Artist:Robbie DupreeSong:Steal Away
Album:The Best Of Blue Eyed Soul
The 1980 top ten hit Steal Away was the biggest hit for singer songwriter Robbie Dupree. A couple of his other songs charted but most will only remember Steal Away. It's an example of Blue Eyed Soul and is frequently compared to Michael McDonald's Doobie Brothers hit What A Fool Believes. He was born Robert Dupuis Dec. 23, 1946 in Brooklyn, NY and started out singing in street corner doo wop groups. He played in New York clubs in the early 70s with Chic's Nile Rodgers. He moved to Woodstock for a few years to work on his songwriting and then moved to Los Angeles in 1978 to land a record contract. He got together with bassist Rick Chudacoff and drummer Peter Bunetta and the three wrote and produced Steal Away on Elektra Records. Chudacoff and Bunetta had a long association with producer Lester Abrams and had been a part of the mid 70s Blue Eyed Soul group Crackin'. They released four albums. And Abrams arranged What A Fool Believes. So obviously a lot of these guys worked together in the LA studio scene. Chudacoff and Bunetta went on to produce all kinds of acts in the 80s including Matthew Wilder, Smokey Robinson and The Temptations. They still work with Dupree today. Steal Away reached #6 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1980. And though he is perceived as a one hit wonder, the single Hot Rod Hearts reached #15 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1981. You can get Steal Away on this Time Life various artists budget comp. Robbie Dupree has recorded occasionally without much success and has also produced music for others. He has worked a lot with keyboard player David Sancious in recent years. Sancious was an early member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band but is better known as a session musician. Sancious, Chudacoff and Bunetta all appear on Dupree's 2010 CD Time and Tide. Here's Robbie Dupree performing Steal Away on The Midnight Special 1980. This video is not on Youtube.
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