The DeBarge family is a family of rhythm and blues artists from Grand Rapids, Michigan .
40-639: DeBarge was an American musical recording group composed of several members of the DeBarge family . In addition to various solo projects completed by members of the family, DeBarge was active between 1979 and 1989. The group originally consisted of El , Mark , Randy , and Bunny . James joined the group a year later for their 1982 second album. Bobby joined in 1987, following the departures of Bunny and El. DeBarge released six studio albums, four of them with Motown subsidiary Gordy Records . These albums included The DeBarges (1981), All This Love (1982), In
80-486: A rehabilitation facility . While Randy and James left the facility on a follow-up episode, Bunny still attended and told Dr. Drew of her recovery, even performing a gospel song on the show. Drug abuse has also brought various tragedies and setbacks over the years: Bobby DeBarge died at a hospice in Grand Rapids after contracting AIDS, following years of heroin addiction; Tommy DeBarge, who also suffered from drug addiction,
120-1143: A Special Way Rhythm of the Night Bad Boys Compilation albums Greatest Hits Ultimate Collection Soundtracks The Last Dragon Singles " Stop! Don't Tease Me " " I Like It " " All This Love " " Time Will Reveal " " Love Me in a Special Way " " Rhythm of the Night " " Who's Holding Donna Now " " You Wear It Well " " The Heart Is Not So Smart " " Dance All Night " " You Babe " Related topics DeBarge family Etterlene DeBarge Kristinia DeBarge Switch Discography [REDACTED] Category Authority control databases [REDACTED] MusicBrainz release group Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_DeBarges&oldid=1246524160 " Categories : 1981 debut albums DeBarge albums Gordy Records albums Hidden categories: Articles with short description Short description
160-874: A Special Way (1983), and Rhythm of the Night (1985). The latter became the group's best-selling album and contained the single " Rhythm of the Night ", which hit No. 3 on the US Billboard Hot 100 , making it their highest-charting single in America. In the mid-1980s, El and Bunny went solo and DeBarge was subsequently released from its contract. The remaining members, Mark, Randy and James, now augmented by their eldest brother, Bobby, signed with Stripe Horse Records, an independent label, in 1987, which released their final studio album, Bad Boys . The group continued to perform for an additional two years. Bobby, along with younger sibling, Chico, were arrested for drug trafficking in 1989. Legal issues and personal problems, compounded with
200-2417: A Special Way , while "Share My World" would be included on their fourth, Rhythm of the Night . Track listing [ edit ] Side A . "What's Your Name" ( Bobby DeBarge , Bunny DeBarge , El DeBarge ) - 4:35 "Dance The Night Away" ( Mark DeBarge , Randy DeBarge ) - 4:50 "You're So Gentle, So Kind" (Bunny DeBarge, El DeBarge) - 4:40 "Queen of My Heart" (El DeBarge) - 3:49 Side B . "Hesitated" (Bunny DeBarge, El DeBarge, Mark DeBarge, Randy DeBarge) - 3:42 "Saving Up (All My Love)" (Bill Gable, Jon Lind ) - 4:16 "Share My World" (Bunny DeBarge, El DeBarge) - 5:39 "Strange Romance" (Joe Blocker, Reggie Andrews) - 5:00 Personnel [ edit ] The DeBarges [ edit ] Bunny DeBarge – lead and backing vocals, vocal arrangements (1–7) El (Eldra) DeBarge – Fender Rhodes , lead and backing vocals, vocal arrangements (1–7), rhythm arrangements Bobby DeBarge – keyboards, lead and backing vocals, vocal arrangements (1–7), rhythm arrangements, horn and string arrangements Randy DeBarge – bass, lead and backing vocals, vocal arrangements (1–7) Mark DeBarge – percussion, lead and backing vocals, vocal arrangements (1–7) Additional personnel [ edit ] Reggie Andrews – keyboards, rhythm arrangements, vocal arrangements (8) Larry Von Nash – keyboards Michael Boddicker – synthesizer programming Todd Cochran – synthesizer programming Charles Fearing – guitars Paul Jackson, Jr. – guitars Nathan East – bass Eddie Watkins, Jr. – bass Ollie E. Brown – drums Leon "Ndugu" Chancler – drums Harvey Mason – drums Joe Blocker – vocal arrangements (8) Eric Butler – horn and string arrangements Clare Fischer – horn and string arrangements Production [ edit ] Producer – Bobby DeBarge Co-Producers – Bunny DeBarge and Eldra DeBarge Engineer – Bobby Brooks Assistant Engineer – Michael Johnson Recorded and Mixed at Motown/Hitsville U.S.A. Recording Studios (Hollywood, CA). Art Direction – Johnny Lee Design – Ginny Livingston Photography – Matthew Rolston References [ edit ] ^ The DeBarges at AllMusic ^ Christgau, Robert . "The DeBarges" . Robert Christgau . Retrieved July 2, 2013 . ^ Hull, Tom (April 19, 2021). "Music Week" . Tom Hull – on
240-458: A gospel album featuring their mother Etterlene and younger siblings Darryl (Young DeBarge) and Carol (Peaches DeBarge), billed as "the DeBarge Family." Several members of the family made several solo albums during the 1990s and 2000s, but never reached the fame and popularity of their original group. The DeBarges' story of their rise and fall was documented in late 2008 as the debut episode of
280-415: A guest appearance on the television show Punky Brewster in 1988. Later in 1988, Bobby and Chico were arrested for drug trafficking in Grand Rapids. They were eventually convicted of the charges and sentenced to two different prisons to serve their sentences. The arrests and subsequent convictions brought an end to the group as a musical entity and it was disbanded in 1989. By the time of its disbanding,
320-526: A hit single, eventually reaching the top five in several countries, mainly in the US and UK, becoming the band's biggest-selling and their best-known hit. Sensing that El DeBarge was emerging as the "star" of the group, Motown had El working on the group's next album primarily by himself, with the label failing to call on the other siblings' help. It's hinted Motown was fearful of the other members' growing dependencies to drug addiction, only trusting El as he seemed to be
360-469: A second time to George Rodriguez, who was Puerto Rican , leading to the erroneous rumor that the family was half- Hispanic . Robert and Etterlene had 10 children: Robert and Etterlene had dozens of grandchildren, several of whom are involved in the entertainment industry. They include: Etterlene has recorded label releases and gospel material, mostly with her family members, with her independent gospel releases. Brothers Bobby and Tommy rose to fame in
400-404: A two-year training process before releasing their first album in 1981. With the inclusion of 18-year-old James in early 1982, the group changed its name to DeBarge and released its first million-selling album, All This Love , later that year. From 1982 to 1985, DeBarge released three gold-certified albums and released more than ten hit singles. After disbanding in 1986, a reinvented version of
440-477: Is most notable for his personal relationship and short marriage to R&B and pop singer Janet Jackson during the early 1980s. He and Jackson annulled their marriage in 1985 because of the former's drug problems and disapproval from Jackson's parents Joseph and Katherine . In 2001, he recorded a song with Won-G Bruny and Traci Bingham called Nothing's Wrong . The music video , instead of featuring Traci, had James lip-sync both his and Traci's parts of
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#1733085296894480-570: The TV One show Unsung . In 2010 El, after a six-year sabbatical of releasing solo albums, and following a period of drug addiction and several arrests, released the well-received Grammy-nominated album, Second Chance and went on tour in support of R&B singer Mary J. Blige in 2011, but relapsed and went back to drug rehab to address his continuing issues. In 2011, James, Randy and Bunny appeared on Dr. Drew 's Lifechangers to discuss their troubles with drug addiction, later agreeing to attend
520-609: The funk - soul band Switch , which first went by the name First Class. Eventually signing with Motown Records in 1978, the group's debut album, yielding the hit "There'll Never Be", sold over one million copies and started the DeBarge musical dynasty. In 1979, Bunny, Marty, Randy, El, and James signed with Motown as the DeBarges and released their debut album two years later, under the guidance of Bobby and Tommy who left Switch that year to begin mentoring their siblings. A year later in 1982,
560-465: The 1980s with singles such as "Who's Johnny" and "Love Always", and with collaborations on hits by Quincy Jones , Tone Loc , and Fourplay . Etterlene's youngest son Darrell released his first solo album in 2005. Robert Louis DeBarge, Sr. (1932–2009) from Cicero, Illinois , served in the U.S. Armed Forces and was of French and English descent. Robert's grandfather Arthur DeBarge immigrated from France. Robert met Etterlene Abney (1935–2024), who
600-609: The Dance " with Fourplay . El released his first studio album since 1994, Second Chance , on November 30, 2010. In 1986, Motown released Bunny's only solo project, In Love , which flopped due to the label's failure to promote it despite her first single, "Save The Best For Me". Most known for writing the songs " I Like It " and " A Dream ," Bunny now records independently as a gospel artist. She, Randy, James , and her daughter appeared on an episode of Lifechangers . Though he has not had any solo success since DeBarge's breakup, James
640-609: The DeBarge children have accused him of having sexually abused them. Bunny DeBarge , the eldest, recalls being sexually abused by him between the ages of seven to 13. The group hailed from the East Side of Detroit, where the siblings were born and raised; they later relocated to Grand Rapids, Michigan . Members included sister Etterlene ("Bunny") and brothers Mark ("Marty"), William ("Randy"), Eldra ("El"), and James . Younger siblings Jonathan ("Chico"), Darrell ("Young"), and Carol ("Peaches") DeBarge are also singers though not with
680-450: The Motown group Switch , including their elder brothers Tommy and Bobby and co-founding member and family friend Gregory Williams. Bunny DeBarge had joined her younger brothers in 1979 as well, and they formed as The DeBarges in 1980. That year, because of Bobby's success with Switch, younger brother El was able to perform live on the piano and sing for Motown CEO and founder Berry Gordy , who
720-455: The Web B+ ( [REDACTED] [REDACTED] ) The DeBarges is the debut album of DeBarge , released by Gordy Records on April 6, 1981. It saw limited success and stalled on the charts; the group felt it was not properly promoted. As a result, they revisited The DeBarges by including two songs on their subsequent recordings: "Queen of My Heart" was included on their third album, In
760-769: The Web . Retrieved April 20, 2021 . ^ Williams, Chris. "DeBarge would skyrocket into another realm of superstardom with 1983's In a Special Way" . waxpoetics.com . Wax Poetics Magazine . Retrieved 2015-04-22 . ^ Williams, Chris. "DeBarge would skyrocket into another realm of superstardom with 1983's In a Special Way" . waxpoetics.com . Wax Poetics Magazine . Retrieved 2015-04-22 . v t e DeBarge Bunny DeBarge Bobby DeBarge Randy DeBarge Marty DeBarge El DeBarge James DeBarge Chico DeBarge Studio albums The DeBarges All This Love In
800-402: The album and without the help of Motown, and although two singles were released – "Dance All Night", which peaked at number 33, and the ballad "I Got You Babe", which only reached number 73 – the album itself failed to chart. DeBarge continued their career in 1988, even bringing along younger brother Chico (who had a successful hit "Talk to Me") with them as their opening act. The brothers made
840-518: The changing musical tastes of the public, led to the group's dispersion in 1989, 10 years after its inception. The DeBarge family are the children of Etterlene DeBarge (née Abney; 1935-2024), a Black American gospel singer born in Royal Oak, Michigan in 1935 and Robert Louis DeBarge, Sr. (1932–2009), a white American soldier of French and English descent born in Cicero, Illinois . They married when Etterlene
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#1733085296894880-591: The chorus. Chico was 18 when he released his first album in 1985. The first single, "Talk to Me", became a top 40 hit. Chico created neo-soul music under the UMG label Kedar Records , and in 1997 he recorded the album Long Time No See . He is the only family member to date to have achieved certified gold album status as a solo artist. James' daughter Kristinia was 19 when Island Records released her debut album, Exposed , in July 2009. The DeBarges From Misplaced Pages,
920-711: The 💕 1981 studio album by The DeBarges The DeBarges [REDACTED] Studio album by The DeBarges Released April 6, 1981 Recorded August 1980 – March 1981 Genre R&B Length 36 : 45 Label Gordy Producer El DeBarge , Bunny DeBarge , Bobby DeBarge The DeBarges chronology The DeBarges (1981) All This Love (1982) Professional ratings Review scores Source Rating AllMusic [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] Robert Christgau A− Tom Hull – on
960-472: The group DeBarge. Although he remained a collaborator with his brothers and sister, Bobby struggled with personal problems that ended his career. It's Not Over , his only solo project, was released in 1996 following his death in 1995 at the age of 39. Forming in 1979 as The DeBarges , the band initially included four members – Bunny , Randy , Mark and El – who moved to Los Angeles and signed with Motown. There they underwent
1000-492: The group featuring Bobby and excluding El and Bunny released a record in 1988 before disbanding the following year. After leaving DeBarge for a solo career in 1986, El had modest success peaking with the song " Who's Johnny " and finding fame as a featured vocalist on several hip-hop and quiet storm -leaning R&B productions. These included most prominently "Secret Garden" with Quincy Jones and his cover of Marvin Gaye 's " After
1040-506: The group had released nine top 40 R&B singles, five top 40 pop singles, two Pop top 10 hits, five top 10 R&B singles, two number-one R&B singles, one number-one single on the dance chart, and three number-one hits on the adult contemporary chart. In 2008, Bunny DeBarge wrote a book about her famous family titled The Kept Ones . The narrative charted the siblings' success from their humble roots in Grand Rapids, Michigan , detailing
1080-458: The group made an impression after appearing on Motown 25 , where they performed alongside High Inergy . Later in 1983, the group issued their third album, In a Special Way , which spawned two further hit singles, " Time Will Reveal " and " Love Me in a Special Way ". Like All This Love before it, the album reached gold status in the United States. Following that album's success, DeBarge
1120-454: The group, now known as DeBarge , found fame with the singles, " I Like It " and " All This Love ". They would go on to have several more hit singles, such as " Time Will Reveal ", " Love Me in a Special Way " and " Rhythm of the Night ", by the mid-1980s. Younger brother Chico became a solo success first with his 1986 dance-pop single, "Talk to Me", followed by singles such as "Iggin' Me" and "No Guarantees". El DeBarge also found solo fame in
1160-712: The group. The siblings who became DeBarge started performing in various groups together in the Detroit, Michigan area in the mid 1970s. In 1979, brothers Randy, Mark, and El were part of the SMASH band, which was a release on Source Records/MCA in the USA/Canada before it was released as Pall Mall Groove Hot Ice in Germany by Polydor. Bernd Lichters, who rented a home in Cerritos, California, bought them instruments, and they were mentored by members of
1200-472: The highs and lows along their journey. A second book with the same title was published in 2020, causing issues within the family. El DeBarge was most vocal, posting on social media that the books written by Bunny were works of fiction filled with lies . Despite the group's highly publicized drug addictions and several members serving jail time for drug offenses, the siblings have continued to perform together occasionally. In 1991, Randy and James contributed to
1240-615: The late 1970s as members of the R&;B group Switch, which recorded exclusively for the Motown label. Earlier, Bobby had joined a group as a background member for Barry White called White Heat . Switch would succeed in 1978 with the top ten R&B single, "There'll Never Be". The group's first two albums became million-selling successes, and the band's success would influence a generation of R&B bands such as Tony! Toni! Toné! and Mint Condition . In 1981 Bobby and his brother Tommy left Switch and started to mentor their younger siblings in
DeBarge - Misplaced Pages Continue
1280-401: The most reliable. The Rhythm of the Night album became the band's best-selling work, going platinum and featuring further hits such as " Who's Holding Donna Now " and "You Wear It Well". Following the end of its successful promotion, however, both El and Bunny departed from the group after Motown offered them lucrative solo deals. Without the powerful harmonies of the brother and sister duo,
1320-433: The rest of the DeBarges were not considered commercial enough to keep going, and they were dropped from the Motown label in 1986. In 1987, Bobby joined the group, and failing to find deals with major labels, the group (still known as DeBarge) signed with the independent label Striped Horse Records, later releasing what turned out to be their final studio album, Bad Boys . Since Striped Horse had financial problems promoting
1360-516: The whereabouts of her new husband. These absences, the result of James' prolific drug use, became common occurrences throughout their brief marriage. When the tour ended in late 1984, the group recorded the Diane Warren composition, " Rhythm of the Night ", for the soundtrack to the Motown-produced film, Berry Gordy 's The Last Dragon from 1985. The song was released in early 1985 and became
1400-436: Was African American , in Detroit, in the early 1950s. They married in 1953, at 21 and 17 years old, respectively, settling in a predominantly Black section of Detroit, where they had ten children. In 1972, the DeBarges moved to Grand Rapids, Michigan where Etterlene's brother, Bishop William Charles Abney, Jr., pastored Bethel Pentecostal Church. Etterlene divorced Robert in 1974 after 21 years of marriage. She later married
1440-454: Was 17, a year after the death of her father James Abney, a church choir leader and peanut retailer. They separated in the mid-1970s and divorced in 1974. Etterlene remembers Robert DeBarge, Sr. as physically and emotionally abusive to her and the children, and said he used her youth, the absence of her father, and continuous pregnancy to control her. DeBarge, Sr. has been characterized as "domineering and physically abusive to his wife," and some of
1480-416: Was handpicked by Luther Vandross to open for him on his "Busy Body Tour" to support his album of the same name . In 1984, James DeBarge made headlines when he secretly eloped with 18-year-old Janet Jackson of the famed Jackson family , but their marriage was quickly annulled the following year. Janet would later recount how, following their wedding, she was left alone in a hotel for three hours not knowing
1520-511: Was impressed by the group and agreed to sign them that year. For a year the group worked alongside members of Switch, helping to add background vocals, instrumentation, arranging, and musical and lyrical composition to the band's works, most prominently in "I Call Your Name", "My Friend in the Sky", and "Love Over and Over Again". By 1981, Bobby and Tommy had left Switch and returned the favor to their siblings working with them on their debut album , which
1560-572: Was on kidney dialysis but sometimes performed with surviving members of Switch and with his family up to his death in 2021 from kidney failure; Randy DeBarge and Mark DeBarge are said to have "incurable diseases", according to their mother. James was sentenced to prison for drug offenses. The group's musical genre covers soul, boogie, and R&B, drawing inspiration from the family's initial roots in Detroit. The group's material has been either frequently sampled or covered: DeBarge family In 1975, musician Bobby DeBarge left Grand Rapids to start
1600-575: Was released that year with Bobby, Bunny, and El as main producers. The only single, the Bobby-led ballad "What's Your Name", failed to chart. In 1982, they added their brother James to the lineup and worked on their second album, All This Love , produced by El and Iris Gordy. The album launched them into R&B stardom with the recordings " I Like It " and " All This Love ". Both songs also became crossover pop hits with "All This Love" later going to number one on Billboard's adult contemporary chart. In 1983,
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