Biography
Best remembered as the voice behind the Northern soul classic “The Next in Line,” Hoagy Lands reportedly stood as producer Bert Berns’s preferred vocalist on the many sessions the two shared. That preference never yielded widespread commercial rewards. Born Victor Hoagland in New Brunswick, New Jersey, on May 4, 1936, he organized his first vocal ensemble, the Dynaflows, while still in middle school and later sang briefly with the New Brunswick Heart Throbs. His solo career began in 1959 when he cut the debut single “Oo-Be-Do” for Ivory. The initial collaboration with Berns arrived the following year on “(I’m Gonna) Cry Some Tears,” originally released by the independent Judi label; after regional airplay the track moved to ABC-Paramount for national distribution. Lands’s plaintive, Sam Cooke-styled tenor evidently struck a chord with Berns, prompting some of the producer’s most memorable work. Their partnership yielded the elegant, Latin-tinged ballad “My Tears Are Try” for MGM and, in 1962, an imaginative treatment of the standard “Goodnight Irene,” yet neither single charted. Lands resurfaced in 1963 with “Tender Years” on ABC-Paramount, then delivered his signature performance, the Berns-produced “Baby Come on Home,” on Atlantic in 1964—his lone release for that imprint.
Throughout the latter half of the 1960s he recorded five singles for Laurie between 1966 and 1968. Although none succeeded commercially at the time, “The Next in Line,” which featured backing vocals from the Chiffons, later became a staple on Britain’s Northern soul scene. Berns’s death on December 30, 1967 effectively concluded Lands’s most fertile period; in 1969 he shifted to Laurie’s Spectrum subsidiary, where his first release was the duet “Beautiful Music” with Lily Fields. A second collaboration, “Sweet Soul (Brother),” appeared the next year. Working with producer John Bennings and arranger Robert Banks, Lands adopted a funk-oriented style that surfaced on the 1972 single “A Man Ain’t No Stronger Than His Heart,” cut with guitarist Richard Tee, bassist Gordon Edwards, and drummer Bernard Purdie. After one final Spectrum outing, “The Bell Ringer,” he left the label and largely withdrew from recording. Nearly twenty-five years later he performed at several Northern soul venues, though open-heart surgery in 1998 curtailed further activity. Lands died on January 12, 2002, following a serious fall at his home in Orange, New Jersey. His grandson Jaheim continued the musical lineage with two hip-hop albums issued by Warner Bros.
Throughout the latter half of the 1960s he recorded five singles for Laurie between 1966 and 1968. Although none succeeded commercially at the time, “The Next in Line,” which featured backing vocals from the Chiffons, later became a staple on Britain’s Northern soul scene. Berns’s death on December 30, 1967 effectively concluded Lands’s most fertile period; in 1969 he shifted to Laurie’s Spectrum subsidiary, where his first release was the duet “Beautiful Music” with Lily Fields. A second collaboration, “Sweet Soul (Brother),” appeared the next year. Working with producer John Bennings and arranger Robert Banks, Lands adopted a funk-oriented style that surfaced on the 1972 single “A Man Ain’t No Stronger Than His Heart,” cut with guitarist Richard Tee, bassist Gordon Edwards, and drummer Bernard Purdie. After one final Spectrum outing, “The Bell Ringer,” he left the label and largely withdrew from recording. Nearly twenty-five years later he performed at several Northern soul venues, though open-heart surgery in 1998 curtailed further activity. Lands died on January 12, 2002, following a serious fall at his home in Orange, New Jersey. His grandson Jaheim continued the musical lineage with two hip-hop albums issued by Warner Bros.