Norman Connors

Norman Connors (born March 1, 1947)[1] is an American jazz drummer, composer, arranger, and producer who has led some influential jazz and R&B groups. He also achieved several big R&B hits of the day, especially with love ballads. He is possibly best known for the 1976 hit, "You Are My Starship" on which lead vocals were sung by Michael Henderson.

Norman Connors
Connors in 1997
Background information
Birth nameNorman Connors
Born (1947-03-01) March 1, 1947
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
GenresJazz
Jazz fusion
Smooth jazz
Occupation(s)Musician
Composer
Arranger
Producer
InstrumentsDrum
Years active1967–present
LabelsBuddah
Arista
Capitol
Motown
Shanachie

Biography

Connors lived in the same Philadelphia neighbourhood as comedian Bill Cosby (just 4 doors away) and had an interest in jazz from a very early age when he began to play drums. Whilst at elementary school, Connors was exposed to jazz extensively and became heavily influenced by the drummer Lex Humphries and the younger brother of bassist and Jazz-Messenger player, Spanky DeBrest. He first met his idol, Miles Davis, aged just 13 in 1960.

He once sat in for Elvin Jones at a John Coltrane performance he attended while in middle school. Connors studied music at Temple University and Juilliard. His first recording was on Archie Shepp's 1967 release, Magic of JuJu. He played with Pharoah Sanders for the next few years until signing in 1972 with jazz label, Cobblestone Records, a division of Buddah Records, and releasing his first record as a bandleader.

Connors began to focus more on R&B material in the mid-1970s after signing with Buddah Records and then becoming the label's A&R manager. He scored several US hits with songs featuring guest vocalists such as Michael Henderson, Jean Carn, and Phyllis Hyman. The most successful of these was "You Are My Starship" (#4 R&B, #27 Pop), featuring Henderson in 1976, while "Valentine Love", his first chart success, made #10 R&B in 1975, with vocals from Henderson and Jean Carne. Dee Dee Bridgewater also performed with him on the jazz album "Love from the Sun". He has also produced recordings for various artists, including collaborators like Jean Carn, Phyllis Hyman, Al Johnson, Norman Brown, and saxophonist Marion Meadows.

Connors switched to the Arista label when Buddah was bought out in 1978 and achieved a crossover to the disco scene in 1980 when he had the hit 'Take it to the Limit', which was released on 12" single. The B side, "Black Cow" (an instrumental) was written by Steely Dan's Walter Becker and Donald Fagen.

In 1988 he had a hit on Capitol Records with "I Am Your Melody" (with B-side "Samba for Maria") from his LP Passion which he produced featuring Spencer Harrison. Connors also introduced another up and coming singer on the Passion LB by the name of Gabrielle Goodman who sang Minnie Riperton's "Loving You", "My One And Only Love", "Private Stock" and duets with Harrison on the LP.

His later work, Star Power, features smooth jazz and urban crossover music.

Discography

Studio albums
Year Album Peak chart positions Certifications Record label
US
[2]		 US
R&B
[2]		 US
Jazz
[2]		 US
Cont Jazz
[2]		 CAN
[3]
1972 Dance of Magic — — — — — Cobblestone
1973 Dark of Light — — — — —
1974 Love from the Sun — — — — — Buddah
Slewfoot — 51 — — —
1975 Saturday Night Special 150 35 — — —
1976 You Are My Starship 39 5 — — —
1977 Romantic Journey 94 24 — — —
1978 This Is Your Life 68 20 — — 92 Arista
1979 Invitation 137 34 — — —
1980 Take It to the Limit 145 30 — — —
1981 Mr. C 197 51 — — —
1988 Passion — 39 — — — Capitol
1993 Remember Who You Are — 70 — 19 — MoJazz
1996 Easy Living — — 47 — —
2000 Eternity — — 18 13 — The Right Stuff
2009 Star Power — — 13 6 — Shanachie
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

Compilation albums
Year Album Peak chart positions Record label
US
[2]		 US
R&B
[2]
1978 The Best of Norman Connors & Friends 175 44 Buddah
1997 The Encore Collection — — BMG
1998 The Very Best of Norman Connors — — Camden
1999 Melancholy Fire - The Best of Norman Connors — — Razor & Tie
2001 The Best of Norman Connors — — Buddha
2017 Valentine Love - The Buddah/Arista Anthology — — SoulMusic
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

Singles
Year Single Peak chart positions Album
US
[2]		 US
R&B
[2]		 US
Dan
[2]		 CAN
[3]
1975 "Valentine Love" (featuring Michael Henderson & Jean Carn) 97 10 — — Saturday Night Special
1976 "We Both Need Each Other" (featuring Michael Henderson & Phyllis Hyman) 101 23 — — You Are My Starship
"You Are My Starship" (featuring Michael Henderson) 27 4 — 70
1977 "Betcha by Golly, Wow" (featuring Phyllis Hyman) 102 29 — —
"Once I've Been There" (featuring Phillip Mitchell) — 16 30 — Romantic Journey
"For You Everything" (featuring Phillip Mitchell & Eleanore Mills) — — — —
1978 "This Is Your Life" (featuring Eleanore Mills) — 31 — — This Is Your Life
"Wouldn't You Like to See" (featuring Eleanore Mills) — — — —
1979 "Your Love" (featuring Al Johnson) — — — — Invitation
"Handle Me Gently" (featuring Miss Adaritha) — — — —
1980 "Take It to the Limit" (featuring Miss Adaritha) — 28 — — Take It to the Limit
"Melancholy Fire" (featuring Glenn Jones) — 20 — —
1981 "She's Gone" (featuring Beau Williams) — 86 — — Mr. C
1988 "I Am Your Melody" (featuring Spencer Harrison) — 26 — — Passion
"You're My One and Only Love" (featuring Gabrielle Goodman) — — — —
"Lovin' You" (featuring Gabrielle Goodman) — — — —
1993 "Remember Who You Are" (featuring Phyllis Hyman) — 86 — — Remember Who You Are
2000 "Cobra" (featuring Norman Brown) — — — — Eternity
"Didn't I (Blow Your Mind This Time)" (featuring Lisa Fischer) — — — —
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

As sideman

With Carlos Garnett

With Sam Rivers

With Pharoah Sanders

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References
  1. "Norman Connors profile at". Allmusic.com. Retrieved 2011-09-21.
  2. "US Charts > Norman Connors". Billboard. Retrieved August 8, 2020.
  3. "CAN Charts > Norman Connors". RPM. Retrieved August 8, 2020.
  4. "American certifications – Norman Connors". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved August 8, 2020.
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