"She's a very kinky girl, the kind you don't take home to mother.
She will never let your spirits down, once you get her off the street.
She's a super freak, super freak, She's super freaky,"
- Rick James
James Ambrose Johnson, Jr. who performed under the name Rick James, was born in Buffalo, NY on February 1, 1948.
He was born with music in his blood. Not only did he play the bass guitar, guitar, keyboards, drums, and percussion, he would also become a singer-songwriter and record producer.
Rick James was in his teens, playing with several bands in Buffalo when the chance of being drafted into the Army pushed him to join the Navy, most likely to avoid front line fighting in Viet Nam.
In 1964, he deserted to Toronto where Motown Records eventually came calling for him and his band the Mynah Birds in 1966. Then the military caught up with him, stalling his career with a one-year prison sentence for desertion. James moved to California after and formed many rock and funk groups in the late 1960s and early 1970s.
In 1977, James moved back to Buffalo and started the Stone City Band, a popular local group. Success as a recording artist arrived the following year with Motown's Gordy Records and the album Come Get It! producing two hits, "You & I" and "Mary Jane".
His most successful album, 1981's Street Songs, included "Give It to Me Baby" and "Super Freak" and defined him as an artist. Super Freak became a huge crossover hit mixing funk, disco, rock, and new wave.
James also worked with other artists as a songwriter and producer including Teena Marie, the Mary Jane Girls, Temptations, Eddie Murphy, and Smokey Robinson.
By 1985, James' was at the peak of mainstream success with the album Glow, and a guest appearance on the television show The A-Team.
He won his only Grammy in 1991 for composing the song "Super Freak", which was sampled by rapper MC Hammer in his hit, "U Can't Touch This", winning MC Best R&B Song.
Sadly, James slipped into a life of cocaine and drug addiction which led to legal problems. In 1993, he was accused by two separate women of kidnapping and torture while he was fueled by crack cocaine. While the torture charges were dropped, the resulting sentence placed him in Folsom State Prison for three years of which he served two. He also paid two million dollars in a civil action.
James released his last album, Urban Rhapsody after his parole in 1996. His lifestyle plus cocaine abuse brought on many health issues including diabetes. During a comeback concert in 1997, he suffered a mild stroke which forced him into semi-retirement. When he appeared on Chappelle's Show in 2004, satirizing himself in memorable skits about his wild 1980s lifestyle, there was renewed interest in his music and career.
Time ran out for Rick James on August 6, 2004, when he was found dead in his Los Angeles home. He had died from pulmonary and cardiac failure at the age of 56. Even though the autopsy found a cocktail of drugs in his system, the coroner stated that the amounts were not enough to bring about his demise.
Rick James is buried at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Buffalo, New York.
Photograph of Rick James by Getty Images
Photograph of Rick James Memorial by Christine Shephard may not be used without written permission
Article information from Biography.com and Wikipedia.com
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