Bettye Crutcher | |
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![]() Crutcher at Stax Recording Studio in 1974 | |
Background information | |
Birth name | Bettye Jean Crutcher |
Born | Memphis, Tennessee, U.S. | September 16, 1939
Died | October 20, 2022 Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. | (aged 83)
Genres | Memphis soul |
Occupation(s) |
|
Labels | Stax |
Bettye Jean Crutcher (September 16, 1939 – October 20, 2022) was an American songwriter. She was a staff writer for Stax Records. [1] Crutcher teamed with Homer Banks and Raymond Jackson as We Three, and co-wrote " Who's Making Love" for Johnnie Taylor, which earned a nomination for the Grammy Award for Best R&B Song. Crutcher also wrote music for the Staple Singers, Sam & Dave, and Albert King.
Crutcher was born in Memphis, Tennessee on September 16, [2] 1939, and started writing poems as a child.She became a nurse and was a single parent of three children when she applied to work for various record labels. After being rejected by other labels, she joined Stax Records as a songwriter in 1967, becoming their only female staffer. [3] In 2019, she said: "Being the only female songwriter for Stax was quite an event [...] They talk about the sexist '60s, and I really think the guys didn't think the girls could do that." [1]
Crutcher wrote "Somebody's Sleeping in My Bed" for Johnnie Taylor, which made the R&B Top 40 in 1967. [3] She teamed with Homer Banks and Raymond Jackson as the songwriting trio We Three. In their first year together, their work accounted for $6 million in sales ($47,074,550 in current dollar terms). [4] We Three wrote " Who's Making Love" for Taylor, which was a Top 5 hit in 1968 and was nominated for Best R&B Song at the 1969 Grammy Awards. [3]
In 1974, Crutcher recorded an album of her own, titled Long as You Love Me. [5] She recorded the album with the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section and the Memphis Symphony Orchestra [6] and co-produced the album with Mack Rice. Crutcher and Rice also wrote the soundtrack for The Klansman in 1974. [7] In addition, Crutcher wrote music with Marvell Thomas and Bobby Manuel. She wrote "The Ghetto", "We'll Get Over", and "The Challenge" for the Staple Singers, and recommended that " Respect Yourself" by Rice and Luther Ingram would work well for the group. [3] Crutcher also wrote "I Like What You're Doing to Me" for Carla Thomas [8] as well as songs for Sam & Dave, Ann Peebles, Otis Clay, and Albert King. Her songs were covered by Joan Baez, Buddy Guy, Paul Weller, and Sammy Davis Jr., and sampled by the Wu-Tang Clan, Diddy, and Mary J. Blige. [3]
After Stax went out of business, Crutcher worked in antiques and made jewelry. She moved to Nashville, Tennessee, in the 1980s and wrote songs for B.B. King and Bobby Bland. [3]
Crutcher died in Nashville on October 20, 2022, at age 83. [1] [3]
Bettye Crutcher | |
---|---|
![]() Crutcher at Stax Recording Studio in 1974 | |
Background information | |
Birth name | Bettye Jean Crutcher |
Born | Memphis, Tennessee, U.S. | September 16, 1939
Died | October 20, 2022 Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. | (aged 83)
Genres | Memphis soul |
Occupation(s) |
|
Labels | Stax |
Bettye Jean Crutcher (September 16, 1939 – October 20, 2022) was an American songwriter. She was a staff writer for Stax Records. [1] Crutcher teamed with Homer Banks and Raymond Jackson as We Three, and co-wrote " Who's Making Love" for Johnnie Taylor, which earned a nomination for the Grammy Award for Best R&B Song. Crutcher also wrote music for the Staple Singers, Sam & Dave, and Albert King.
Crutcher was born in Memphis, Tennessee on September 16, [2] 1939, and started writing poems as a child.She became a nurse and was a single parent of three children when she applied to work for various record labels. After being rejected by other labels, she joined Stax Records as a songwriter in 1967, becoming their only female staffer. [3] In 2019, she said: "Being the only female songwriter for Stax was quite an event [...] They talk about the sexist '60s, and I really think the guys didn't think the girls could do that." [1]
Crutcher wrote "Somebody's Sleeping in My Bed" for Johnnie Taylor, which made the R&B Top 40 in 1967. [3] She teamed with Homer Banks and Raymond Jackson as the songwriting trio We Three. In their first year together, their work accounted for $6 million in sales ($47,074,550 in current dollar terms). [4] We Three wrote " Who's Making Love" for Taylor, which was a Top 5 hit in 1968 and was nominated for Best R&B Song at the 1969 Grammy Awards. [3]
In 1974, Crutcher recorded an album of her own, titled Long as You Love Me. [5] She recorded the album with the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section and the Memphis Symphony Orchestra [6] and co-produced the album with Mack Rice. Crutcher and Rice also wrote the soundtrack for The Klansman in 1974. [7] In addition, Crutcher wrote music with Marvell Thomas and Bobby Manuel. She wrote "The Ghetto", "We'll Get Over", and "The Challenge" for the Staple Singers, and recommended that " Respect Yourself" by Rice and Luther Ingram would work well for the group. [3] Crutcher also wrote "I Like What You're Doing to Me" for Carla Thomas [8] as well as songs for Sam & Dave, Ann Peebles, Otis Clay, and Albert King. Her songs were covered by Joan Baez, Buddy Guy, Paul Weller, and Sammy Davis Jr., and sampled by the Wu-Tang Clan, Diddy, and Mary J. Blige. [3]
After Stax went out of business, Crutcher worked in antiques and made jewelry. She moved to Nashville, Tennessee, in the 1980s and wrote songs for B.B. King and Bobby Bland. [3]
Crutcher died in Nashville on October 20, 2022, at age 83. [1] [3]