Teddy Pendergrass

born March 26, 1950 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Theodore DeReese Pendergrass, Sr. (born March 26, 1950 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) affectionately known as 'Teddy P', "TP", or "Teddy Bear" is an American soul singer.
He was born to Ida Geraldine Epps and the late Jesse Pendergrass, who left when Teddy was very young and was never a part of Teddy's life. He was a student at the old Thomas Edison High School for Boys. However, he dropped out in the 11th grade to go in the music business. His first taste of show business was in Nova Scotia, Canada with a James Brown clone of a musician named Little Royal. Afterwards, Pendergrass left for unknown reasons.

Pendergrass' career began when he was a drummer for The Cadillacs, which soon merged with Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes. Melvin invited Pendergrass to become the lead singer after he jumped from the rear of a stage and started singing his heart out. Months later the group signed with Gamble & Huff on the then CBS subsidiary Philadelphia International Records in 1972. The Blue Notes had hits such as "I Miss You", "Bad Luck", "Wake Up Everybody", "The Two Million Seller", "If You Don't Know Me By Now", and many more. Following personality conflicts between Melvin and Pendergrass and a brief stint with Teddy leading a group of Blue Notes, Pendergrass launched a solo career and released hit singles like "The More I Get the More I Want", "Close The Door" also redone by Boyz ll Men in 2004, "I Don't Love You Anymore", "Turn Off The Lights", and more. Pendergrass was the first African-American singer to sell five platinum albums in a row. He also began his practice of ladies-only concerts, for which he remains well-known. His first solo album was self titled Teddy Pendergrass (1977), followed by Life Is a Song Worth Singing (1978), Live Coast to Coast and Teddy (1979), 1980's TP and the final Philadelphia International Records album It's Time For Love (1981). In august 1982 PIR also released "This one's for you" while TP was recovering. Even in 1983 the album "Heaven Only Knows" was released. This was his last album containing his pre-accident recordings.

Ten years after the accident, he recorded a version of "One Shining Moment," the theme for March Madness Basketball on CBS.

On March 18, 1982, in the Germantown section of Philadelphia, Pendergrass was involved in an automobile accident when the brakes failed on his Rolls-Royce and he hit a tree leaving him paralyzed from the waist down with a spinal cord injury. In the car with him was a transvestite, Tenika Watson, 31, an exotic dancer with an extensive rap-sheet, though he never explained his relationship with Watson. They were trapped in the auto 45 minutes after the 1:30 A.M. accident. The police said there were no indications of drug or alcohol use. He was taken to a center at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital for treatment. Mr. Watson was released after treatment at a hospital. Pendergrass spent six months in rehabilitation.

After completing physical therapy, he returned to the studio to record the album Love Language, featuring the 1984 ballad "Hold Me", a duet with the then-upcoming star Whitney Houston. He also returned to the public for a performance on July 13, 1985 at the historic Live Aid concert in Philadelphia, then continued to record throughout the 1980s and 90s. Pendergrass has published a biography with Patricia Romanowski, entitled 'Truly Blessed'. Pendergrass divorced Karen Still-Pendergrass in 2002, after 15 years of marriage, stating irreconcilable differences. He last performed publicly in 2003. In 2006, Teddy Pendergrass announced on a radio station in New York that he has officially retired from the music business. In May 2007, Teddy Pendergrass announced on New York radio station WBLS that he will perform live for the first time since 2003 at a June 10, 2007 benefit concert in Philadelphia. The performance will benefit The Teddy Pendergrass Alliance, formed by Mr. Pendergrass to help improve the quality of life for survivors of spinal cord injuries.

Discography:

    * 1977: Teddy Pendergrass (The Right Stuff) - US #17, R&B #5
    * 1978: Life Is a Song Worth Singing (The Right Stuff) - US #11, R&B #1
    * 1979: Teddy (The Right Stuff) - US #5, R&B #1
    * 1979: Live! Coast to Coast (Philadelphia International) - US #33, R&B #5
    * 1980: TP (The Right Stuff) - US #14, R&B #3
    * 1981: It's Time for Love (Philadelphia International) - US #19, R&B #6
    * 1982: This One's For You (Philadelphia International) - US #59, R&B #6
    * 1983: Heaven Only Knows (Philadelphia International) - US #123, R&B #9
    * 1984: Love Language (Asylum) - US #38, R&B #4
    * 1985: Greatest Hits (Philadelphia International) - R&B #65
    * 1985: Workin' It Back (Asylum) - US #96, R&B #6
    * 1988: Joy (Elektra) - US #54, R&B #2
    * 1991: Truly Blessed (Elektra) - US #49, R&B #4
    * 1993: A Little More Magic (Elektra) - US #92, R&B #13
    * 1997: You and I (Surefire) - US #137, R&B #24
    * 1998: The Best of Teddy Pendergrass (The Right Stuff)
    * 1998: This Christmas I'd Rather Have Love (Surefire/Wind Up) - R&B #83
    * 2001: Greatest Slow Jams (The Right Stuff) - R&B #98
    * 2002: From Teddy With Love (Razor & Tie) - R&B #63
    * 2004: Love Songs Collection (The Right Stuff) - R&B #70