Biography
The supple, deep-register bass work of Bernard Edwards drove multiple platinum-certified successes for Chic, the 1970s dance and pop ensemble he established with guitarist, songwriter, and producer Nile Rodgers. Three gold singles and one platinum single emerged from the group, among them the two chart-topping pop and R&B tracks “Le Freak” and “Good Times,” while the albums C’est Chic and Risqué each earned platinum status and Chic itself reached gold. A live document titled Live at the Budokan appeared on February 23, 1999, via Rodgers’ Sumthing Distribution. Edwards co-wrote and produced every Chic release as well as the recordings the pair oversaw for Diana Ross, Sister Sledge, and additional artists. He later produced and performed with the 1980s supergroup Power Station on “Some Like It Hot,” helmed ABC’s “When Smokey Sings,” Ross’ “Telephone,” and several Rod Stewart tracks, and supplied bass for the Rodgers-produced Madonna album Like a Virgin plus Jody Watley’s “Don’t You Want Me.”
Edwards entered the world on October 31, 1952, in Greenville, North Carolina, and first crossed paths with Rodgers in 1970. The pair began performing together in New York jazz clubs and taverns. After linking up with drummer Tony Thompson they assembled the Big Apple Band, which supported live appearances by the vocal group New York City. Their playing can be heard on Walter Murphy & the Big Apple Band’s gold single “A Fifth of Beethoven,” which reached number ten R&B and number one pop in spring 1976. When they formed Chic the musicians sold their equipment to finance demo recordings aimed at landing a major-label contract. Repeated rejections followed until Atlantic Records president Jerry Greenberg finally offered a deal. Their debut single, “Dance, Dance, Dance (Yowsah, Yowsah, Yowsah),” began as a major club favorite, earned gold status, and climbed to number six on both the R&B and pop Billboard charts in fall 1977.
Issued in December 1977, the self-titled debut album Chic attained gold certification and peaked at number 27 pop the following spring. The group’s largest hit, “Le Freak,” was tracked at New York’s Power Station with vocalists Alfa Anderson and Luci Martin, keyboardists Raymond Jones—who would later produce and co-write Whitney Houston’s “Someone for Me” with Freddie Washington—and Robert Sabino, percussionist Sammy Figueroa, and the Chic Strings (Cheryl Hong, Marianne Carroll, and Karen Milne) under Gene Orloff’s direction. “Le Freak” held the R&B summit for five weeks and the pop summit for three separate runs in fall 1978, ultimately becoming Atlantic Records’ biggest-selling single with more than four million copies sold. The follow-up LP C’est Chic, which reached number four pop in late 1978, went platinum after moving over one million units and spawned the next single “I Want Your Love” backed with “(Funny) Bone.” Flush with hits, Rodgers and Edwards became sought-after writer-producers, most prominently for Diana Ross and Sister Sledge. Atlantic authorized them to work with any roster act; they deliberately selected a lesser-known act so that any resulting success would be credited to the producers rather than the star.
They chose the four-sister teenage group Sister Sledge, already signed to Atlantic’s Atco subsidiary and previously responsible for “Love Don’t Go Through No Changes on Me” as well as sessions with the producers of Silver Convention’s “Fly Robin Fly” and Brad Shapiro’s “Better Days.” Their initial Rodgers-Edwards collaboration, issued on Cotillion, was “He’s the Greatest Dancer,” which attained number one R&B and number two pop in spring 1979. “We Are Family,” the title track of Sister Sledge’s third album, had already circulated widely through clubs and radio before its single release; it became the quartet’s sole certified gold single, reaching number one R&B and number two pop in summer 1979. The song was embraced by the 1979 World Series champion Pittsburgh Pirates, adopted by countless organizations, and turned into a staple at family gatherings. The We Are Family album itself went platinum and peaked at number three pop that spring.
The next Rodgers-Edwards production, Love Somebody Today, featured the single “Got to Love Somebody” (number six R&B). The title track of the 1981 album All American Girls, later reissued as a 1995 Rhino CD, climbed to number three R&B. “Good Times” backed with the sensual “A Warm Summer Night” served as the lead single from Chic’s third album Risqué, which earned platinum certification and reached number five pop; the track remained at number one on both R&B and pop charts for six weeks during summer 1979. The follow-up “My Forbidden Lover” backed with “What About Me” peaked at number 33 R&B, while its extended twelve-inch version later became a collector’s item. The third single, “My Feet Keep Dancing,” spotlighted tap performances by Fayard Nicholas of the Nicholas Brothers and Eugene Jackson of Our Gang. When the Sugarhill Gang built their million-selling breakthrough “Rapper’s Delight” on the foundation of “Good Times,” Rodgers and Edwards collected substantial royalties after litigation. Queen’s “Another One Bites the Dust” similarly drew on an Edwards bassline modeled after “Good Times.”
Diana Ross enlisted the duo and received the platinum album Diana, which held number two pop for two weeks in summer 1980, plus two charting singles: the gold-certified “Upside Down,” which occupied the top spot on both R&B and pop charts for four weeks that summer, and “I’m Coming Out” (number six R&B, number five pop). Both carried “Friend to Friend” as the B-side, though some pressings of “…Out” substituted “Give Up.” The pair also produced Debbie Harry’s gold LP Koo Koo, which included “Backfired” and “The Jam Was Moving.” Not every project succeeded; tracks cut with Johnny Mathis were ultimately shelved by mutual agreement. Amid this schedule Rodgers and Edwards still found time to produce the self-titled debut album by former Chic backing vocalist Norma Jean for Bearsville Records, released in summer 1978. Real People yielded the single “Rebels Are We,” which reached number eight R&B in July 1980. Ironically, the group’s final high-charting single appeared not on a Chic album but as the title track of the Soup for One film soundtrack, peaking at number 14 R&B. Their sound left a clear imprint on numerous acts, most notably Change, whose recordings sat several notches above most imitators.
By the mid-1980s the pair no longer confined their production work to each other. Weary of relentless studio and touring demands, Chic disbanded after issuing Take It Off (1981, “Stage Fright”), Tongue in Chic (1982, “Hangin’”), and Believer, their final Atlantic albums. Both men pursued distinguished production careers separately: Rodgers scored successes with David Bowie (the number-one gold single “Let’s Dance” and “China Girl”), Madonna (the nine-million-selling Like a Virgin featuring the number-one title track plus the Top Five hits “Material Girl,” “Angel,” and “Dress You Up”), and the System (“Comin’ to America”), while Edwards recorded with ABC, Rod Stewart, Power Station, Starpoint, Missing Persons, and Nona Hendryx. Rodgers and Edwards reconvened in 1992 for the Warner Bros. album Chic-ism (“Give Me the Lovin’,” “Chic Mystique”). On April 18, 1996, at age 43, Bernard Edwards succumbed to pneumonia while touring with Chic in Tokyo, Japan.
Edwards entered the world on October 31, 1952, in Greenville, North Carolina, and first crossed paths with Rodgers in 1970. The pair began performing together in New York jazz clubs and taverns. After linking up with drummer Tony Thompson they assembled the Big Apple Band, which supported live appearances by the vocal group New York City. Their playing can be heard on Walter Murphy & the Big Apple Band’s gold single “A Fifth of Beethoven,” which reached number ten R&B and number one pop in spring 1976. When they formed Chic the musicians sold their equipment to finance demo recordings aimed at landing a major-label contract. Repeated rejections followed until Atlantic Records president Jerry Greenberg finally offered a deal. Their debut single, “Dance, Dance, Dance (Yowsah, Yowsah, Yowsah),” began as a major club favorite, earned gold status, and climbed to number six on both the R&B and pop Billboard charts in fall 1977.
Issued in December 1977, the self-titled debut album Chic attained gold certification and peaked at number 27 pop the following spring. The group’s largest hit, “Le Freak,” was tracked at New York’s Power Station with vocalists Alfa Anderson and Luci Martin, keyboardists Raymond Jones—who would later produce and co-write Whitney Houston’s “Someone for Me” with Freddie Washington—and Robert Sabino, percussionist Sammy Figueroa, and the Chic Strings (Cheryl Hong, Marianne Carroll, and Karen Milne) under Gene Orloff’s direction. “Le Freak” held the R&B summit for five weeks and the pop summit for three separate runs in fall 1978, ultimately becoming Atlantic Records’ biggest-selling single with more than four million copies sold. The follow-up LP C’est Chic, which reached number four pop in late 1978, went platinum after moving over one million units and spawned the next single “I Want Your Love” backed with “(Funny) Bone.” Flush with hits, Rodgers and Edwards became sought-after writer-producers, most prominently for Diana Ross and Sister Sledge. Atlantic authorized them to work with any roster act; they deliberately selected a lesser-known act so that any resulting success would be credited to the producers rather than the star.
They chose the four-sister teenage group Sister Sledge, already signed to Atlantic’s Atco subsidiary and previously responsible for “Love Don’t Go Through No Changes on Me” as well as sessions with the producers of Silver Convention’s “Fly Robin Fly” and Brad Shapiro’s “Better Days.” Their initial Rodgers-Edwards collaboration, issued on Cotillion, was “He’s the Greatest Dancer,” which attained number one R&B and number two pop in spring 1979. “We Are Family,” the title track of Sister Sledge’s third album, had already circulated widely through clubs and radio before its single release; it became the quartet’s sole certified gold single, reaching number one R&B and number two pop in summer 1979. The song was embraced by the 1979 World Series champion Pittsburgh Pirates, adopted by countless organizations, and turned into a staple at family gatherings. The We Are Family album itself went platinum and peaked at number three pop that spring.
The next Rodgers-Edwards production, Love Somebody Today, featured the single “Got to Love Somebody” (number six R&B). The title track of the 1981 album All American Girls, later reissued as a 1995 Rhino CD, climbed to number three R&B. “Good Times” backed with the sensual “A Warm Summer Night” served as the lead single from Chic’s third album Risqué, which earned platinum certification and reached number five pop; the track remained at number one on both R&B and pop charts for six weeks during summer 1979. The follow-up “My Forbidden Lover” backed with “What About Me” peaked at number 33 R&B, while its extended twelve-inch version later became a collector’s item. The third single, “My Feet Keep Dancing,” spotlighted tap performances by Fayard Nicholas of the Nicholas Brothers and Eugene Jackson of Our Gang. When the Sugarhill Gang built their million-selling breakthrough “Rapper’s Delight” on the foundation of “Good Times,” Rodgers and Edwards collected substantial royalties after litigation. Queen’s “Another One Bites the Dust” similarly drew on an Edwards bassline modeled after “Good Times.”
Diana Ross enlisted the duo and received the platinum album Diana, which held number two pop for two weeks in summer 1980, plus two charting singles: the gold-certified “Upside Down,” which occupied the top spot on both R&B and pop charts for four weeks that summer, and “I’m Coming Out” (number six R&B, number five pop). Both carried “Friend to Friend” as the B-side, though some pressings of “…Out” substituted “Give Up.” The pair also produced Debbie Harry’s gold LP Koo Koo, which included “Backfired” and “The Jam Was Moving.” Not every project succeeded; tracks cut with Johnny Mathis were ultimately shelved by mutual agreement. Amid this schedule Rodgers and Edwards still found time to produce the self-titled debut album by former Chic backing vocalist Norma Jean for Bearsville Records, released in summer 1978. Real People yielded the single “Rebels Are We,” which reached number eight R&B in July 1980. Ironically, the group’s final high-charting single appeared not on a Chic album but as the title track of the Soup for One film soundtrack, peaking at number 14 R&B. Their sound left a clear imprint on numerous acts, most notably Change, whose recordings sat several notches above most imitators.
By the mid-1980s the pair no longer confined their production work to each other. Weary of relentless studio and touring demands, Chic disbanded after issuing Take It Off (1981, “Stage Fright”), Tongue in Chic (1982, “Hangin’”), and Believer, their final Atlantic albums. Both men pursued distinguished production careers separately: Rodgers scored successes with David Bowie (the number-one gold single “Let’s Dance” and “China Girl”), Madonna (the nine-million-selling Like a Virgin featuring the number-one title track plus the Top Five hits “Material Girl,” “Angel,” and “Dress You Up”), and the System (“Comin’ to America”), while Edwards recorded with ABC, Rod Stewart, Power Station, Starpoint, Missing Persons, and Nona Hendryx. Rodgers and Edwards reconvened in 1992 for the Warner Bros. album Chic-ism (“Give Me the Lovin’,” “Chic Mystique”). On April 18, 1996, at age 43, Bernard Edwards succumbed to pneumonia while touring with Chic in Tokyo, Japan.
Albums
