Alexander O'Neal
b. 14 November 1954, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA. O'Neal was one of the best-known soul crooners of the late '80s. In 1978, he joined Flyte Tyme with future producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. The group became the backing band for Prince, although O'Neal was soon dismissed for insubordination. During the early '80s he began a solo career as a vocalist, making his first recordings with Jam and Lewis producing in 1984. The resulting album was issued by the local Tabu label, and contained R&B hits with A Broken Heart Could Mend, Innocent (a duet with Cherelle) and If You Were Here Tonight. The latter reached the British Top 20 in 1986, after Cherelle's Saturday Love (which featured O'Neal) had been an even bigger success there. His career was interrupted by treatment for drug and alcohol addiction, but O'Neal broke through to the mainstream US audience 1987-88 with his second album and the singles Fake and Never Knew Love Like This, another collaboration with Cherelle. He remained very popular in the UK with live performances (including a Prince's Trust concert) and a BBC television special. When, in 1991, he released his first album of new material for three years, it went straight into the UK Top 10. Jam and Lewis were again the producers.