Gary U.S. Bonds Biography
Gary Anderson, 6 June 1939, Jacksonville, Florida, USA. Having initially sung in various gospel groups, Bonds embraced secular music upon moving to Norfolk, Virginia. A successful spell in the region's R&B clubs resulted in a recording contract with local entrepreneur Frank Guida, whose cavernous production techniques gave Bonds' releases their distinctive sound. The ebullient "New Orleans" set the pattern for the artist's subsequent recordings and its exciting, "party" atmosphere reached an apogee on "Quarter To Three", a US chart-topper and the singer's sole million-seller. Between 1961 and 1962 Bonds enjoyed further similar-sounding hits with "School Is Out", "School Is In", "Dear Lady Twist" and "Twist Twist Senora", but his career then went into sharp decline. He toured the revival circuit until 1978 when long-time devotee Bruce Springsteen joined the singer onstage during a live engagement. Their friendship resulted in Dedication, produced by Springsteen and E Street Band associate Little Steven. The former contributed three original songs to the set, one of which, "This Little Girl', reached the US Top 10 in 1981. Their collaboration was maintained with On The Line, which included Bonds" version of the Box Tops' "Soul Deep", but he later asserted his independence with the self-produced Standing In The Line Of Fire. Little was heard of Bonds in the 90s, other than a cameo appearance with other musical artists in the movie Blues Brothers 2000. He made a surprise return to the recording studio in the new millennium to complete his first all-new album in 20 years, the aptly-titled Back In 20.
Source: The Encyclopedia of Popular Music by Colin Larkin. Licensed from Muze.
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