Lou Courtney

Born in 1944 in Buffalo, New York, USA, Lou Courtney registered only modest influence on the 1960s soul landscape through a run of dance-oriented singles whose raw grooves anticipated funk. His debut single appeared on Imperial Records in 1962, yet the bulk of his activity in the following years took place out of the spotlight as he collaborated in songwriting with producer Dennis Lambert, supplying material to performers including Mary Wells and Chubby Checker while using the alias Louis Pegues. Courtney joined Riverside Records in 1966, issuing a string of dance tracks that elevated him to nationwide recognition; among them were the 1967 releases “Skate Now,” which reached number 13 R&B and number 70 pop, and “Do The Thing,” which climbed to number 17 R&B and number 80 pop. He moved to Buddah Records in 1968 to cut “Tryin’ To Find My Woman,” a track that passed without chart notice upon release yet later acquired lasting esteem among collectors of UK northern soul. For a time he served as lead singer of the Packers, whose recording “Go Ahead” is their best-known effort. In 1973 he teamed with producer Jerry Ragovoy to produce the Epic single “What Do You Want Me To Do,” which peaked at number 48 R&B. A follow-up on the same label, “I Don’t Need Nobody Else,” reached number 67 R&B in 1974 and marked Lou Courtney’s final appearance on the charts. The band Buffalo Smoke, newly formed under his leadership, issued an album on RCA Records in 1976, though its proto-disco approach yielded no commercial success. Since the close of the 1970s, Courtney has remained largely out of view, surfacing only infrequently to deliver isolated live performances after emerging from retirement.