Arthur Conley

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Arthur Lee Conley (January 4, 1946 – November 17, 2003) was an American soul singer, best known for the 1967 hit, "Sweet Soul Music". It shot to the number two spot on both the pop and R&B charts, earning Conley the number eleven male artist ranking for 1967. The song paid homage to other soul singers like Lou Rawls, Wilson Pickett and James Brown.

Conley was born in McIntosh County, Georgia and grew up in Atlanta. He first recorded in 1959 as the lead singer of Arthur & the Corvets. With this group, he released three singles from 1963 through 1964 ("Poor Girl", "I Believe", and "Flossie Mae") on the Atlanta based record label, National Recording Company.

In 1964, he moved to a new label (Ru-Jac Records) and released "I'm a Lonely Stranger". When Otis Redding heard this, he asked Conley to record a new version, which was released on Redding's own fledgling label Jotis Records, as only its second release.

Conley met Redding in 1967, but after this meeting Redding took Conley under his care, and taught him the finer points of the music business. Together they re-wrote the Sam Cooke song "Yeah Man" into "Sweet Soul Music", which at Redding's insistence, was released on the Atco-distributed label Fame Records. It proved a massive hit and went to the number two position on the U.S. charts and the Top Ten across much of Europe. It is said that Conley never accepted Otis Redding's death of December 1967.

After several years of lacklustre singles in the early 1970s, he relocated to England in 1975, and spent several years in Belgium, then settled in the Dutch village of Ruurlo and the cultural centre of Ganzenhoef (an extension southeast of Amsterdam) in 1980, and legally changed his name to Lee Roberts (his middle name and his mother's maiden name). There he occupied himself with promoting new music by means of his Art-Con Productions company. He was also active as a designer of specialized tapestries and furniture.

A live performance, on 8 January 1980, featuring Lee Roberts & the Sweaters, was released as an album entitled Soulin' in 1988.

He died after a long battle with intestinal cancer in Ruurlo, The Netherlands at the age of fifty seven.

[edit] Recordings

"Aunt Dora's Soul Love Shack", 1968, hit which may have inspired the Temptations "Psychedelic Shack"
"Burning Fire"
"Baby, What You Want Me To Do"
"Day-O", 1969, written by Harry Belafonte
"Flossie Mae", 1963, as Arthur & the Corvets
"Funky Street", 1968, #5 R&B, #14 pop
"God Bless", 1970, Top 40 R&B
"Ha Ha Ha"
"I Believe", 1963, as Arthur & the Corvets
"I Can't Stop (No, No, No)", 1966, written by Dan Penn
"I Got A Feeling"
"I'm a Lonely Stranger", 1964, solo, re-recorded in 1965
"I'm Living Good", 1971-1974
"It's So Nice [When It's Someone Else's Wife]", 1971-1974
"Is That You Love"
"Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Di", 1968, #51 pop, #41 R&B, featured guitar of Duane Allman
"One Night Is All I Need"
"Otis Sleep On", 1968
"People Sure Act Funny", 1968, Top 20 R&B
"Poor Girl", 1963, as Arthur & the Corvets
"Rita", 1971-1974
"Run On", 1968
"Shake, Rattle and Roll", 1967, Top 40 pop, Top 20 R&B
"Shing-A-Ling"
"Something You Got"
"Speak Her Name"
"Star Review", 1969, with Tom Dowd, written by Allen Toussaint
"Stuff You Gotta Watch"
"Sweet Soul Music", 1967, co-written with Otis Redding, #2 R&B, #2 pop
"Take A Step"
"Take Me (Just as I Am)", 1966-1967(?)
"That Can't Be My Baby"
"Walking on Eggs", 1971-1974
"Who's Foolin' Who", 1966
"Whole Lotta Woman", 1967, #73 pop
"Wholesale Love"