AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Carl Carlton

Artist:Carl Carlton
Song:Everlasting Love
Album:Everlasting: The Best Of Carl Carlton





Everlasting Love is one of only two songs to reach the top forty in four decades. The other song to do that is The Way You Do The Things You Do. Carl Carlton's 1974 top ten hit version was the most successful. Carlton had modest success in the 70s but was hampered by a royalty dispute after Don Robey sold Duke/Peacock/Back Beat to ABC Records. Carlton was born May 21, 1952 in Detroit. He first recorded as Little Carl Carlton in 1968 for Lando Records. When Don Robey picked up one of his records for distribution on Back Beat, he moved Carlton to his home base in Houston. He had some minor hits. Robey sold his company to ABC in 1972. Carlton heard Everlasting Love on a David Ruffin album but was unaware that it was a top twenty hit for Robert Knight in 1967. Papa Don Schroeder produced a discofied version of the song and Carlton's version of Everlasting Love reached #6 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1974. Schroeder produced James & Bobby Purify's I'm Your Puppet. Everlasting Love was written by Nashville producers Buzz Cason & Mac Gayden and they produced Robert Knight's original version which reached #13 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1967. The version recorded by Rex Smith & Rachel Sweet reached #32 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1981. And the version recorded by Gloria Estefan reached #27 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1995. Mac Gayden even recorded it himself on his 1976 album Skyboat. A royalty dispute forced Carlton to wait for his ABC contract to lapse before he could record again. He eventually worked with Leon Haywood at 20th Century Records and She A Bad Mama Jama reached #2 on the R & B Singles chart in 1981. The album Carl Carlton went gold and Carlton was nominated for a Grammy. It was released on Motown after 20th Century closed. He also recorded for RCA and Casablanca but ran out of record companies by the late 80s. Hip-O released this excellent comp last year. Carl Carlton still tours the oldies circuit and records occasionally. He is currently working on his first gospel CD. Here's Carl Carlton performing Everlasting Love on the PBS special Rhythm, Love and Soul 2002.