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| Charlene | ||
| Artist: Charlene Song: I've Never Been to Me Year: 1982 Discuss Charlene
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Class of 1982 Click Here to find old friends. |
| Biography | ||
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Born in Hollywood, California on June 1... Charlene
D'Angelo grew up with a love of music. In 1967 at the
age of 18 she competed in the Chuck Berris produced
"Miss Dream Girl" television show.
Signed to Motown Records in 1972 by the legendary Berry Gordy, Charlene began her recording career working with producer/husband Larry Duncan. Her first Motown single "All That Love Went To Waste" was included in the film "A Touch of Class" and performed on the annual Golden Globe telecast with R&B legend Dionne Warwick. Charlene made the switch to the Motown subsidiary Prodigal Records where her first two full length albums were released. "Charlene" & "Songs of Love" both contained a song penned by Ron Miller and Ken Hirsch, "I've Never Been To Me" was an anthem of lost love and self discovery. Ron Miller would produce much of Charlene's Motown catalog. "Songs of Love" also holds a bit of history as its cover was painted by then unknown artist Patrick Nagle. Charlene left Prodigal and the music business behind to concentrate on family. Moving to England and getting married in 1982 to Jeff Oliver. Working in a sweet shop and planning a family, Charlene's life was about to change yet again. Florida based DJ Scott Shannon was a fan of "I've Never Been To Me" and began playing it on his radio show in 1982. A buzz began to build around the six year old song and it began to pick up airplay all over the country. As the song began to climb the charts Motown quickly signed Charlene to a new contract and began work on a follow up album. "I've Never Been To Me" peaked at # 3 in the US, while reaching #1 for six weeks in Canada and Australia. It also topped the charts in Germany, Holland, Italy, Denmark, and Japan. The accompanying video was filmed at Blicking Castle in Norfolk, England. Charlene's historical duet "Used To Be", with Motown label mate Stevie Wonder, also became a Top 40 hit in 1982. Motown released three Charlene albums in 1982, "I've Never Been To Me", "Used To Be", and "Sky Is The Limit: Songs of Inspiration". Charlene's songwriting took center stage with the release of her final Motown album, 1984's "Hit & Run Lover". Regarded to many as a lost gem of 80's pop, this album also featured several songs co-produced by Charlene and Russ Terrana. Motown also included Charlene's "Fire" on the soundtrack to the film "Berry Gordy's The Last Dragon" in 1985. The video for "Fire" is also featured prominetly in the film itself. Charlene left Motown in 1985 but not before performing at the historic "Motown 25" concert, performing "I've Never Been To Me". After Motown Charlene was able to finally start the family she planned. She became very active in church, often performing in the Annual Passion Play. Happy to watch her family grow and pursue her love of songwriting, Charlene was about to encounter "I've Never Been to Me" once again. The 1994 Australian independent film "The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert" featured "I've Never Been To Me" in its opening sequence and featured the song on the soundtrack. Once again the song had come back to life and interest in Charlene began to pour in. The film about a traveling troop of drag queens had alot of heart and spread it's joy all over the world, becoming a smash hit. The inclusion of "I've Never Been To Me" also cemented Charlene's icon status with the gay community. The song was released as a single in several countries and fueled sales of the soundtrack. In 2001 Charlene became a member of the national Academy of Arts and Sciences for her songwriting with the NBC soap opera "Passions". "I See Myself In You" a song she co-wrote was also in final consideration for the Olympic Games. Charlene complete work on a long overdue cd in 2003, "Time Stand Still" featured classics from her career as well as new songs. VH1 also featured Charlene and the release of "Time Stand Still" on several retrospectives in 2003. Charlene completed a UK tour with Kiki Dee in the fall of 2004 before singing with Cleveland City Records. She is currently working on her debut cd for Cleveland City which will feature a newly recorded version of "I've Never Been To Me", a cover of the Culture Club classic "Do You Really Want To Hurt Me", and lots of new material. Motown/UMG is also considering a career spanning retrospective of Charlene's classic songs. Biography used with permission from: www.charlenesmusic.com | ||
| Links |
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| Albums |
| Top songs for the Class of 1982 | |||
| Make a mix tape or request these at the next class reunion. These rankings will change by the day, hour and even minute. They are based on visitor popularity. | |||
| Artist | Song | ||
| 1. | Charlene | I've Never Been to Me | more |
| 2. | Bow Wow Wow | I Want Candy | more |
| 3. | Soft Cell | Tainted Love | more |
| 4. | Bertie Higgins | Key Largo | more |
| 5. | Toni Basil | Mickey | more |
| 6. | Frida | I Know There's Something Going On | more |
| 7. | Wall of Voodoo | Mexican Radio | more |
| 8. | Aldo Nova | Fantasy | more |
| 9. | Haircut 100 | Love Plus One | more |
| 10. | The Clocks | She looks alot like you | more |
