Friday, April 08, 2016

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Dionne Warwick and The Spinners

Artist:Dionne Warwick and The Spinners
Song:Then Came You
Album:The Very Best Of Dionne Warwick




The 1974 chart topper Then Came You came at a very low point in Dionne Warwick's career. The Spinners were actually more popular at the time. In 1971, Dionne left Scepter Records for a $5M contract with Warner Bros. The idea was for Dionne to continue working with songwriters Burt Bacharach and Hal David as she had in the 60s. But they split up after producing the 1973 film Lost Horizon and it bombed. This left Dionne without her producers. She sued them and it was settled out of court for $5M. Warners tried to pair her with veteran producers like Brian Holland, Lamont Dozier and Jerry Ragavoy but nothing clicked. Producer Thom Bell approached Dionne about recording Then Came You with The Spinners. She didn't like the record much. But Bell told her it would be a hit. After Then Came You topped the charts, Dionne apologized to Bell. Bell went on to produce Dionne's 1975 album Track of the Cat. Her Warners albums did poorly and she left Warners for Arista in 1979. Arista owner Clive Davis revived her career in the 80s. You can get Then Came You on this budget comp of Dionne's 60s music from Rhino. You can also get it on The Very Best of The Spinners. Here's Dionne Warwick and The Spinners performing Then Came You on Solid Gold 1985.

3 comments:

  1. Good song, I am glad she paired up with the Spinners. A group I liked a great deal. I also like Dionne a lot to. But mostly her earlier material. I am sorry she faded in the 80's. But a lot of acts and singers did that as well. I am glad she got a hit with them.

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  2. You have it backwards. This was Dionne's only hit single when she recorded for Warners in the 70s. Clive Davis revived her career in the 80s when she moved to Arista.

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  3. Got it, thanks Frank. I never really listened to her later material. But I am glad she had success in the 80's good for her.

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