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Miami Herald

‘Rockin' Chair' singer Gwen McCrae got nation to groove to Miami's '70s Sunshine Sound

Gwen McCrae helped the pre-Bicentennial U.S. find another use for the 'Rockin' Chair,' turning the piece of furniture into one of the soundtracks of the summer of 1975. McCrae was one of the soulful voices that pulled Miami's Sunshine Sound out from the confines of Criteria and TK studios in North Miami and Hialeah to get its pop, Black and tropical fusion blend on radios across the nation and world. McCrae died Friday, Feb. 21, at a care facility in North Miami Beach, said Joe Stone, son of TK Records co-founder Henry Stone. McRae was 81. 'Gwen was an amazing singer. She really did help to shape hip-hop and dance music with her energetic soulful voice and Henry Stone's pioneering and visionary contributions to music around the world,' Stone said. 'Gwen was a force in Miami's TK family. She was loved, admired and she will be missed — but never forgotten.' The sexy crossover tune 'Rockin' Chair' was written by Miami composers Clarence 'Blowfly' Reid and Willie Clarke and it thrust its way up the Billboard Hot 100 pop chart to No. 9 and No. 1 R&B in the summer of 1975. The biggest hit that summer was the Captain & Tennille's chaste smash 'Love Will Keep Us Together.' By comparison, 'Rockin' Chair' percolated into the nation's consciousness on McCrae's sighs, ahhs and 'let's get it on' exhortations to an unnamed 'good lovin' daddy.' She cooed 'Let me be your rockin' chair' in a ear-catching voice of melted butter. George and Gwen McCrae McCrae, who was married at the time to fellow Miami TK star George McCrae, captured the steam Marvin Gaye delivered with his own 'Let's Get It On' two years earlier. Then, as fast as she seemed to rise, the major hits stopped coming. 'Funky Sensation' may be McCrae's other best-known song as it climbed to No. 22 on the R&B chart in 1981. But that song's impact continued into 2018 through the heavy use of samples by acts including Afrika Bambaataa, Aswad, Ja Rule and Disclosure. 'She had one of the most soulful female voices that I had heard of at that time,' said Harry Wayne Casey, who, as the KC namesake of the Sunshine Band, had his breakthrough by co-writing George McRae's trailblazing 'Rock Your Baby' for TK Records in 1974. That song's rhythm inspired ABBA's 'Dancing Queen' in 1976 and its chord structure powered Reid and Clarke's 'Rockin' Chair.' Miami's TK Records family Gwen McCrae was there for so much of that '70s era Miami sound, Casey said. 'She also did many background sessions on TK artists including all the songs on my very first KC LP. You can hear both her and George's distinct voices on my first European hit called the 'Queen of Clubs.' She wails at the end 'the queen is rocking' among other ad libs. Another overlooked true Florida artist of our time,' Casey said. The late Betty Wright, another artist in the Stone's artist group famed for her 1971 Wright-Reid classic, 'Clean Up Woman,' also introduced McCrae to the Miami musicians and songwriters that would help her establish her recording and performing career. McCrae was born Gwen Mosley on Dec. 21, 1943, in Pensacola. She started singing in church by 7. In 1963, after marrying George McCrae, the couple, who were living in West Palm Beach then, formed a musical duo that caught Reid's ears. Reid introduced them to Henry Stone, the co-founder of TK Records, and his business partner, songwriter-producer Steve Alaimo. A young Casey started co-writing songs and supplying background vocals for McCrae as early as 1972, such as 'Leave the Driving to Us.' Casey soon featured the McRaes as backing vocalists on the earliest KC and the Sunshine Band records before 'Get Down Tonight' exploded in the same year as 'Rockin' Chair.' 'When I first met Gwen she had this amazing aura around her as if she was from royalty,' Casey said. 'She dressed immaculately and carried herself in a dignified way. A very classy woman who wasn't afraid to laugh and have fun. She was the apple of Steve Alaimo's eye. He seemed to be the one who guided her career and made her musical decisions. So many memories. Those were the days and we will eternally always be family and Gwen holds a special place in my heart.' KNOW MORE: Steve Alaimo helped make the Miami sound — and was a force behind big hits After 'Rockin' Chair After 'Rockin' Chair,' the McCraes divorced in 1976. She began recording and performing in Europe as musical tastes and trends changed in America. Acts like French duo Cassius sampled her track 'All This Love That I'm Giving' in 1999. She recorded a gospel album and other tracks into the 2000s. McCrae suffered a stroke in 2012 after performing on stage in England that affected her performing ability. McCrae's survivors include her children Wanda, Sophia, Leah and Alex, and grandchildren and great grandchildren. Services will be private.