Terry Black
Terry Black (February 3, 1949 – June 28, 2009) was a Canadian pop singer and teen idol, born in Vancouver, British Columbia.
Terry Black | |
|---|---|
| Born | February 3, 1949 Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada |
| Died | June 28, 2009 (aged 60) Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada |
| Genres | Pop |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, radio DJ |
| Years active | 1964–1982 |
Career
Black's debut U.S. single, "Unless You Care", was released in 1964, when Black was 15.[1] The song was written and produced by P. F. Sloan and Steve Barri and featured backing from Glen Campbell and Leon Russell, who were at that time studio musicians.[2] The song was a major hit in Canada and also cracked the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, and Black was awarded the "Male Vocalist of the Year" award at the Maple Music Awards in 1965.[2]
Black had several further singles through 1966, such as the Sloan-Barri tunes "Kisses for My Baby" and "Say It Again", Sam Cooke's "Only Sixteen", and "Baby's Gone" (written by Graham Bonney and Barry Mason), all of which were produced by Sloan and Barri.[3] He released a Sloan-Barri produced album, Only 16 in 1965, on the Canadian ARC Records label.[3] Black then moved to the U.S., and his remaining unreleased tracks (plus some alternate versions of released songs) were assembled into another Sloan-Barri produced album, The Black Plague, in 1966.[3]
Under the name "Terence" he released the album An Eye for An Ear on Decca Records in the U.S. in 1969. The album was also released with a different cover by MCA Records in Germany, but it went unreleased in Canada and few, if any, copies were distributed there.[4] A hoped-for film career failed to materialize, and Black returned to Canada.[5]
Black also joined the cast for the Toronto production of Hair in 1969. He married a member of the cast, Laurel Ward, in 1970, and from 1972 to 1982 the pair released several singles together as Black and Ward, such as the minor hit "Goin' Down (On the Road to L.A.)", peaking at No. 57, 2/12/72.[3][5][6] He also performed, alongside Ward, with Dr. Music, including the 1972 Canadian hit "Sun Goes By".[5] In 1979, Black performed the song "Moondust" on the soundtrack for the movie Meatballs. Black and Ward divorced in 1993.
In the 2000s, Black hosted an oldies radio show in British Columbia.[5] He had multiple sclerosis late in life and died as a result of the condition on June 28, 2009, in Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada.[2]
Discography[5]
Solo
| Year | Album | Record Label |
|---|---|---|
| 1965 | Only 16 | Arc Records (Canada) |
| 1966 | The Black Plague | |
| 1969 | An Eye for An Ear (as "Terence") | Decca Records DL75137 (US release) |
| 1979 | Meatballs soundtrack (2 songs) | |
with Laurel Ward
| Year | Album |
|---|---|
| 1982 | All Night Long |
with Dr. Music
| Year | Album | Canada | Record Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1972 | Dr. Music | 35 | GRT Records |
| 1973 | Dr. Music II | 78 | |
| 1974 | Bedtime Story | – | |
| 1984 | Circa '84 | – | Canadian Talent Library |
Solo
| Year | Title | Peak chart positions | Record Label | B-side | Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CAN | US | |||||
| 1964 | "Dry Bones" | – | – | Arc Records (Canada) |
"Sinner Man" | |
| "Unless You Care" | 2 | 99 | "Can't We Go Somewhere" | Only 16 | ||
| 1965 | "Say It Again" | 24 | – | "Everyone Can Tell" | ||
| "Little Liar" | 10 | – | "Ordinary Girl" | |||
| "Only Sixteen" | 14 | – | "How Many Guys" | |||
| "Poor Little Fool" | 6 | – | "Kisses for My Baby" | |||
| 1966 | "Rainbow" | 17 | – | "There's Something About You" | ||
| "I (Who Have Nothing)" | – | – | "Baby's Gone" | |||
| "Baby's Gone" | – | – | "Ordinary Girl" | |||
| 1967 | "Wishing Star" | – | – | "Kick Me Charlie" | ||
| 1972 | "Ridin' a Daydream" | – | – | GRT Records | "Boutique" | |
with Laurel Ward
| Year | Title | Peak chart positions | Record Label | B-side | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CAN | US | ||||
| 1972 | "Goin' Down (On the Road to L.A.)" | 99 | 57 | Kama Sutra Records | "Oh Babe" |
| "Warm Days, Warm Nights" | – | – | "Love Is Gone" | ||
| 1973 | "Love is the Feeling" | 87 | – | Yorkville Records | "Now's the Time" |
| 1975 | "It's Your Love" | – | – | RCA Records | "Delight" |
| "Back Up (Against Your Persuasion)" | 35 | – | "This Is My Confusion" | ||
| 1976 | "Long Time" | – | – | "Restless" | |
| 1982 | "Waves of Emotion" | – | – | Duke Street Records | "Wild Out" |
with Dr. Music
| Year | Title | Peak chart positions | Record Label | B-side | Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CAN | US | |||||
| 1971 | "Try a Little Harder" | 78 | – | GRT Records | "The Land" | Dr. Music |
| "One More Mountain to Climb" | 14 | – | "I Can Hear Her Calling Him" | |||
| "Sun Goes By" | 23 | – | "Gospel Rock" | |||
| 1972 | "Long Time Comin' Home" | 28 | – | "Say Real" | Dr. Music II | |
| 1973 | "Tryin' Times" | – | – | "In My Life" | ||
References
- "Vancouver rock idol Terry Black dies at 60". Vancouver Sun. 2009-06-25. Retrieved 2011-05-05.
- Terry Black, Canada's Teen Sensation in '60s Archived 2009-07-05 at the Wayback Machine. Kamloops, June 29, 2009.
- Terry Black at Allmusic
- "Vinyldrome, details of 1969 Decca/MCA album". 18 July 2013. Retrieved 2016-03-07.
- John Rowlands and Jeff Gibbons (2004-11-27). "Canadian Pop Encyclopedia: Terry Black entry". canoe.ca. Retrieved 2011-05-05.
- Billboard Hot 100, Joel Whitburn, Top Pop Singles 1955–1993 ISBN 0-89820-105-5