| Gregory Abbott | |
| Background: | solo_singer |
| Birth Name: | Gregory Joel Abbott |
| Birth Date: | April 2, 1954 |
| Birth Place: | New York City, U.S. |
| Years Active: | 1982–present |
Gregory Joel Abbott (born April 2, 1954)[1] is an American singer, musician, composer and producer. Although he continues to record to date, he is best known for his singles in the mid-1980s including his platinum single, "Shake You Down", from his 1986 debut album.
Abbott was born in Harlem, New York.[2] Abbott's parents were from Venezuela and Antigua. During his early years, Abbott's mother taught him how to play piano and encouraged him to develop vocally. Before his career as a musician, Abbott studied psychology[3] at the University of California, Berkeley, and creative writing at Stanford; where he won a Wallace Stegner fellowship. Before becoming a musician, Abbott taught as a professor of English at the University of California, Berkeley.[4] [3]
One of Abbott's first opportunities in his studio was an album for an independent record label, which gave him the opportunity to do a duet with Whitney Houston.[3] Continuing on, Abbott produced for the group EQ on Atlantic Records.[3] In 1986, Abbott released his first solo album, Shake You Down. The title track for the album was a success, going platinum and topping the Billboard Hot 100.[2] The album's second single, "I Got the Feelin' (It's Over)", reached Number 5 on the R&B chart. On the strength of its singles, the album reached platinum status and earned Abbott several awards.[3]
Internationally, Abbott has also had success, winning first prize at the Tokyo Music Festival.[3] The title track of his second album, "I'll Prove It to You", which was released in 1988, was featured on a Japanese movie soundtrack.[3] In Belgium, he performed with Princess Stephanie of Monaco.[3] Over the years much of his new music has been released via his own Mojo Man Entertainment label. Abbott has continued with his R&B sound, but he added a Caribbean influence to his 1996 album One World![3] In 2011, an album entitled Drop Your Mask was released. Abbott continues to release singles including a smooth jazz song "Chill" featuring saxophonist Gerald Albright.[1]
Abbott was married to American singer Freda Payne[5] from 1976 until 1979. Their son, Gregory Joel Abbott, Jr., was born in 1977.[4]
| Year | Album | Label | Peak chart positions | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [6] | US R&B | UK [7] | ||||||
| 1986 | Shake You Down | Columbia Records | align=center | 22 | align=center | 5 | align=center | 53 |
| 1988 | I'll Prove It to You | align=center | 132 | align=center | 17 | align=center | — | |
| 1996 | One World! | Musik International | align=center | — | align=center | — | align=center | — |
| 2002 | Eyes, Whispers, Rhythm, Sex... | align=center | — | align=center | — | align=center | — | |
| 2011 | Drop Your Mask | Spectra Records | align=center | — | align=center | — | align=center | — |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory. | ||||||||
| Year | Single | Chart Positions | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US R&B [8] | US Adult Con. [9] | US [10] | UK [11] | ||||
| 1986 | "Shake You Down" | 1 | 2 | 1 | 6 | ||
| "I Got the Feelin' (It's Over)" | 5 | 25 | 56 | 76 | |||
| "You're My Angel" | — | — | — | — | |||
| 1988 | "I'll Prove It to You" | 5 | 35 | — | — | ||
| "Let Me Be Your Hero" | 34 | — | — | — | |||
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory. | |||||||