Oliver Cheatham facts for kids

Oliver Cheatham (born February 24, 1948 – died November 29, 2013) was an American contemporary R&B singer. He is best known for his big hit song "Get Down Saturday Night" from 1983.

This song became very popular again years later. An Italian DJ named Room 5 used parts of it in his 2003 song "Make Luv". This song went all the way to number one on the music charts in the UK! Another British DJ, Michael Gray, also used parts of "Get Down Saturday Night" in his 2004 hit song "The Weekend".

Biography

Oliver Cheatham was born in Detroit, Michigan, in the United States. His mother encouraged him to sing. As he grew up, he joined several local music groups. Some of these groups were The Young Sirs, Mad Dog and the Pups, and Gaslight.

He later released a song called "Hard Times" on a record label called Tier. After that, he joined a group called the Sins of Satan. This group later changed its name to Roundtrip. Finally, they decided to use Oliver's first name and released two albums as "Oliver."

Music Career and Hits

Oliver Cheatham then signed with MCA Records to become a solo singer. He worked with Al Hudson from the band One Way on his first album, The Boss.

His first big success came in 1983 with the song "Get Down Saturday Night". Oliver Cheatham wrote this song with Kevin McCord from One Way. It reached number 37 on the Billboard R&B chart in the US. It also reached number 38 on the UK singles chart. His album, Saturday Night, came out that same year.

In 1986, he moved to the Critique record label. He had more success in the US with songs like "S.O.S." and "Celebrate (Our Love)". Other songs by Oliver Cheatham included "Mama Said" and "Put a Little Love in Your Heart." He also recorded "Turn Out the Lights" with Jocelyn Brown.

During the 1990s, Oliver Cheatham often worked as a backing singer for other artists, like Leo Sayer. He released his last album, Stand for Love, in 2002.

Later Success and Legacy

Oliver Cheatham became popular on the music charts again in 2003. This happened when he was featured in Room 5's song "Make Luv". This song used parts of "Get Down Saturday Night." Oliver Cheatham even re-recorded his singing parts for later versions of the song.

"Make Luv" was used in a commercial for Lynx deodorant on British TV. Because of the song's success in the UK, Oliver Cheatham moved to Surrey, England. He recorded music in London for the Native Soul record label.

Parts of "Get Down Saturday Night" were also used in Michael Gray's popular song "The Weekend" in 2004. The song also appeared in the video game Grand Theft Auto: Vice City and the movie Ex Machina. Another artist, Lino di Meglio, sampled the song for his 2013 track "I Can't Live Without (Dino In Paris Full Vox)".

Oliver Cheatham passed away on November 29, 2013. He was 65 years old and died peacefully in his sleep after a heart attack.

Discography

Albums

Singles

See also

In Spanish: Oliver Cheatham para niños