Artist:Rene & Angela
Song:I'll Be Good
Album:Street Called Desire...And More
Rene & Angela had success in the 80s mostly on the R&B charts. The 1984 single I'll Be Good crossed over to pop. It was their biggest hit. They also had success as songwriters and producers. So they were similar to Ashford & Simpson except Rene Moore and Angela Winbush weren't married. Moore is from Los Angeles. He is the brother of Rufus bassist Bobby Watson who was the third member of Rene & Angela. Moore was in Brothers Johnson. Angela is from St. Louis. She grew up singing in church and got into music seriously while studying architecture at Howard University. Her demo got the attention of New York DJ Gary Byrd. He got her a spot in Stevie Wonder's band. She moved to Los Angeles and met Moore. After writing songs for Lenny Williams and Lamont Dozier, Rene & Angela signed with Capitol Records. They wrote all the songs and Watson produced their 1980 debut album Rene & Angela. They recorded three albums for Capitol and had modest success on the R&B chart. They also wrote songs for Janet Jackson (Young Love) and Stephanie Mills ( I Have Learned to Respect the Power of Love). For the 1985 album Street Called Desire, Rene & Angela switched to Mercury Records. It looks like Mercury gave them a bigger promotion budget. The first single Save Your Love (For #1) topped the R&B Singles chart. I'll Be Good reached #4 but it crossed over to pop. It reached #47 on the Billboard Hot 100. The album was certified Gold. They are finally on the road to success. But then Angela met Ron Isley and wrote and produced several songs for the 1987 Isley Brothers album Smooth Sailin'. Rene & Angela split up. Angela recorded two solo albums for Mercury and continued to have success on the R&B chart. She married Isley in 1993 and continued to work with The Isley Brothers. Moore released a solo album in 1988. And then he produced and wrote for Michael Jackson and especially David Hasselhoff. And before you laugh, Hasselhoff was very successful in Europe. Moore has had his own label since the 90s. Street Called Desire was released on CD in 1997 with bonus remixes. It's unfortunate that just as they were getting somewhere, Rene & Angela split up. Here's the video for I'll Be Good by Rene & Angela.
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