Barry Eugene Carter (September 12, 1944 – July 4, 2003), better known by his stage name Barry White, was an American singer-songwriter, musician, record producer, composer and a two-time Grammy Award–winner known for his bass-baritone voice and romantic image.
White was born in Galveston, Texas, the son of Melvin White and Sadie Carter. His father never lived at home, and his mother moved to the black neighbourhood of Watts, in south central Los Angeles, when he was six months old. At the age of eight, he began singing in the local Baptist church choir, soon becoming its organist and assistant director. He made his recording debut at 11, playing piano on Jesse Belvin's 1956 r&b hit Goodnight My Love.
By the age of 16, White had fathered two children, quit school and served four months in prison for stealing tyres. In 1960 - while incarcerated - he listened to Elvis Presley's then number one hit It's Now Or Never, and focused himself on succeeding in the music business. He made several records during the early '60s, under the name (Barry Lee), and as a member of the Upfronts, the Atlantics and the Majestics.
White spent the 1960s as a sideman, songwriter and arranger for small southern Californian record labels. In 1963, he worked on the arrangement of Bob and Earl's The Harlem Shuffle. Working with Gene Page, he scored twice in 1967 as writer and producer for Felice Taylor, whose I Feel Love Comin' On reached number 11 in the British pop charts. Using the name Lee Barry, he recorded - unsuccessfully - and, with his first wife Mary and their four children, often had to rely on welfare cheques to survive. Then, in 1972, came the breakthrough.
He found the path that resulted in the sale of more than 100m records. The starting point was his appearance on the female trio Love Unlimited's single Walking In The Rain (With The One I Love). The footsteps and rain sound effects, White's deep bass baritone voice, and arranger Gene Page's lavish orchestration propelled the record to number 16 in the American pop charts and number six in the rhythm and blues lists.
White had seen himself as Love Unlimited's producer-songwriter. He only sang on the demo as a vocal guide, but when his business partner Larry Nunes heard the tape, he insisted they issue the song with White's voice on it. White later claimed they had argued for three days before he relented. But emerging as a solo artist in 1973, he scored a big hit with I'm Gonna Love You Just A Little More, Baby, and, in 1974, married Love Unlimited's Glodean James. In Britain, he scored three number one hits across 1972-73.
Among his biggest hits were Never, Never Gonna Give Ya Up, Can't Get Enough Of Your Love, Babe, You're The First, The Last, My Everything, What Am I Gonna Do With You and It's Ecstasy When You Lay Down Next To Me. He first visited Britain in 1973, recalling later that "the English were my first international fans, and that is something I won't forget. England was incredible." White called his husky voice "my supreme gift, the gilded chariot on which I have driven the music of my life". His ability to sing songs that were both sexy and romantic established him, in the popular media at least, as a ladies' favourite.
Due to a poor diet, White was overweight for most of his adult life and suffered from related health problems. While on-tour in the summer of 1995, White nearly collapsed after a concert. He took a break from performing that fall and on October 30th of that year, he was hospitalized after suffering a minor stroke due to high blood pressure. He was in a coma for four days, but was discharged a week after coming out of it.
While touring with Earth, Wind & Fire in August of 1999, White was forced to cancel a month's worth of tour dates owing to exhaustion, high blood pressure and a hectic schedule. Family, friends, and associates also reported that as the 2000s began, White was in such poor health that he could hardly stand up. In September 2002, White was hospitalized with kidney failure attributed to chronic high blood pressure; he was also believed to have been diabetic. While undergoing dialysis and awaiting a kidney transplant in May 2003, White suffered a severe stroke, which forced him to retire from public life. His unstable health prevented him receiving a new kidney and on July 4, 2003, he died at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles after suffering a severe cardiac arrest; he was 58.
(Edited from The Guardian & Wikipedia)