Gene Chandler...The DUKE!

Gene Chandler
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Gene Chandler
Background information
Birth name Eugene Dixon
Born July 6, 1937
Origin Chicago, Illinois, United States
Genre(s) R&B, soul
Occupation(s) singer
Website
Gene Chandler, "The Duke" was born Eugene Dixon, July 6, 1937, in Chicago, Illinois. A powerful performer and singer, he personified the laid-back, carefree attitude that the early 1960s soul and R&B singers developed. He will be best known for his 1962 smash "Duke of Earl", though he wrote and performed many more songs, and collaborated with many of the greats in the soul and R&B world, such as Curtis Mayfield and Jerry Butler.

[edit] Early years
Although Chandler seems to have sprung into being in 1962, when he introduced himself to the world as "The Duke of Earl", Eugene Dixon had been singing since the early 1950s, first with The Gaytones. In 1957 he joined a doo-wop group called The Dukays with James Lowe, Shirley Jones, Earl Edwards and Ben Broyles, quickly becoming their lead singer. He was drafted by the US Army to Germany for three years, returned to Chicago in 1960, and rejoined his bandmates. Through music industry contacts, the Dukays were offered a recording contract by Chicago based Nat Records. The first single was titled "The Girl Is Evil." In 1961, Nat Records released a song titled "Nite Owl", and the band went back to the studio to record one more.

The Duke is born
As the story goes, during their vocal warm-ups, the group would repeat the phrase "doo-doo-doo-doo" at different pitches. Through many repetitions, it began to evolve. Words were added. Melodies began to form. Earl Edwards' name was added. The song that evolved was "Duke of Earl."

At the time, Nat Records wanted to release the new song "Duke of Earl", but was unable to. An executive with Vee-Jay records heard the song and wanted it for distribution as a song on his label, but only as a Gene Chandler record. Vee-Jay wasn't interested in The Dukays.

Meanwhile, the previously recorded "Nite Owl" was on the charts, putting Chandler in more of a dilemma. Should he stick with his bandmates, or go solo? He tried to do both. He recorded with The Dukays under the name "Gene Dixon" and recorded solo as "Gene Chandler".

When VeeJay was finally able to release "Duke of Earl", it sent it out as a Gene Chandler song, although the Dukays had recorded it. The song sold a million copies in just over one month. "The Duke" was born. Chandler can be seen in the full "Duke" outfit singing "The Duke of Earl" in the 1962 movie "Don't Knock the Twist", starring Chubby Checker.

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