![]() ![]() ![]() Noting how Pendergrass sounded like Dells lead singer Marvin Junior, Kenny Gamble decided to build the song with Pendergrass, then only 21 at the time of the recording. In 1972, Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes released their first single, a slow, solemn ballad entitled "I Miss You." The song was originally written for the Dells, but the group passed on it. Early career Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes: 1972–75 That all changed when they landed a recording deal with Philadelphia International Records in 1971, thus beginning Pendergrass's successful collaboration with label founders Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff. Before Pendergrass joined the group, the Blue Notes had struggled to find success. However, during a performance, Pendergrass began singing along, and Melvin, impressed by his vocals, made him the lead singer. In 1970, the singer was spotted by the Blue Notes' founder, Harold Melvin (1939–1997), who convinced Pendergrass to play drums in the group. Pendergrass played drums for several local Philadelphia bands, eventually becoming the drummer of The Cadillacs. He dropped out in the eleventh grade to enter the music business, recording his first song "Angel With Muddy Feet." The recording, however, was not a commercial success. He attended Thomas Edison High School for Boys in North Philadelphia (now closed). Pendergrass also took up drums during this time and was a junior deacon of his church. He dreamed of being a pastor and got his wish when, at 10, he was ordained a minister (according to author Robert Ewell Greene). Pendergrass grew up in Philadelphia and often sang at church. ![]() When he was still very young, his father left the family Jesse was fatally stabbed on June 13, 1962. His last performance was on a PBS special at Atlantic City's Borgata Casino in November 2008.īorn Theodore DeReese Pendergrass on Sunday, Maat Thomas Jefferson Hospital in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and was the only child of Jesse and Ida Geraldine (née Epps) Pendergrass. He commemorated 25 years of living after his spinal cord injury with the star-filled event, "Teddy 25 - A Celebration of Life", at Philadelphia's Kimmel Center. He subsequently founded the Teddy Pendergrass Alliance, a foundation that helps those with spinal cord injuries. In 1982, Pendergrass was severely injured in an auto accident in Philadelphia, resulting in his being paralyzed from the chest down. He first rose to fame as lead singer of Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes in the 1970s before a successful solo career at the end of the decade. Theodore DeReese "Teddy" Pendergrass (Ma– January 13, 2010) was an American singer–songwriter and composer. ![]()
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