Keith

Born James Barry Keefer on May 7, 1949, in Philadelphia, singer Keith achieved lasting fame through his 1967 Top Ten hit “98.6.” Legend holds that he landed his debut Columbia contract by staking out the office doorway of A&R executive Jerry Ross, which led to the 1966 single “Caravan of Lonely Men” issued under the billing Keith and the Admirations. When Ross relocated to Mercury Records, Keith followed, and his first solo outing “Ain’t Gonna Lie” soon entered the Top 40. “98.6” climbed to number seven in the opening week of 1967, yet only one further U.S. chart entry, “Tell Me to My Face,” materialized after that. The 1968 sophomore album Out of Crank drew little response, prompting Keith to join Frank Zappa’s Discreet label for the single “In and Out of Love.” One last release, the 1969 RCA album The Adventures of Keith, preceded his exit from performing, broken only by a brief and unsuccessful mid-1980s comeback bid.