Helped populate a sizable portion of the Black community…
This may be unfair… but it’s easiest to explain the legacy of Leon Ware by stating he’s a modern-day Cyrano de Bergerac… Extremely talented and gifted… However, in the eyes of his label, Motown… He lacked that certain look when compared to his counterparts… Namely, Marvin Gaye… Evident when Berry Gordy instructed him to give his demo “I Want You” to Marvin Gaye as a lead single… Later his entire I Want You album would be tailored for Gaye; after Marvin heard some of the tracks Ware played for him at his home… Ware would reconstruct the elements of those tracks and produce Musical Massage… A classic album in it’s own right featuring Minnie Riperton, Bobby Womack and Marvin Gaye… However, it is regarded as a missed opportunity as a follow-up album to Marvin’s I Want You… Ware continued the success of those projects with Inside Is Love, a funkier sound than the soul ballads he had developed earlier… It would be a couple of decades before he found similar success… With Maxwell’s Urban Hang Suite, where he co-wrote “Sumthin’ Sumthin'”…
Marvin & Leon…
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RmXcDal0BiI]
“Comfort (Come Live With Me Angel)” featuring Minnie Riperton
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NFpQ_ePW1Q8]
“Instant Love” featuring Minnie Riperton
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QsMRpQJhmyg]
“What’s Your Name”
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LRBHSkXWPCs]
Minnie Riperton’s “Inside My Love”… co-written by Leon Ware (plays 2x for some reason…)
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vgVp6QZuIpM]
Bonus: Electric Wire Hustle’s “Perception” using “Inside My Love” sample…
To the brother responsible for the births of many…
We celebrate you on your birthday…
…Leon Ware.
