Lillo Thomas

Lillo Thomas
Thomas in 1984
Background information
Born1961 (age 62–63)
Brooklyn, New York, U.S.[1]
GenresSoul
OccupationSinger
InstrumentVocals
Years active1977–present
LabelsCapitol

Lillo Thomas (born 1961)[2] is an American soul musician. He reached the peak of his success as a recording artist in the 1980s. His most famous songs include "Sexy Girl" and "I'm in Love."

Career

Early in his life, Thomas was a competitive sprint runner. He retired from athletics in 1984 after a car accident in Brazil.[1][2]

Thomas then quickly established his musical career.[1] His first album, released in 1983 on Capitol Records, charted at #23 on the R&B Albums record charts.[3] Let Me Be Yours also launched his first solo hit, "(You're A) Good Girl", which peaked at #22 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks. Also a successful session vocalist, he worked with Evelyn "Champagne" King, Kashif, James Ingram, and George Benson, but developed a special relationship with Melba Moore.[1][4] He wrote the song "Mind Up Tonight" for her and joined her on tour in 1984 as her protégé. That same year, he released his second solo album, "All of You", which climbed to #9 on the R&B Albums chart and also reached #186 on the Billboard 200.[5]

In 1985, Thomas toured with comedian Eddie Murphy, but 1987 was the pinnacle of success for his music career when his album Lillo released to become #10 on the R&B Albums chart and launched his most successful single, "I'm in Love."[1] The song reached #2 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks chart. Two other singles charted, with "Downtown" reaching #11 and "Sexy Girl" at #9 on the same chart.[6]

Thomas returned to recording with a brand new single in 1993. "Out There Doing Wrong", was written, arranged and produced by Thomas and released on THG Music.[citation needed]

In 2010, he released his fourth album, Come and Get It.[1] In 2012, Thomas released his "Greatest Hits" album on the Fitingo Music Label. In 2024, Thomas provided vocals on the title track of Stetsasonic's album Here We Go Again.[7]

Thomas lives in Westchester with his wife Kim, a VP in the Beauty industry. He is also an accomplished painter.[2]

Discography

Albums

Year Album Label Peak chart positions
US R&B
[8]
US 200
[9]
UK
[10]
1983 Let Me Be Yours Capitol Records 23
1984 All of You 9 186
1987 Lillo 10 43
2001 The Very Best of Lillo Thomas The Finest Records
2010 Come and Get It Fitingo Music
2012 Greatest Hits
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory

Singles

Year Single Label Peak chart positions
US R&B
[11]
US Hot 100
[11]
US Dance
[11]
UK
[10]
1983 "You're A (Good Girl)" Capitol Records 22
"Who Do You Think You Are?" 68
"I Love It"
"Hot Love"
"Just My Imagination (Running Away with Me)" 79
1984 "Your Love's Got a Hold on Me" 11 102
"(Can't Take Half) All of You" (with Melba Moore) 28
"My Girl"
"Settle Down" 60 47 66
1987 "Sexy Girl" 9 23
"I'm in Love" 2 54
"Downtown" 11 43 77
"Wanna Make Love (All Night Long)" 7
1993 "Out There Doing Wrong" THG Music
2010 "Rubbing Your Body" Fitingo Music
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f Wynn, Ron. "Biography of Lillo Thomas". AllMusic. Retrieved February 8, 2009.
  2. ^ a b c "Lillo Thomas Page". Soulwalking.co.uk. Retrieved April 1, 2007.
  3. ^ Lyte, Craig. Let Me Be Yours (1983): Album review at AllMusic. Retrieved February 2, 2014.
  4. ^ Johnson Publishing Company (December 3, 1984). Jet. Johnson Publishing Company. p. 64. ISSN 0021-5996.
  5. ^ All of You (1984) at AllMusic. Retrieved February 2, 2014.
  6. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles, 1942-2004. University of California: Record Research Incorporated. p. 576. ISBN 9780898201604.
  7. ^ "Here We Go Again by Stetsasonic". bandcamp.com. Bandcamp Ventures LLC. Retrieved December 6, 2024.
  8. ^ Whitburn, Joel (1999). Top R&B Albums, 1965-1998 (Illustrated ed.). Record Research. ISBN 9780898201345.
  9. ^ "Lillo Thomas - Awards". AllMusic. Archived from the original on June 6, 2012. Retrieved January 16, 2022.
  10. ^ a b "LILLO THOMAS - full Official Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 20, 2019.
  11. ^ a b c "Lillo Thomas Top Songs / Chart Singles Discography". Music VF. Retrieved January 1, 2021.