Robert John

Robert John (born Robert John Pedrick, Jr. January 3 1946) is an American singer-songwriter perhaps best known for his 1979 hit single, "Sad Eyes", which reached No. 1 on the US Billboard Hot 100.

John was born in Brooklyn, New York. Under the name of Bobby Pedrick, Jr., he first hit the pop chart in 1958 when he was only 12 years old with "White Bucks and Saddle Shoes" written by Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman. As the lead singer of Bobby & The Consoles, he had the minor 1963 hit entitled "My Jelly Bean" on Diamond Records. By 1965, he had changed his name and signed with MGM records for two ill fated singles. In 1967, he signed a contract with Columbia records and released a string of singles with help from writing partner Mike Gately.

After a short tenure from 1970-1971 with Herb Alpert's A&M Records, 1971 brought his next hit, a cover version of The Tokens' 1961 hit, "The Lion Sleeps Tonight", which climbed to No. 3 in 1972, selling over one million copies and receiving a gold disc awarded by the Recording Industry Association of America on March 15, 1972. Several years later, recording for EMI Records, John hit #1 with "Sad Eyes," one of the few chart-topping singles in 1979 that had no disco beat or disco influence.

The 1980s saw John recording for Arista Records with collaborator and guitarist Bobby Mancari and keyboardist Steve Butera. A newly recorded version of "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" was released on his 1992 greatest hits album.

Albums

• 1968: If You Don't Want My Love
• 1971: On the Way Up
• 1979: Robert John - US No. 68, CAN No. 81
• 1980: Back on the Street - US No. 205

Singles

• *"Greased Lightning" - peaked at No. 60 on the US Dance chart

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