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George McCrae compilation album cover

George McCrae (born 19 October 1944 at West Palm Beach, Florida) is a soul singer most famous for his 1974 hit "Rock Your Baby".

McCrae formed his own singing group, the Jivin' Jets, before joining the U.S. Navy in 1963. Four years later, he reformed the group, with his wife Gwen joining the line-up, but soon afterwards they decided to work as a duo, recording for Henry Stone's Alston record label. Gwen then won a solo contract, with George acting as her manager as well as doing some singing on sessions and in clubs.

He was about to return to college to study law enforcement when Richard Finch & Harry Wayne Casey of KC and the Sunshine Band invited him to sing the lyrics for a song that they had recorded for the band but couldn't reach the high notes that were required for the song. When he sang the song and hit the high-pitch notes, Finch & Casey knew it was going to be a big hit for George. So the boy's offered it to him and the rest is history. It suited his high-pitched voice to the extent that the song, Rock Your Baby, became one of the first hits of the disco era in 1974, selling an estimated eleven million copies worldwide, topping the charts in the U.S., UK, and over 80 other countries.

The song was so successful that Rolling Stone Magazine voted it the #1 song of the year, back in 74'. George received a Grammy nomination for Best Male R&B Vocalist the following year.

Two further single releases, I Can't Leave You Alone and I Get Lifted also reached the UK Singles Chart Top 10, but he had much less success with follow-ups in the U.S. He continued to record with and manage his wife until their divorce, and also continued to record and tour through the 1980s in his own right, particularly in Europe where he remained popular. He now lives in The Netherlands.

• Rock Your Baby - 1974
• George McCrae - 1975
• Together Again - 1975
• Diamond Touch - 1976
• We Did It - 1979
• One Step Closer - 1984
• Love's Been Good To Me - 1985
• I Feel Love For You - 1987
• Diamond Collection - 1991
• Golden Classics - 1993
• Music Mirror - 1993
• With All My Heart - 1994
• Romance - 1996
• Do Something - 1999

• Home page
• George McCrae at All Music Guide
• 1974 clip of "Rock Your Baby"

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