Kenneth Stover facts for kids

Kenneth C. Stover (born August 21, 1948, in Athens, Georgia, United States – died December 2010, in Cleveland, Ohio) was an American songwriter, producer, and singer. He was famous for his work with Motown, a very popular record company known for its soul music. Kenneth sang background vocals on Marvin Gaye's 1971 album What's Going On. He also wrote the first version of Gaye's famous 1973 song "Let's Get It On".

Kenneth C. Stover's Music Journey

Early Life and Motown Years

Kenneth Stover and his brother Elgie moved to Detroit, Michigan. There, they worked with their cousin Harvey Fuqua at his record company, Tri-Phi. A record label is a company that produces and sells music recordings. The brothers became friends with Marvin Gaye and other artists from the Motown family.

In the late 1960s, the Stover brothers became staff songwriters for Motown's music publishing company, Jobete Music. This meant they were paid to write songs for Motown artists. Kenneth sang background vocals on Marvin Gaye's song "Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)". Later, he helped write Gaye's song "You're the Man" in 1972. In 1973, Kenneth wrote the first rough draft of "Let's Get It On". He first presented this song to Marvin Gaye as a song about important social issues.

Later Career and Collaborations

In the mid-1970s, Kenneth Stover started a soul music group called Leo's Sunshipp. He formed the group with Johnny Simone and Alvin Few. They planned to release an album, but it was canceled when Johnny Simone sadly passed away. However, a 12-inch record was released by Lyons Records. Later, this record and a CD version were also released by Expansion Records. In 1978, Kenneth was part of another Motown group called Finished Touch.

He left Motown in 1981 and lived in Atlanta, Georgia for a short time. Kenneth co-wrote a song called "Good Combination". This song was released by Peabo Bryson as a single. Years later, parts of "Good Combination" were sampled by other artists. Sampling means taking a small piece of an existing song and using it in a new song. This earned Kenneth royalty checks, which are payments for his song being used. He received these payments especially after the song's instrumental part was used by Will Smith and Faith Evans.

Personal Life

Kenneth Stover grew up in Cleveland, Ohio. In 1985, he moved back to Cleveland to take care of his sister. Even though he was caring for his sister, he continued to write and produce music. He later worked as part of a music company called Kenrou Music & Publishing. Kenneth Stover passed away in December 2010.

Albums and Recordings

with Leo's Sunshipp

• We Need Each Other (Lyons, 1978)

with Finished Touch

• Need to Know You Better (Motown, 1978)