Biography
Maxine Nightingale came into the world in November 1952 in Wembley, a West London suburb of England. At sixteen she joined her school band as singer, found the experience so compelling that she soon moved into paid work at neighborhood clubs, and thereby attracted the interest of Pye Records. After signing with the company she cut several singles, among them “Do Not Push Me Baby” and the 1971 release “Love on Borrowed Time.” Though neither enjoyed notable sales, the sessions reinforced her determination to build a lasting career.
Leaving the club circuit behind, she spent the first half of the seventies on the stage, refining her voice in major productions that included Jesus Christ Superstar, Hair, and Godspell as well as the well-received London drama Savages. In 1975 she began working with the songwriting and production team of J. Vincent Edwards and Pierre Tubbs. The partnership suited her distinctive voice perfectly; after she joined United Artists and introduced their song “Right Back Where We Started From,” the single reached the U.K. Top Ten in November 1975 and climbed to number two on the American Hot 100 early the following year.
Supported by an array of session players and matched with writers who understood how to frame her instrument, Nightingale issued her 1976 debut album Right Back Where We Started From, which became a U.S. success and peaked at number 65 even though it made little headway at home. The set contained four singles, among them the title track and “Gotta Be the One.” The next year Denny Diante produced Night Life, sending “Love Hit Me,” another British hit, and Nightingale’s cover of the Delfonics’ “Didn’t I Blow Your Mind This Time” into regular club rotation.
Lead Me On arrived in 1979 and gave her a number-five U.S. single with its title track on the Windsong label. Bittersweet followed in 1980, and a 1982 compilation, It’s a Beautiful Thing, gathered the earlier hits. That same year Nightingale recorded the duet “Turn to Me” with R&B singer Jimmy Ruffin, best known for his 1966 standard “What Becomes of the Brokenhearted.” The song missed the pop listings yet delivered her first R&B Top 20 appearance in November.
Thereafter she stopped making solo albums and turned instead to jazz-centered performances. Throughout the early 2010s she toured intermittently around the world and recorded on occasion, including a contribution to Supertramp drummer Steve Reid’s 2001 album Dream Scapes.
Leaving the club circuit behind, she spent the first half of the seventies on the stage, refining her voice in major productions that included Jesus Christ Superstar, Hair, and Godspell as well as the well-received London drama Savages. In 1975 she began working with the songwriting and production team of J. Vincent Edwards and Pierre Tubbs. The partnership suited her distinctive voice perfectly; after she joined United Artists and introduced their song “Right Back Where We Started From,” the single reached the U.K. Top Ten in November 1975 and climbed to number two on the American Hot 100 early the following year.
Supported by an array of session players and matched with writers who understood how to frame her instrument, Nightingale issued her 1976 debut album Right Back Where We Started From, which became a U.S. success and peaked at number 65 even though it made little headway at home. The set contained four singles, among them the title track and “Gotta Be the One.” The next year Denny Diante produced Night Life, sending “Love Hit Me,” another British hit, and Nightingale’s cover of the Delfonics’ “Didn’t I Blow Your Mind This Time” into regular club rotation.
Lead Me On arrived in 1979 and gave her a number-five U.S. single with its title track on the Windsong label. Bittersweet followed in 1980, and a 1982 compilation, It’s a Beautiful Thing, gathered the earlier hits. That same year Nightingale recorded the duet “Turn to Me” with R&B singer Jimmy Ruffin, best known for his 1966 standard “What Becomes of the Brokenhearted.” The song missed the pop listings yet delivered her first R&B Top 20 appearance in November.
Thereafter she stopped making solo albums and turned instead to jazz-centered performances. Throughout the early 2010s she toured intermittently around the world and recorded on occasion, including a contribution to Supertramp drummer Steve Reid’s 2001 album Dream Scapes.
Albums
