Bernard Edwards (1953-1996), born in Greenville, North Carolina, was a bass player and record producer, both as a member of Chic and on his own. He died of pneumonia while touring in Japan. 1953 (MCMLIII) is a common year starting on Thursday. ... 1996 (MCMXCVI) is a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ... Greenville, one of the fastest growing cities in the State of North Carolina, is located in Pitt County on the Tar River. ... A Fender Jazz Bass Bass guitar (also called electric bass guitar, electric bass, or simply bass) refers to an electric bass or an electric/acoustic string instrument with a similar appearance to the guitar, but with a larger body, commonly four strings, longer scale neck and tuned an octave lower... In the music industry, a record producer (or music producer) is (among many other tasks) primarily responsible for completing a master recording so that it is fit for mass production and commercial release. ... Chic is an American band that was formed in 1975/1976 by guitarist Nile Rodgers and bassist Bernard Edwards. ...

History

Edwards who grew up in Brooklyn NYC met Nile Rodgers in the early 1970s. The two formed the Big Apple Band (active from 1972-1975/6) and then united with drummer Tony Thompson to eventually form Chic together with singer Norma Jean Wright. Nile Rodgers (born September 19, 1952) is a prolific guitarist and music producer. ... The 1970s in its most obvious sense refers to the decade between 1970 and 1979. ... Chic is an American band that was formed in 1975/1976 by guitarist Nile Rodgers and bassist Bernard Edwards. ...

With Chic (active 1976-1983) Edwards created era-defining hits such as "Dance, Dance, Dance", "Everybody Dance", "Le Freak", "I Want Your Love" and "Good Times". Edwards also worked with Nile Rodgers to produce and write for other artists, using Chic to perform everything musically and vocally except lead vocals. Those productions with Norma Jean Wright, Sister Sledge, Sheila & B. Devotion, Diana Ross, Johnny Mathis, Debbie Harry and Fonzi Thornton led to more hits such as "Saturday", "He's The Greatest Dancer", "We Are Family", "Spacer", "Upside Down", "I'm Coming Out" and "Backfired" to name a few. Sister Sledge is an American musical group formed in 1972 and consisting of four singers, all of whom are sisters: Kim, Debbie, Joni, and Kathy Sledge. ... Diana Ross on the cover of her collection Diana Ross: The Ultimate Collection Diana Ross (born Diane Ernestine Earle Ross [1] on March 26, 1944 in Detroit, Michigan) is an African-American soul, R&B and pop singer and actress. ... John Royce Johnny Mathis (born September 30, 1935 in Gilmer, Texas) is an African-American popular singer and one of the few living male vocalists associated with Traditional Pop music. ... Debbie Harry Deborah Harry (born July 1, 1945 in Miami, Florida) is an American rock and roll musician who originally gained fame as the frontwoman for New Wave band Blondie, which originated in the mid 1970s and achieved commercial success in the late 1970s and early 1980s. ...

Chic split in 1983 after personal and artistic differences between Edwards and Rodgers.

Edwards released a solo album the same year, and in 1985 he was instrumental in the formation of the supergroup Power Station. The band's first album was produced by Edwards and featured Chic drummer Tony Thompson, and Duran Duran members John and Andy Taylor as well as singer Robert Palmer. Edwards followed this by producing Robert Palmer's hit album Riptide. He continued to produce artists throughout the 1980s and 90s. Among others, he worked with Diana Ross, Rod Stewart, Air Supply, ABC and Duran Duran. Supergroup can mean: In physics, see Supergroup (physics). ... Oil power plant in Iraq Coal power plant in China A power station (also power plant) is a facility for the generation of electric power. ... Tony Thompson (November 15, 1954 – November 12, 2003) was a session drummer with a long list of studio credits. ... At the height of their fame, Duran Duran (The Fab Five) were featured on the cover of the February 1984 issue of Rolling Stone magazine. ... Taylors first solo recording was a hit single for the 9½ Weeks movie soundtrack. ... Andy Taylor (born 16 February 1961) is a British pop singer who plays guitar in the band Duran Duran. ... The Riptide album was Palmers best selling work. ... Riptide is one of the famous albums by Robert Palmer. ... The 1980s in its most obvious sense refers to the decade between 1980 and 1989. ... The 1990s refers to the years 1990 to 1999; the last decade of the 20th Century. ... Rod Stewart - before he was a Celtic fan. ... Air Supply The cover of Air Supplys Lost in Love album, 1980 Air Supply are a duo of pop musicians, consisting of English keyboardist/vocalist Graham Russell and main lead vocalist Australian Russell Hitchcock, who had a succession of soft-rock ballad hits throughout the English-speaking world through... ABC were an English pop band of the 1980s, who scored a total of 10 top 40 hit singles between 1981 and 1990. ...

Edwards teamed up with Nile Rodgers again for the Chic reunion in the early 1990s and released the album CHIC-ism in 1992. 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday. ...

In 1996 Nile Rodgers was named JT Superproducer of the Year in Japan, and was invited to perform there with Chic in April of that year. Just before the concert at the Budokan Arena in Tokyo, Edwards fell ill, but despite Rodgers' insistence he refused to cancel the gig. He managed to perform but had to be helped at times. After the concert he retired to his hotel room where he was later found dead by Rodgers. The cause of death was ruled to be pneumonia. 1996 (MCMXCVI) is a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ... Long a symbol of Tokyo, the Nijubashi Bridge at the Kokyo Imperial Palace. ... Pneumonia is an illness in which the small, air-filled sacs in the lungs (alveoli) responsible for absorbing oxygen from the atmosphere become inflamed and flooded with fluid. ...

Influence

Bernard Edwards is considered one of the most important bass players of the 20th century. His bass line from Chic hit "Good Times" has become one of the most copied pieces of music in history, and had a huge influence on musicians of all genres when released. (19th century - 20th century - 21st century - more centuries) Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s As a means of recording the passage of time, the 20th century was that century which lasted from 1901–2000 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar (1900–1999 in the... A genre is a division of a particular form of art according to criteria particular to that form. ...

The bass line was used without credit or royalty for the first rap hit in history, Sugarhill Gang's "Rappers Delight" in 1979. The following twenty-odd years has seen it sampled inumerable times by artists of the most diverse genres, from Rap to Punk and Techno to Pop. Duran Duran bassist John Taylor often played the song in homage during his solo performances, and cited Edwards as his primary influence. The Sugarhill Gang is an American hip hop group, known mostly for one hit, Rappers Delight, the first hip hop single to become a Top 40 hit. ... This page refers to the year 1979. ... Hip hop music is a style of popular music. ... Punk rock is an anti-establishment music movement beginning around 1976 (although precursors can be found several years earlier), exemplified and popularised by The Ramones, the Sex Pistols, The Clash and The Damned. ... Techno- is a prefix relating to technology. ... Pop music, in popular and contemporary parlance, is a subgenre of popular music. ...

On September 19, 2005 Edwards was honored for his outstanding achievement as a producer, when he was inducted into the "Dance Music Hall Of Fame" at a ceremony held in New York City.

Selected Discography

Chic

• Chic (1977)
• C'est Chic (1978)
• Risqué (1979)
• Real People (1980)
• Take It Off (1981)
• Tongue in Chic (1982)
• Believer (1983)
• The Best of Chic, Vol 1 (1991)
• Chic-ism (1992)
• The Best of Chic, Vol 2 (1992)
• Live at the Budokan (1999)

Solo

• Glad To Be Here (1983)

Production

• Norma Jean, Norma Jean (1978)
• We Are Family, Sister Sledge (1979)
• King Of The World, Sheila & B. Devotion (1980)
• Love Somebody Today, Sister Sledge (1980)
• Diana, Diana Ross (1980)
• I Love My Lady, Johnny Mathis (1981) UNRELEASED
• Koo Koo, Debbie Harry (1981)
• unknown title, Fonzi Thornton (1982) UNRELEASED
• Swept Away, Diana Ross (1984)
• The Power Station 33 1/3, The Power Station (1985)
• "A View To A Kill" (single), Duran Duran (1985)
• Heat, Nona Hendryx (1985)
• Riptide, Robert Palmer (1985)
• Cocker, Joe Cocker (1986)
• Color In Your Life, Missing Persons (1986)
• Hearts In Motion, Air Supply (1986)
• Alphabet City, ABC (1987)
• If, Hollywood Beyond (1987)
• Contact, Platinum Blond (1987)
• Jody Watley, Jody Watley (1987)
• Out Of Order, Rod Stewart (1988)
• Under The One Sky, Distance (1989)
• YUI Orta, Ian Hunter/The Hunter Ronson Band (1990)
• Break The Silence, The Triplets (1990)
• Vagabond Heart, Rod Stewart (1991)
• Living In Fear, The Power Station (1996)

External links

• ChicTribute.com