b. Brenda Gordon, 8th April 1949, Brooklyn, New York, U.S.A.
Brenda is the daughter of two singers.
Her father was,also, a member of The Ink Spots.
Brenda moved to Toronto at the age of twelve.
She took to performing in local bands (including The Tiara's) three years later.
After a brief spell back in New York to launch.her singing / songwriting career, she returned to Toronto to join the cast of the hit musical 'Hair'.
Here she met her husband Brian Russell and moved to Los Angeles where they worked as session singers.
One TV engagement with Neil Sedaka was watched by Elton John who was immediately impressed.
Brian & Brenda Russell recorded two albums for Elton's Rocket label in 1976 / 77 (including songs 'Highly Prized Possession' and 'That's All Right Too').
Elsewhere their songs were recorded by Paulette McWilliams ('Don't Let Go'), Tata Vega ('Gonna Do My Best To Love You'), Jermaine Jackson and Rufus.
Brian and Brenda separated in 1978.
In 1979, Brenda signed to A & M and her debut album Brenda Russell included 'In The Thick Of It' (U.K. Top 75, 1980).
Her next album was 'Love Life' in 1981, before she switched to Warner Brothers for 'Two Eyes' in 1983, including 'Hello People' and 'It's Something'.
She also resumed her session work artists including Barbra Streisand and Bette Midler.
Her next move was to Sweden, originally to appear in a TV special, but she loved the place so much she settled there.
In 1984, she returned to Los Angeles and signed once again to A & M.
In 1985, she sang lead on Herb Alpert's 'Wild Romance' and co-wrote 'Men And Women' with Sadao Watanabe (singing lead on 'Maisha' for him).
In 1986, she sang lead on 'Look What's Showing Through' for Rodney Franklin on his album 'It Takes Two', while in 1987 she wrote 'Dinner With Gershwin' for Donna Summer.
Brenda's own 'Get Here' was released in 1988 and included the UK Top 30 hit 'Piano in The Dark'.
The title track was later recorded by Oleta Adams, while elsewhere her songs were recorded by:
Luther Vandross ('If Only For One Night')
Roberta Flack ('My Love For You')
Earth, Wind & Fire ('I've Had Enough' and 'You')
and Leslie Smith / Lalah Hathaway ('It's Something').
In 1990, she returned with 'Kiss Me With The Wind', recorded duets with Gerald Alston and Cart Anderson and produced an album for Marilyn Scott.
1991 saw the release of 'Soul Talking' and 'Paris Rain' followed in the year 2000 (a real return to form).
In 2003, Brenda landed a deal with Dome Records in the U.K.
A retrospective entitled 'So Good So Right' was released, which featured a new song entitled 'It's A Jazz Day'.
A new album was released in 2004, entitled 'Between the Sun and the Moon', on Dome Records.
Albums:
Brenda Russell (A & M 1979)
Love Life (A & M 1981)
Two Eyes (Warners 1983)
Get Here (A & M 1988)
Kiss Me With The Wind (A & M 1990)
Soul Talking (EMI 1991)
Paris Rain (Hidden Beach Recordings 2000)
So Good, So Right - The Best Of Brenda Russell (Dome Records 2003)
Between the Sun and the Moon (Dome Records 2004)
