LUTHER VANDROSS REMEMBERED
'The Complete Soul Man,' A Rare December 1986 Interview
In keeping with the launch on June 30th of my ‘Soul Music Archive’ of rare, out-of-print interviews with many of the musical legends I have been joyfully grateful to have met over the decades, it is fitting to present this exclusive article I penned in December 1986 on the brilliant, multi-talented Luther Vandross, in particular since July 1st is the 20th anniversary of his passing in 2005.
My first face-to-face encounter with Luther was in 1976 when I conducted an interview with him at the offices of Atlantic Records in midtown Manhattan. The leader and founder of “Luther,” his self-named quintet, the primary subject was the group’s debut LP for Cotillion Records. The article that came out as a result will be available at ‘The Soul Music Archive’ as I continue to go through the hundreds of interviews I plan to share on Substack.
But a few weeks after that first meeting with Luther, I was heading towards my modest studio apartment on West 56th Street.
“Hi! David?’
‘Yes…”
“It’s Luther. We did an interview a week or so ago at Atlantic. What are you doing on my street?” he grinned.
Me: “I live here…”
Luther: “Me too! So we’re neighbors?,” as he points towards a multi-storey apartment building right next to mine that dwarfs my six-floor abode. “Let’s keep in touch!”
That synchro-destiny occurrence in 1976 in West 56th Street, around the corner from Media Sound recording studios on West 57th Street (where so many of Luther’s sessions would take place as a solo artist, then with Aretha and with Dionne) set the stage for an enduring association that continued through to 2003 when I spoke with him for the official J Records’ bio for what would be his final album, “Dance With My Father.”
So many stories, memories and ‘moments’ (like me always losing when we played the card game gin rummy; the time he played me his first mix of “A House Is Not A Home,” shortly after recording it for his breakthrough debut solo LP, “Never Too Much.”)
I interviewed Luther for virtually every one of his albums and can certainly attest to and am immensely proud of having been a direct conduit to introducing him ‘in print’ to British soul music audiences through my work with “Blues & Soul” magazine.
Remembering Luther Vandross for his wit, creative genius and craftsmanship and for setting the standard for a whole generation of vocalists.
I salute his memory with this reprint, appropriately entitled “The Complete Soul Man”
(P)1986, © 2025, David Nathan/Blue Butterfly Entertainment Ltd. (UK), All Rights Reserved
Like the first “Soul Music Archive” post, this one’s free to all subscribers. The last of the first three will also be free to all subscribers; many of the future posts in the archive will be available only to paid subscribers (for just $5 a month) so please consider upgrading (if you haven’t already)!
With soulful appreciation always,
David N