Felice Taylor (born Florain Corella Flanagan, January 29,
1944 – June 12, 2017) was an American soul and pop singer, best known for her
recordings in the late 1960s.
Born in Richmond, California, United States, Taylor began
singing with her sisters Norma and Darlene Flanagan in a trio, The Sweets, who only recorded one single, "The Richest Girl", for the Valiant label in
1965.
Taylor's first solo recording in 1966, "Think About
Me" on the Groovy label, was credited to Florain Taylor. Her greatest
success came after signing for Bob Keane's Mustang label, a subsidiary of
Bronco Records. There she was teamed with the songwriters and record producers,
Barry White and Paul Politi, who co-wrote "It
May Be Winter Outside (But
in My Heart It's Spring)", a minor hit reaching No. 42 on the Billboard
Hot 100 and No. 44 on the R&B chart in early 1967, and its follow-up
"I'm Under the Influence of Love". A third single, "I Feel Love
Comin' On", also written and produced by White and Politi was not released
in the US, but reached No. 11 in the UK Singles Chart, when leased to President
Records later in 1967.
She visited the UK and appeared at the Saville
Theatre in London in the series of Sunday evening concerts put on by Brian
Epstein.
After leaving Bronco, Taylor recorded for Kent Records, and
later in the UK with Eddy Grant and Derv Gordon of the Equals. In 1973, White's
protégées Love Unlimited recorded new versions of "It May Be Winter
Outside" and "Under the Influence of Love" and Barry White
recorded "I Feel Love Comin' On" on The Love Unlimited Orchestra's
top ten album Rhapsody in White.
Sing Me A Love Song however, is one that got away. Penned by Richie Adams and Irwin Levine, it was recorded but never released until much later. Taylor herself seems not to have recorded after the early 1970s.
Sing Me A Love Song however, is one that got away. Penned by Richie Adams and Irwin Levine, it was recorded but never released until much later. Taylor herself seems not to have recorded after the early 1970s.
She was married to Johnny B Taylor and had four children.
She died in June 2017, aged 73. She was interred at the
Riverside National Cemetery in Riverside, California. (Edited mainly from Wikipedia)
