Biography
Harvey Fuqua established the foundational R&B and doo-wop ensemble the Moonglows, guided Marvin Gaye early in his career by co-producing the 1982 single “Sexual Healing” along with Gaye’s successful pairings alongside Tammi Terrell, nurtured multiple Motown performers, and propelled the 1970s soul-pop outfit New Birth plus disco icon Sylvester, whose signature tracks included “Dance (Disco Heat)” and “You Make Me Feel Mighty Real.” Born July 27, 1929, in Louisville, Kentucky, and the nephew of Ink Spots member Charlie Fuqua, he formed the Moonglows with fellow Louisville native and lead vocalist Bobby Lester (January 13, 1930–October 15, 1980), Alexander Graves (born April 17, 1930, Cleveland, Ohio), and Prentiss Barnes (April 12, 1925, Magnolia, Mississippi). Under the tutelage of pioneering rock-and-roll disc jockey Alan Freed, the quartet joined Freed’s broadcasts, live shows, and the films Rock, Rock, Rock (1956), whose soundtrack later appeared on MCA compact disc, and Mr. Rock and Roll (1957). Originally billed as the Crazy Sounds, they received their enduring name from Freed himself. The 1978 feature American Hot Wax depicted a fictional act modeled on the Moonglows together with Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers. Their earliest sides emerged on Freed’s Champagne imprint in 1953.
The following year they moved to Art Sheridan’s Chicago-based Chance label, where a reinterpretation of Doris Day’s “Secret Love” achieved regional success. After Chance ceased operations that same year, executive Ewart Abner steered them toward Chess Records. The Chess release “Sincerely” held the top R&B spot for two weeks while reaching number 20 on Billboard’s pop survey late in 1954. Their signature “blow harmony” surfaced on further Chess successes such as “Most of All” (number five R&B, spring 1955), “We Go Together” (number nine R&B, summer 1956, later revived by Jan & Dean), the two-sided hit “See Saw” (number six R&B) backed with “When I’m with You” (number 15 R&B, autumn 1956), a reading of Percy Mayfield’s 1950 gold-certified “Please Send Me Someone to Love” (number five R&B, summer 1957), and “Ten Commandments of Love” (number nine R&B, autumn 1958), issued under the billing Harvey & the Moonglows and featuring former Marquees members Marvin Gaye, Reese Palmer, James Knowland, Chester Simmons, plus Chuck Barksdale loaned from the Dells. The group also issued material as the Moonlighters, scoring a regional hit with “Soo-Doo-Bedoo,” an answer to the Chords’ “Sh-Boom.”
In 1958 Fuqua departed the Moonglows; Chess owner Leonard Chess recommended he affiliate with Detroit’s Anna Records. Retaining Gaye while returning the remaining Marquees to Washington, D.C., Fuqua relocated and collaborated with “See Saw” co-writer Billy Davis—distinct from the Fifth Dimension vocalist of identical name—and Anna Gordy, whose brother Berry he had encountered when leasing the Miracles’ “Bad Girl” from Chess. Anna enjoyed a major success with Barrett Strong’s “Money.” While there, Fuqua recorded Lamont Anthony, later known as Lamont Dozier, and Johnny Bristol, both of whom later achieved prominence at Motown. Berry Gordy took notice after witnessing Fuqua’s intensive rehearsals conducted at the home of Gordy’s sister Esther and her husband George Edwards. Fuqua continued producing Etta James sides for Chess. In 1961 he launched Tri-Phi and Harvey Records, whose artists included the Spinners—“That’s What Girls Are Made For” on Tri-Phi reached number five R&B in summer 1961—the Junior Walker & the All-Stars track “Good Rockin’ Tonight,” and Shorty Long.
Finding independent operation increasingly burdensome, Fuqua accepted Berry Gordy’s invitation to direct Motown’s artist-development division, a finishing program for the roster. Assisted by Gordy’s sisters Gwen, then Fuqua’s spouse, and Anna, along with Maxine Powell and Cholly Atkins, he brought the Spinners and Johnny Bristol to the label. Fuqua and Bristol jointly produced several hits that carried echoes of the Moonglows’ style, among them Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell’s Ashford & Simpson-penned “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” (number three R&B, number 19 pop, summer 1967), “Your Precious Love” (number two R&B, number five pop, autumn 1967), and “If This World Were Mine” (number two R&B, number ten pop, late 1967), plus ex-Temptation David Ruffin’s “My Whole World Ended (The Moment You Left Me)” (number two R&B, number nine pop, early 1969).
Around 1971 Fuqua exited Motown for a production arrangement with RCA. Two acts represented by his agency, the Nitelighters—“K-Jee” and the double-sided “Afro-Strut”/“[We’ve Got To] Pull Together”—and New Birth, which scored with covers of Perry Como’s 1971 hit “It’s Impossible,” Bobby Womack’s “I Can Understand It,” and “It’s Been a Long Time,” joined the roster. New Birth members Lester and Melvin Wilson, recording as Love, Peace & Happiness, revived Gladys Knight & the Pips’ “I Don’t Want to Do Wrong,” which peaked at number 41 R&B in summer 1982. The Moonglows reconvened in 1972 with Fuqua, Lester, Graves, Doc Williams, and Chuck Lewis; they issued the RCA album The Return of the Moonglows and a new “Sincerely” that reached number 43 R&B. Fuqua rejoined Marvin Gaye in summer 1982 to shape the Midnight Love LP, which climbed to number seven pop late that year, sold two million copies, and yielded the gold-certified “Sexual Healing” (number one R&B for ten weeks, number three pop, autumn 1982). The posthumous 1985 Dream of a Lifetime track “Sanctified Lady” held number two R&B for three weeks in spring 1985. A later incarnation of the Moonglows appeared on a 1999 PBS special, while a Fuqua-led edition recorded contemporary versions of classic R&B material for the 2000 Harvey & the Moonglows album on his Resurging Artist imprint. Residing in Concord, North Carolina, during his final years, Harvey Fuqua suffered a fatal heart attack at a Detroit hospital on July 6, 2010, at age 80.
The following year they moved to Art Sheridan’s Chicago-based Chance label, where a reinterpretation of Doris Day’s “Secret Love” achieved regional success. After Chance ceased operations that same year, executive Ewart Abner steered them toward Chess Records. The Chess release “Sincerely” held the top R&B spot for two weeks while reaching number 20 on Billboard’s pop survey late in 1954. Their signature “blow harmony” surfaced on further Chess successes such as “Most of All” (number five R&B, spring 1955), “We Go Together” (number nine R&B, summer 1956, later revived by Jan & Dean), the two-sided hit “See Saw” (number six R&B) backed with “When I’m with You” (number 15 R&B, autumn 1956), a reading of Percy Mayfield’s 1950 gold-certified “Please Send Me Someone to Love” (number five R&B, summer 1957), and “Ten Commandments of Love” (number nine R&B, autumn 1958), issued under the billing Harvey & the Moonglows and featuring former Marquees members Marvin Gaye, Reese Palmer, James Knowland, Chester Simmons, plus Chuck Barksdale loaned from the Dells. The group also issued material as the Moonlighters, scoring a regional hit with “Soo-Doo-Bedoo,” an answer to the Chords’ “Sh-Boom.”
In 1958 Fuqua departed the Moonglows; Chess owner Leonard Chess recommended he affiliate with Detroit’s Anna Records. Retaining Gaye while returning the remaining Marquees to Washington, D.C., Fuqua relocated and collaborated with “See Saw” co-writer Billy Davis—distinct from the Fifth Dimension vocalist of identical name—and Anna Gordy, whose brother Berry he had encountered when leasing the Miracles’ “Bad Girl” from Chess. Anna enjoyed a major success with Barrett Strong’s “Money.” While there, Fuqua recorded Lamont Anthony, later known as Lamont Dozier, and Johnny Bristol, both of whom later achieved prominence at Motown. Berry Gordy took notice after witnessing Fuqua’s intensive rehearsals conducted at the home of Gordy’s sister Esther and her husband George Edwards. Fuqua continued producing Etta James sides for Chess. In 1961 he launched Tri-Phi and Harvey Records, whose artists included the Spinners—“That’s What Girls Are Made For” on Tri-Phi reached number five R&B in summer 1961—the Junior Walker & the All-Stars track “Good Rockin’ Tonight,” and Shorty Long.
Finding independent operation increasingly burdensome, Fuqua accepted Berry Gordy’s invitation to direct Motown’s artist-development division, a finishing program for the roster. Assisted by Gordy’s sisters Gwen, then Fuqua’s spouse, and Anna, along with Maxine Powell and Cholly Atkins, he brought the Spinners and Johnny Bristol to the label. Fuqua and Bristol jointly produced several hits that carried echoes of the Moonglows’ style, among them Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell’s Ashford & Simpson-penned “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” (number three R&B, number 19 pop, summer 1967), “Your Precious Love” (number two R&B, number five pop, autumn 1967), and “If This World Were Mine” (number two R&B, number ten pop, late 1967), plus ex-Temptation David Ruffin’s “My Whole World Ended (The Moment You Left Me)” (number two R&B, number nine pop, early 1969).
Around 1971 Fuqua exited Motown for a production arrangement with RCA. Two acts represented by his agency, the Nitelighters—“K-Jee” and the double-sided “Afro-Strut”/“[We’ve Got To] Pull Together”—and New Birth, which scored with covers of Perry Como’s 1971 hit “It’s Impossible,” Bobby Womack’s “I Can Understand It,” and “It’s Been a Long Time,” joined the roster. New Birth members Lester and Melvin Wilson, recording as Love, Peace & Happiness, revived Gladys Knight & the Pips’ “I Don’t Want to Do Wrong,” which peaked at number 41 R&B in summer 1982. The Moonglows reconvened in 1972 with Fuqua, Lester, Graves, Doc Williams, and Chuck Lewis; they issued the RCA album The Return of the Moonglows and a new “Sincerely” that reached number 43 R&B. Fuqua rejoined Marvin Gaye in summer 1982 to shape the Midnight Love LP, which climbed to number seven pop late that year, sold two million copies, and yielded the gold-certified “Sexual Healing” (number one R&B for ten weeks, number three pop, autumn 1982). The posthumous 1985 Dream of a Lifetime track “Sanctified Lady” held number two R&B for three weeks in spring 1985. A later incarnation of the Moonglows appeared on a 1999 PBS special, while a Fuqua-led edition recorded contemporary versions of classic R&B material for the 2000 Harvey & the Moonglows album on his Resurging Artist imprint. Residing in Concord, North Carolina, during his final years, Harvey Fuqua suffered a fatal heart attack at a Detroit hospital on July 6, 2010, at age 80.