profile
“You love the real
thing, you love
the antiques, you
love the old school
music!”
pic: GUUS KROL
CANDI STATON
Celebrated soulstress Candi Staton talks to Heather Arnold about her
Legends Of Soul reunion, and the opportunity she is providing one fan.
“
I tried to give it up many years ago,” sighs
legendary soul singer Candi Staton, “I tried to
become a nurse, couldn’t do that. I tried to do
other things but I always come back to music.
That was what I was born to do.”
The 60s soul star, originally from Alabama, has been
named the ‘first lady of southern soul’ and is most
famous for her disco belter Young Hearts Run Free
and soul single You Got The Love.
“It is a calling,” Staton says about her singing career;
“you have to love it, you can’t do it if you don’t love
it. When I‘m at home, after a month I feel so lonely
for the road. My daughter will say ‘You need to go and
sing somewhere; you need to get on the road’. You
know you’re called, you feel it calling.”
Candi is just about to begin a tour of the UK with
show produced by David Gest. The cast of David
Gest’s Legends Of Soul Live Concert! includes
a whole bus full of soul heroes such as Dennis
Edwards (lead singer of The Temptations), Jody
Watley (the mastermind behind R&B hit Real Love)
and Percy Sledge (the sultry singer of When A Man
Loves A Woman).
“I just come off of one show with David and I was a
little reluctant to do the next one,” notes Candi, who
was also in the box office-smashing show ‘David
Gest’s Legends Of Soul Spectacular earlier this year,
BUZZ 24
“but that changed when heard all my friends are
going to be there.
“When I do the show with David, and he’s bringing
all of those people that I’ve known over the years,
it’s more like a family reunion. I do it for the laughs,
the good times that we’ve had, we reminisce on the
bus and they’re so funny; it’s like a comedy show.
We really get connected again. And that’s one of the
reasons why I love doing these things.
“We also always have great, great crowds. The UK
audience is one of the best audiences in the world.
We have shows back in America, but we come over
here and you guys love the real thing and I love
that about you. You love the real thing, you love the
antiques, you love the old school music!
“I hear your music, I hear it all the time. Even in
Harrods! I go in Harrods and I hear Young Hearts!
And I go ‘that’s me’! That’s what I’m talking about.
You still play our music and we love you guys for that.”
Candi’s tour of the UK isn’t just to sing to adoring
crowds however, but also to find a new singing
partner as some lucky soul fans will be given the
opportunity to join Candi in belting out You Got The
Love, and one of them will even be invited to come
and sing on Candi’s next single.
“It’s such a repetitious chorus, anybody should be
able to sing it,” explains Candi. “We’re going to have
a bowl of names and people can submit themselves if
you want to be called up. And then pick the names out.
“They will be the blessed ones that night to come up
and be a part of You Got The Love with me. And then
after that we’ll let the audience clap for them, which
one they think was the best and the one to pick for
that night.
“We’ll do that everywhere. At the end of the tour
we go to all over the singers, listen to the show and
when it’s over then we pick up the one we will decide
which one was the best out of all of them. And that’s
the one that I will do a song with, and put it on
record with and put it out. This will be for somebody
that never had a name.
“When I had my television show, and I had it for 25
years on TV every week, I would always find a name
that nobody knew about and they would blow people
away. So it’s just a great start for any artist that
wants to be heard, if they don’t have the facilities,
don’t have the money, don’t have the opportunity to
get anyone. It would be a great opportunity for them
to get with someone with the name.”
David Gest’s Legends of Soul Live
Concert!, Aberystwyth Arts Centre, Wed 5
Feb. Tickets: £13-£46. Info: 01970 623232
/ www. aberystwythartscentre.co.uk