Song:Baby Come To Me
Album:Baby Come To Me: The Best Of Regina Belle
Regina Belle was one of several black female singers who made a splash on the black music charts in the 80s. With one major exception, she didn't cross over to pop in a big way. Then in the mid-90s she seemed to disappear. She has continued to record and has made a recent comeback in the gospel market. She was born July 17, 1963 in Englewood, NJ and grew up singing in her uncle's church. Her younger brother Bernard Belle has been a significant behind the scenes force in black music since the mid-80s and the two have frequently worked together. Regina studied opera at the Manhattan School Of Music and jazz vocal at Rutgers University and there's not much question that Billie Holiday is one of her biggest influences. In 1985, New York DJ Vaughn Harper got her a gig opening for The Manhattans. She brought in Bernard to play guitar. He would leave to create New Jack Swing with Teddy Riley. But Regina recorded Where Did We Go Wrong with The Manhattans and this earned her a contract with Columbia. Baby Come To Me was her first R & B chart topper in 1989. And the album Stay With Me also topped the R & B charts. Baby Come To Me was written and the album was produced by Narada Michael Walden. Walden is a jazz drummer who became one of the hottest producers of the 80s usually working with singers like Whitney Houston and Aretha Franklin. Regina continued to do very well on the R & B charts. Her only #1 pop hit was her 1993 duet with Peabo Bryson A Whole New World from the film Aladdin. It didn't seem to help Regina cross over to pop and she left Columbia after her 1995 CD Reachin' Back. You can get all her Columbia hits on this budget comp. Her 1998 CD Believe In Me on MCA didn't sell and then she signed with Concord Records and they unsuccessfully tried to turn her into a jazz singer. Her 2008 CD Love Forever Shines is a gospel CD produced by Bernard Belle. It's done very well on the black music charts but has done especially well on the Gospel charts with the single God Is Good reaching #2 on the Hot Gospel Songs chart. Regina Belle is married to ex-NBA player John Battle. They have five children and two grandchildren. He's now a pastor in Atlanta. Here's the video for Baby Come To Me by Regina Belle.
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