Howard Hewett
Howard Hewett was born in 1955 in Akron, Ohio. He moved to Los Angeles, California when he reached his teens and worked as a dancer on Soul Train. Alongside fellow Soul Train dancers Jody Watley and Jeffrey Daniel, Hewett left the program to start the group Shalamar.
Hewett was the lead singer of Shalamar from 1979 until 1985. During that time, the group scored hits with 'Second Time Around,' 'A Night To Remember' and 'Dancing in the Sheets.' The group broke up in the mid 1980s and Hewett started a solo career.
Signing with Elektra Records, Hewett debuted in 1986 with I Commit To Love. The album scored hits with 'I'm For Real' which reached #2 on the R&B charts and 'Stay' which reached #8.
1988 saw Hewett's second solo release with the album Forever & Ever. The album scored three top 20 R&B hits with 'Strange Relationships,' 'Once, Twice, Three Times' and 'I Commit To Love' all doing well on the charts. Despite the solid charting performance of Hewett's first two albums, he still failed to reap the commercial success warranted for his critical acclaim.
Hewett's self-titled album was released in 1990 and scored several R&B hits. 'Show Me' reached #2 on the R&B charts and 'If I Could Only Have That Day Back' reached #14.
After three successful albums, Hewett's popularity waned with his latter released. 1992's Allegiance scored only one minor hit with 'Save Your Sex For Me' which was underwhelming compared to past efforts. While 1995's, It's Time, improved upon Allegiance's shortcomings, it was still well off of Hewett's best work.
Following the album, Hewett put his solo career on hold and instead, did guest vocals for jazz musicians. In 2001, he returned with a gospel effort, The Journey. Hewett recently released a new single, 'Enough' and is rumored to be working on a new album.