From:   "Dik de Heer" 
Date:  Wed Mar 5, 2003  4:07 pm
Subject:  Born To Be With You : Sylvia Vanderpool
 
SYLVIA VANDERPOOL

Born 6 March 1936, New York CIty, New York
A.k.a. Sylvia and Sylvia Robinson

Sylvia Vanderpool made her recording debut while a 14-year-old student 
at Washington Irving High School. Discovered by a talent scout for Columbia
Records, she recorded blues with trumpeter Hot Lips Page. Later she cut
a few records as Little Sylvia for Savoy. While recording for the Cat label, 
she met guitarist Mickey Baker who taught her how to play guitar. They first
recorded together for the small Rainbow label in 1955. The next year they
were signed to RCA's Groove subsidiary by Bob Rolontz, who produced
"Love Is Strange" in October 1956. The record stayed at # 1 R&B for two 
weeks and went to # 11 pop in early 1957. Other Mickey & Sylvia chart 
entries were the two-sided hit "There Ought to Be a Law" (# 8) b/w "Dearest"
from spring 1957 and "Baby You're So Fine" from fall 1961. The duo can 
also be heard on Ike & Tina Turner's "It's Gonna Work Out Fine" (1961).
In 1962, Mickey Baker relocated to Paris and the couple split up.

In 1964, Sylvia married Joe Robinson. The Robinsons started their label,
All Platinum Records, in Englewood, NJ, in 1968, soon followed by a second
label, Vibration Records. It was on Vibration that mrs. Robinson (now simply
billed as Sylvia) had the second # 1 R&B hit of her career, with "Pillow Talk"
(1973). The song also went to # 3 on Billboard's pop charts and was released
on London (HLU 10415) in the UK, where it was a # 14 hit. Several smaller
hits (in the US) on Vibration followed, until 1978.
Through the All Platinum label, Sylvia and her husband were instrumental in
the careers of the Moments (she produced and co-wrote their # 1 R&B single
"Love on a Two Way Street", 1970) and several other artists, including Donnie 
Elbert, Retta Young, the Whatnauts, Brother to Brother, Linda Lewis, Shirley
and Company (featuring Shirley Goodman, formerly of Shirley and Lee) and 
the Rimshots. During the '80s, the couple helped launch rap through their 
Sugarhill Records including Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five and 
the influential "Rappers Delight" by the Sugarhill Gang, the first rap record 
to make the Hot 100.

Recommended listening:
Mickey and Sylvia, Love Is Strange (Bear Family BCD 15438). A two-CD set,
with 60 tracks from the Rainbow, Groove, Vik and RCA labels.