Dionne Warwick

    Dionne Warwick is an international musical legend.

    Her reputation as a hit maker has been firmly etched into public consciousness, thanks to nearly sixty charted hits since “Don’t Make Me Over” began its climb up the charts in December 1962.

    There also are a few important “firsts” that make Dionne Warwick a true pioneer.

    Dionne Warwick received her first Grammy Award in 1968 (for the classic “Do You Know The Way to San Jose?”), and in so doing became the first African-American solo female artist of her generation to win the prestigious award for Best Contemporary Female Vocal Performance. This award has only been awarded to one other female African-American legend, Ella Fitzgerald.

    Other African-American female recording artists certainly racked up their share of crossover pop and R&B hits during the 1960s. However, Dionne Warwick preceded the mainstream success of some of her musical peers by becoming the first such artist to rack up a dozen consecutive Top 100 hit singles from 1963 to 1966.

    Dionne Warwick’s performance at the Olympia Theater in Paris, during a 1963 concert starring the legendary Marlene Dietrich, rocketed her to international stardom. As she was establishing herself as a major force in American contemporary music, she steadily gained in popularity among European audiences. Hits like “Anyone Who Had A Heart” and “Walk On By” brought successively larger visibility and success around the world. In 1968 she became the first African-American female performer to appear before the Queen of England at a Royal Command Performance. Since then, Dionne has performed before numerous kings, queens, presidents, and heads of state.

    Her recordings of songs like “A House Is Not A home,” “Alfie,” “(Theme From) The Valley Of The Dolls,” and “The April Fools” made Dionne Warwick a pioneer as one of the first female artists to popularize classic movie themes. In 1968 she made her own film debut in the movie “Slaves.” This marked the first time, since Lena Horne, that a contemporary African-American female recording artist achieved such a goal.

    In recent years, Warwick’s pioneering efforts have focused on leading the music industry in the fight against AIDS. Her Grammy-winning, chart topping, single “That’s What Friends Are For,” raised millions of dollars for AIDS research. Throughout the world, Dionne Warwick has devoted countless hours to a wide range of humanitarian causes, serving as the U.S. Ambassador for Health throughout the 1980s. On Oct. 16, 2002 she was named a global Ambassador for the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), based in Rome, Italy.

    While attending The Hartt College Of Music in Hartford, Connecticut, Warwick began making trips to do regular session work in New York. She sang behind many of the biggest stars of the 1960s including Dinah Washington, Brook Benton, Chuck Jackson, and Solomon Burke to name a few. Once Burt Bacharach, composer, arranger, and producer heard her singing during a session for The Drifters, he asked her to sing on demos of songs he was writing with new partner Hal David. In 1962, Bacharach & David presented one such demo to Scepter Records. The label President, Florence Greenberg, did not want the song; she did, however, want the voice and Dionne began a hit-filled, 12-year, association with the New York label.

    In all, Dionne, Burt, and Hal racked up 30 hit singles, and close to 20 best-selling albums, during their first decade together. Songs like “Do You Know The Way To San Jose,” “Message To Michael,” “This Girl’s In Love With You,” “I’ll Never Fall In Love Again,” and “Reach Out For Me,” established Dionne Warwick as a consummate artist and performer. Known as the artist who “bridged the gap,” her soulful blend of pop, gospel and R&B music transcended race, culture, and musical boundaries.

    In 1970, Dionne Warwick received her second Grammy Award for the best-selling album I’ll Never Fall In Love Again and she began her second decade of hits by signing with Warner Brothers Records. She recorded half-a-dozen albums, working with top producers like Thom Bell, Holland-Dozier-Holland, Jerry Ragavoy, Steve Barri, and Michael Omartian. In 1974 she hit the top of the charts for the first time with “Then Came You,” a million-selling duet with The Spinners. Three years later, she teamed up with Isaac Hayes for a highly successful World Tour, “A Man And A Woman.”

    In 1976, fresh from earning a Master’s Degree in Music from her alma mater (The Hartt College of Music), Dionne Warwick signed with Arista Records, beginning a third decade of hit-making. Label-mate Barry Manilow produced her first Platinum-selling album, Dionne. The album included these back-to-back hits; “I’ll Never Love This Way Again,” and “Déjà Vu.” Both recordings earned Grammy Awards, making Warwick the first female artist to win the Best Female Pop, and Best Female R&B Performance, Award. Hot on the heels of her phenomenal success, she began her first stint as host for the highly successful television show “Solid Gold.”

    Further milestones marked Dionne Warwick’s tenure with Arista. Her 1982 album, Heartbreaker, co-produced by Barry Gibb and The Bee Gees, became an international chart-topper. In 1985, Dionne reunited with producer Burt Bacharach, and longtime friends Gladys Knight, Stevie Wonder, and Elton John to record the classic “That’s What Friends Are For.” Profits from the sale of that song were donated to the American Foundation for AIDS Research (AmFAR). In 1990 she joined forces with a number of Arista label-mates to raise over $2.5 Million for various AIDS organizations during the star-studded “That’s What Friends Are For” Benefit at New York’s Radio City Music Hall.

    Dionne Warwick’s album Friends achieved Gold status. Throughout the 1980s she collaborated with many of her musical peers, including Johnny Mathis, Smokey Robinson, Luther Vandross and others. She worked with Stevie Wonder as music coordinator for the film and Academy Award winning soundtrack album The Woman In Red. She was one of the key participants in the all-star charity single “We Are The World” and, in 1984 she performed at “Live Aid.”

    In addition to co-hosting and helping to launch “The Soul Train Music Awards,” she also starred in her own show, “Dionne And Friends.” She was co-executive producer of “Celebrate The Soul Of American Music,” which honored and recognized many of her fellow musical pioneers. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, Dionne toured extensively with Burt Bacharach. The show won rave reviews from fans and press alike for reinforcing the timeless musical legacy of the Bacharach, David and Warwick team. Her recent musical achievements have included performances as part of the “National Symphony With The Divas,” and, in Tokyo, performances with The National Opera Company of Japan.

SOURCE: www.dionnewarwick.info/