Kenny Nolan

Born and raised in Los Angeles, Kenny Nolan became a central figure among mid-'70s disco songwriters working both domestically and overseas, crafting many of the period's most enduring hits, frequently alongside his frequent collaborator Bob Crewe.

His talent surfaced early: at thirteen he earned a composition scholarship to USC, only to leave after five or six months once the traditional curriculum lost its appeal. Four years afterward, a similar scholarship to Chouinard met the same fate, prompting Nolan to pursue an independent route by mailing material directly to performers he judged appropriate. Though haphazard, this approach drew the notice of established songwriter Crewe and music-business figure Wes Farrell, who promptly put the young man's gifts to work.

Serving as house producer for Farrell's Chelsea label, Nolan wrote and produced several charting singles, among them Jim Gilstrap's "Swing Your Daddy" and "Take Your Daddy for a Ride," Dee Clark's "Ride a White Horse," and Linda Carr's "High Wire." In partnership with Crewe he also delivered era-defining tracks such as Disco Tex's "Get Dancing," LaBelle's "Lady Marmalade," and Frankie Valli's "My Eyes Adored You."

Despite his facility as a writer, Nolan longed to perform; his falsetto anchors "Get Dancing." After a brief stint with Firefly he joined the studio ensemble Eleventh Hour. Under Crewe's production the group placed two modest U.S. hits—"So Good" in 1974 and "Hollywood Hot" the next year—while the accompanying album Hollywood Hot appeared in 1976.

That same year Nolan cut his own version of "I Like Dreaming," a composition originally commissioned for another artist yet left unrecorded. Issued on the Eleventh Hour's label, 20th Century, the single drew little response for six months. Airplay gradually increased, particularly among Louisiana DJs, and by early November the track entered the U.S. chart, inching upward over three months to reach number three.

The following spring Nolan scored a Top 20 hit with "Love's Grown Deep," drawn from his self-titled debut album, and Billboard named him Number One New Pop Singles Artist of 1977. "My Eyes Get Blurry" arrived next, setting the stage for the 1978 release A Song Between Us. Two years later Night Miracles yielded the mid-chart single "Us and Love (We Go Together)" in early 1980. Signing with MCA, Nolan issued Head to Toe in 1982; its singles "Love Song" and "Soft Rock Hard Love" failed to register commercially, and the album soon disappeared. Thereafter he concentrated once more on songwriting, building an extensive catalog for numerous soul and quiet-storm performers.