Sonny Sanders facts for kids
William Nelson "Sonny" Sanders (born August 6, 1939 – died October 12, 2016) was an American music expert. He was a talented soul music singer, a person who writes songs (called a songwriter), someone who arranges music, and a record producer. This means he helped create and shape many popular songs.
Early Life and Motown
Sonny Sanders was born in Chicago. He made his very first recording in 1955. This was for a song called "Tears of Love" / "Roxanna" by Sax Kari and the Qualtones.
In 1957, Sonny moved to Detroit. There, he started a music group called the Satintones. His bandmates were Robert Bateman, James Ellis, and Sammy Mack. The Satintones made history! They were the very first singing group to sign with the famous Motown record label. Their first record, "Going to the Hop" / "Motor City," came out in 1960.
While at Motown, Sonny also worked as a backing singer. He sang on popular songs like Marv Johnson's "You Got What It Takes" and Barrett Strong's "Money (That's What I Want)". He also helped arrange music for other artists.
A Career in Music Arrangement
After the Satintones group broke up, Sonny Sanders left Motown in the early 1960s. But he didn't stop making music! He continued to work as an arranger. This meant he helped decide which instruments would play what parts in a song. One famous song he arranged was "Just Like Romeo and Juliet" by the Reflections.
In 1965, Sonny moved back to Chicago. He started working with another famous record producer named Carl Davis. Together, they arranged songs for many big stars. These included Mary Wells, Edwin Starr's "Agent Double-O-Soul," and Jackie Wilson’s huge hits "Higher and Higher" and "I Get the Sweetest Feeling".
Sonny also worked with other well-known artists, especially at Brunswick Records. Some of these artists were Gene Chandler, the Chi-Lites, and Tyrone Davis.
Songwriting and Later Work
Sonny Sanders was also a talented songwriter. He helped write "Am I the Same Girl" for Barbara Acklin. He wrote this song with Eugene Record from the Chi-Lites. The music from this song later became a hit instrumental track called "Soulful Strut" by Young-Holt Unlimited.
He also co-wrote the song "If You Need Me" with Wilson Pickett and his old bandmate Robert Bateman. This song was first recorded by Wilson Pickett. It also became a hit for Solomon Burke and was even recorded by the famous band the Rolling Stones.
In the 1970s, Sonny worked with a band called Chubby and the Turnpikes. This group later became the popular band Tavares. He also worked with the band Manchild, which included the musician Babyface.
In 1998, Sonny Sanders and Carl Davis produced the last album for Eugene Record, called Let Him In. Sonny also started his own company called Joy Over One. This company focused on publishing gospel music.
Sonny Sanders passed away in Detroit in the fall of 2016. He was 77 years old.