1970s
After a stint in New York City, Vannelli and his brothers went to Los Angeles, California in a financially distraught and desperate state to wait outside trumpeter Herb Alpert's locked gate for an audition. Alpert was Vannelli's last hope prior to heading back to Montreal the next day. Alpert liked what he heard and two days later signed Vannelli with A&M Records, releasing his first album in 1973. Vannelli's brother, Joe, served as arranger and keyboardist for most of his recording career. At a time when polyphonic synthesizers were non-existent, Joe overdubbed multiple parts to create a texture of sound that was progressive for the early 1970s.
In 1974, "People Gotta Move" made it to No. 22 on the Billboard Top 100. On 15 February 1975, Vannelli became the second Caucasian performer to appear on Soul Train (Dennis Coffey appeared on 8 January 1972). This was his television debut. With his records climbing the charts, Vannelli toured as the opening act for Stevie Wonder. In 1978, the song "I Just Wanna Stop" earned Vannelli an American Grammy Award nomination and was a number No. 1 single in Canada (#4 in United States). Vannelli's album "Brother To Brother" was certified platinum in early 1979. Vannelli won Canada's Juno Award for Best Male Artist. Vannelli also won Juno Awards in 1976 and 1979. Vannelli's additional recordings of the 1970s include: "Crazy Life," "Powerful People," "Storm at Sunup," "The Gist of the Gemini" and "A Pauper in Paradise".
Read more about this topic: Gino Vannelli