Alex Henderson

Tyrone Davis
Love and Touch

Tyrone Davis was a bit of a late bloomer when it came to recognition in the R&B world. Born Tyrone Fettson in Greenville, Mississippi on May 4, 1938, Davis moved to Chicago in 1959 and spent almost a decade paying dues in the Windy City before he finally broke through commercially. That breakthrough came in 1968, the year Davis turned 30. After recording various singles that received little attention, Davis got a lucky break when he signed with producer Carl Davis’ Chicago-based Dakar Records and recorded the Willie Henderson-produced single “Can I Change My Mind”—which became a smash hit, soaring to #1 on Billboard’s R&B singles chart and #5 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States. “Can I Change My Mind” fared so well that in early 1969, it managed to push Marvin Gaye’s famous version of “I Heard It Through the Grapevine” (which was also a big hit for Gladys Knight & the Pips) out of the #1 R&B position in Billboard. And a cover of “Can I Change My Mind” became a hit in Jamaica in the late 1960s when Kingston-born singer Alton Ellis recorded his classic reggae version of the Barry Despenza/Carl Wolfolk song.

Indeed, Davis’ relationship with Dakar (which was distributed by the Atlantic Records subsidiary Cotillion Records from 1967-1971 and by Brunswick Records from 1971 on) got off to an impressive start with “Can I Change My Mind.” And Davis’ winning streak at Dakar continued when “Is It Something You’ve Got” reached #5 R&B in Billboard in 1969 and “Turn Back the Hands of Time” jumped to #1 R&B/#3 pop in Billboard the following year. Other major hits at Dakar came after that, including “I’ll Be Right Here” in 1970, “Could I Forget You” in 1971, “I Had It All the Time” in 1972, “Without You in My Life” and “There It Is” in 1973, “I Wish It Was Me” in 1974 and “Turning Point” (another #1 R&B gem) in 1975.

Davis had a great seven-year run at Dakar, but in 1976, he moved to Columbia Records—and the Chicago-based Leo Graham (who wrote and produced “Turning Point”) produced Love and Touch, his first Columbia album. Love and Touch fared well, climbing to #12 on Billboard’s R&B albums chart in the U.S. thanks in part to the #2 R&B single “Give It Up (Turn It Loose).” 

Although he grew up in Mississippi, Davis became closely identified with Chicago soul at Dakar—and with Graham’s help, he continued in that vein at Columbia. Graham did a lot to shape the sound of this album: in addition to producing Love and Touch, he wrote or co-wrote all of the material. Graham wrote “Give It Up (Turn It Loose),” “Put Your Trust in Me,” “Wrong Doers” and the ballad “Givin’ Myself to You” by himself, and he co-wrote “Why Is It So Hard (To Say You’re Sorry),” “Beware, Beware” and the energetic “You’re Too Much.” Graham also co-wrote the single “Close to You,” a ballad that peaked at #33 on Billboard’s R&B singles chart.

To say that Graham played an important role in Davis’ career would be an understatement. The two of them began working together in the 1970s, and Graham went on to produce more than 20 of his albums. Singers often jump from producer to producer, but Graham remained Davis’ producer of choice for many years. And in addition to all his work with Davis, Graham is famous for producing and co-writing the Manhattans’ 1980 smash “Shining Star.” Graham should not be confused with the Jamaican reggae singer Leo Graham, who was a member of the Overtakers and the Bleechers in the 1960s before pursuing a solo career in the early 1970s.

Interviewed in February 2015, Davis’ Graham remembered that the success of “Turning Point” was a big factor in Columbia’s decision to sign Davis. Graham recalls: “Tyrone had a lot of success at Brunswick with ‘Turning Point,’ which was a #1 hit. And Columbia knew that. Columbia was very excited about signing Tyrone.”

After 1976, Davis went on to record some more major hits at Columbia, including “This I Swear” (a #6 R&B single) in 1977, the funky “Get On Up (Disco)” in 1978 and “In the Mood” in 1979. Graham, in retrospect, wonders if perhaps Davis could have had even more major hits at Columbia. But overall, Graham has fond memories of Davis’ Columbia period—which lasted from 1976-1981.

“We always hoped that we would have the right song that would get us there all the way,” Graham explains. “Sometimes, you’ll have a song that you think should have done more than it did, but that’s just the way it goes. You might have a song that does better than you think it will, or you might have a song that doesn’t do as well as you think it should.”

Graham continues: “I don’t know if Tyrone got the optimal amount of promotion at Columbia, although Columbia liked us and wanted to do certain things with us. I felt that some of the things we released should have gone a little bit farther than they did, but I guess that’s just me.”

Graham maintained a productive relationship with Davis after his departure from Columbia in 1981, producing albums Davis recorded for the Highrise, Malaco, Ocean Front and Ichiban labels as well as for Graham’s own label, Future Records. In 1982, Davis’ Graham-produced Highrise single “Are You Serious” (which was co-written by the late Chicago-based singer L.V. Johnson, a nephew of bluesman Elmore James) made it to #3 R&B in Billboard. “Are You Serious” was Davis’ last major hit, although he continued to enjoy minor and medium-sized hits in the 1980s and 1990s. Davis’ long career came to an end when he suffered a stroke in September 2004; five months later, on February 9, 2005, Davis died of complications from that stroke in a Chicago hospital at the age of 66. 

The 1970s were a highly productive time for the Chicago-based soul icon, and in 1976, his Columbia period got off to an exciting start with Love and Touch.

—Alex Henderson, March 2015

Alex Henderson’s work has appeared in Billboard, Spin, Salon.com, Creem, The L.A. Weekly, AlterNet, JazzTimes, Jazziz, Cash Box, HITS, CD Review, Skin Two, Black Beat, The Pasadena Weekly, Black Radio Exclusive (BRE), Music Connection, The New York City Jazz Record, Jazz Inside Magazine and many other well-known publications. Henderson (alexvhenderson.com) also contributed several thousand CD reviews to the popular Allmusic.com website and The All Music Guide’s series of music reference books.