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Find Charlie Wilson discography, albums and singles on AllMusic. The powerful lead singer for funk legends the Gap Band, Charlie Wilson fronted 15 Top Ten R&B singles, four of which -- 'Burn Rubber (Why You Wanna Hurt Me),' 'Early in the Morning,' 'Outstanding,' and 'All of My Love' -- went to number one.
Although the Gap Band enjoyed their greatest commercial and creative success in the late '70s and early '80s, Charlie Wilson's influence on R&B and hip-hop continued long after that. The onetime Gap Band singer was a major influence on Guy/Aaron Hall, Keith Sweat, Bell Biv DeVoe, and other new jack swing stars who emerged in the late '80s and early '90s, and it certainly isn't hard to hear Wilson's impact on the '90s and 2000s hits of R. But veteran R&B artists who opened doors in the past don't always have doors opened for them as they grow older; most of the R&B stars who emerged in the '70s are lucky to be recording for small indie labels in the 21st century, let alone a major label like Jive.
But recording for Jive is exactly what Wilson does on 2005's Charlie, Last Name Wilson, which finds him collaborating with none other than R. In addition to serving as executive producer, Kelly wrote, produced, and arranged three songs: 'Magic,' the title track, and the Stevie Wonder-ish 'No Words.' Kelly didn't produce the entire album - the Platinum Brothers, T. Pain, and several others also help out - but whoever the producer or writer is on a particular track, the obvious goal was to make Wilson sound contemporary and modern by 2005 standards. And Wilson sounds perfectly natural alongside guest Snoop Dogg on the angry 'You Got Nerve' and even Justin Timberlake (who has shed some of his more bubblegum tendencies of the past) on the infectious 'Floatin'.' Romantic slow jams are a high priority on this CD, and grooves like 'Asking Questions,' 'What If I'm the One,' and 'Let's Chill' (a remake of Guy's hit) essentially take the Gap Band's classic 'Yearning for Your Love'/'Outstanding' vibe and add a big dose of hip-hop.
In other words, Wilson does exactly what Kelly, Teddy Riley, Sweat, and so many of his other admirers have been doing all these years. Charlie, Last Name Wilson isn't in a class with the singer's best recordings with the Gap Band, but it's a respectable and inspired demonstration of his ability to be relevant to the hip-hop-drenched urban contemporary scene of 2005. Alex Henderson.
About Charlie Wilson Charlie Wilson's career dates back to the days when funk bands in Oklahoma still wore rhinestone cowboy hats. Or at least, the Gap Band - the trio he had with his brothers Ronnie and Robert, all cousins of Bootsy Collins - did. Their first album came out on an indie label in 1977, when Wilson was 23 years old; by the early '80s, they'd scored some of the most massively whomping funk hits in history, including 'Burn Rubber on Me,' 'Early in the Morning' and 'You Dropped a Bomb on Me,' all of which Charlie sang. He also played keyboard, synth and percussion, and backed up the Eurythmics in his spare time.
In the mid-'90s, he was signed as a solo act to Snoop Dogg's Doggystyle label, and in 2005, his third solo album - Charlie, Last Name Wilson, partially produced by R. Kelly - went Top 10 on the R&B charts and introduced him to a whole new generation; 2009's Uncle Charlie did even better. Ballads weren't really the Gap Band's specialty, but after reinventing himself as a crooner, Charlie had a handful of Top 30 R&B hits (most notably 2009's 'There Goes My Baby') since the mid-'00s.
He's also shown up on rap tracks by Mystikal, UGK and Kanye West. Charlie Wilson's career dates back to the days when funk bands in Oklahoma still wore rhinestone cowboy hats. Or at least, the Gap Band - the trio he had with his brothers Ronnie and Robert, all cousins of Bootsy Collins - did. Their first album came out on an indie label in 1977, when Wilson was 23 years old; by the early '80s, they'd scored some of the most massively whomping funk hits in history, including 'Burn Rubber on Me,' 'Early in the Morning' and 'You Dropped a Bomb on Me,' all of which Charlie sang. He also played keyboard, synth and percussion, and backed up the Eurythmics in his spare time. In the mid-'90s, he was signed as a solo act to Snoop Dogg's Doggystyle label, and in 2005, his third solo album - Charlie, Last Name Wilson, partially produced by R.
Kelly - went Top 10 on the R&B charts and introduced him to a whole new generation; 2009's Uncle Charlie did even better. Ballads weren't really the Gap Band's specialty, but after reinventing himself as a crooner, Charlie had a handful of Top 30 R&B hits (most notably 2009's 'There Goes My Baby') since the mid-'00s. He's also shown up on rap tracks by Mystikal, UGK and Kanye West. Charlie Wilson's career dates back to the days when funk bands in Oklahoma still wore rhinestone cowboy hats. Or at least, the Gap Band - the trio he had with his brothers Ronnie and Robert, all cousins of Bootsy Collins - did.
Their first album came out on an indie label in 1977, when Wilson was 23 years old; by the early '80s, they'd scored some of the most massively whomping funk hits in history, including 'Burn Rubber on Me,' 'Early in the Morning' and 'You Dropped a Bomb on Me,' all of which Charlie sang. He also played keyboard, synth and percussion, and backed up the Eurythmics in his spare time. In the mid-'90s, he was signed as a solo act to Snoop Dogg's Doggystyle label, and in 2005, his third solo album - Charlie, Last Name Wilson, partially produced by R.
Kelly - went Top 10 on the R&B charts and introduced him to a whole new generation; 2009's Uncle Charlie did even better. Ballads weren't really the Gap Band's specialty, but after reinventing himself as a crooner, Charlie had a handful of Top 30 R&B hits (most notably 2009's 'There Goes My Baby') since the mid-'00s. He's also shown up on rap tracks by Mystikal, UGK and Kanye West. About Charlie Wilson Charlie Wilson's career dates back to the days when funk bands in Oklahoma still wore rhinestone cowboy hats.
Or at least, the Gap Band - the trio he had with his brothers Ronnie and Robert, all cousins of Bootsy Collins - did. Their first album came out on an indie label in 1977, when Wilson was 23 years old; by the early '80s, they'd scored some of the most massively whomping funk hits in history, including 'Burn Rubber on Me,' 'Early in the Morning' and 'You Dropped a Bomb on Me,' all of which Charlie sang. He also played keyboard, synth and percussion, and backed up the Eurythmics in his spare time. In the mid-'90s, he was signed as a solo act to Snoop Dogg's Doggystyle label, and in 2005, his third solo album - Charlie, Last Name Wilson, partially produced by R.
Kelly - went Top 10 on the R&B charts and introduced him to a whole new generation; 2009's Uncle Charlie did even better. Ballads weren't really the Gap Band's specialty, but after reinventing himself as a crooner, Charlie had a handful of Top 30 R&B hits (most notably 2009's 'There Goes My Baby') since the mid-'00s. He's also shown up on rap tracks by Mystikal, UGK and Kanye West.