Artist:Jesse Belvin
Song:Goodnight My Love
Album:The Unforgettable Mr. Easy
Jesse Belvin was a soul singer who was poised to be a big star when he and his wife were killed in a 1960 car accident. The 1956 single Goodnight My Love was his biggest hit. But he had just signed with RCA Records and finished his debut album. RCA signed Sam Cooke after Belvin's death. He was born Dec. 15, 1932 in San Antonio, TX. But his family moved to Los Angeles when he was five years old. He started singing in church at age seven. Belvin appeared on the 1949 Cavalcade of Jazz at Wrigley Field in Los Angeles opening for saxophonist Big Jay McNeely. Then he joined McNeely's backup singers Three Dots and a Dash. He appeared on McNeely's records and signed with Specialty Records. The 1953 single Dream Girl reached #2 on the Billboard R&B chart. Belvin recorded that with bandmate Marvin Phillips on sax and it was released as Jesse & Marvin. Then Belvin was drafted into the US Army. While there, he wrote The Penguins classic Earth Angel. After a legal dispute, Belvin got a third of the songwriting credit. Belvin was known for writing songs and selling them outright to make a few bucks. I guess songwriting wasn't perceived as big business back then. Belvin signed with Modern Records in 1956 and that's when he recorded Goodnight My Love which reached #7 on the Billboard R&B Singles chart. Goodnight My Love was written by producer George Motola. Belvin helped him finish the song. But he sold the authorship to producer John Marascalco for $400. Marascalco produced the record. The song was the closing theme on Alan Freed's radio show. After ten singles for Modern, Belvin recorded for Knight, Class and Jamie under his own name. And he recorded with The Shields formed by producer George Motola for his Tender label. That band included lead singer Frankie Ervin and guitarist Johnny "Guitar" Watson. Their 1958 single You Cheated reached #15 on the pop chart. Belvin's wife Jo Ann took over as his manager. The first thing she did was get him a record deal with RCA. He recorded the album Mr. Easy and the 1959 single Guess Who was a top 40 pop hit. RCA planned to have Belvin compete with Nat King Cole. But before the album could be released, Belvin appeared with Jackie Wilson and Marv Johnson on a Feb. 6, 1960 Little Rock, AR. show. This was the first concert in front of an integrated audience in Little Rock. There were disruptions during the show by white racists. After the show, Belvin and Jo Anne were killed in a head on collision near Hope, AR. Police suspected that Belvin's car was tampered with but nothing was ever proven. But Jesse Belvin was gone. The reissue label Jasmine has released all of Belvin's recordings on 2CDs. Here's a video of Goodnight My Love by Jesse Belvin.
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