous three releases, but the singles "Don't Rock the Boat" and "Snake in the Grass" did reach the top ten on the R&B singles chart. The group went on a long hiatus, though they never officially broke up.

The group reunited in 2000 with many of the original members (including all of the singers) and released the album 15th Avenue two years later. Since then, the group has toured sporadically, most recently with a lineup that includes Belinda Lipscomb, Kenneth Gant, Melvin Gentry, Bo Watson, and Bobby Lovelace, with Bill Simmons sometimes joining as well.

Outside work

Outside of Midnight Star, a few band members have contributed to other projects. Bo Watson co-wrote a few songs for singer Toni Braxton. He co-wrote the Babyface duet "Give U My Heart" and "Love Shoulda Brought You Home" from the Boomerang soundtrack as well as the song "Spending My Time With You" on Braxton's self-titled debut. Watson also helped write other songs such as "Turn Down the Lights" for Shanice, "Rock Steady" for The Whispers and "Meeting in the Ladies' Room" for Klymaxx.

Reggie and Vincent Calloway went on to produce such acts as Teddy Pendergrass, The Deele and LeVert- the latter with whom they had their biggest success with the song "Casanova".

Belinda Lipscomb appears on Reflection Eternal's 2010 album Revolutions Per Minute on the album track "Long Hot Summer" as well as the second single "In This World". Lipscomb also contributed additional background vocals on "Toyz N Da Hood" from Snoop Dogg's 2011 album Doggumentary.

Discography

Compilation albums

• Greatest Hits (1987, SOLAR)
• Anniversary Collection (1999, The Right Stuff)
• The Best of Midnight Star (2002, EMI-Capitol)
• Ultimate Collection (2006, Capitol)

Calloway is an R&B duo of Cincinnati, Ohio brothers Reginald (born on January 23, 1955) and Vincent (born on January 5, 1957) Calloway. They had a major hit in 1990 with "I Wanna Be Rich".

Biography

The brothers grew up around music with a father who played the trumpet, an uncle who played keyboards, and an aunt who sang opera. As teenagers, they began writing songs and forming bands, and when attending Kentucky State University, they formed Midnight Star, a synth-funk outfit that hit big in the early 1980s. The Calloways were instrumental in orchestrating the band's 1983 multi-platinum breakthrough album, No Parking on the Dance Floor, and Midnight Star would continue to experience mainstream success throughout the brothers' tenure in the group.

After Midnight Star ran its course, the two left to focus on solo work. During their time with Midnight Star, they had also written and produced hits for acts like Klymaxx ("Meeting in the Ladies Room") and The Whispers ("Contagious"). Following their exit from Star, they continued writing for other musicians, such as Teddy Pendergrass ("Joy"), Gladys Knight & the Pips ("Love Overboard"), Natalie Cole ("Jump Start"), and Levert ("Casanova"), before forming their own eponymous group, Calloway, in the late 1980s. As Calloway, the duo scored a number two Billboard Hot 100 hit and number five soul hit with "I Wanna Be Rich". After scoring with the follow-ups "Sir Lancelot" (Top 20 R&B), "All the Way" and "Let's Get Smooth" (both R&B Top 40 hits), the hits dried up and the Calloways concentrated on production work. Reginald Calloway is now the Music Director of Royalty fund for Sound Royalties.

Discography

Albums

• 1989: All the Way
• 1992: Let's Get Smooth

Singles

• 1989: "All the Way"
• 1989: "Sir Lancelot"
• 1989: "I Wanna Be Rich"
• 1992: "Let's Get Smooth"