Never Too Much is the debut solo studio album by American singer-songwriter Luther Vandross, released on August 12, 1981. It peaked at number 19 on the Billboard 200 (then known as Pop Albums), peaked at number one on the R&B Albums chart, and went double platinum by the RIAA. The album earned Vandross two Grammy Award nominations in 1982—"Best New Artist" and "Best R&B Vocal Performance, Male".
| Never Too Much | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | August 12, 1981 | |||
| Recorded | April–July 1981 | |||
| Studio |
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| Genre | R&B | |||
| Length | 36:50 | |||
| Label | ||||
| Producer |
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| Luther Vandross chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Something Inside So Strong | ||||
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| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |  [1] |
| Chicago Tribune |  [2] |
| Robert Christgau | B+[3] |
| Rolling Stone | [4] |
The album's title track topped the Black Singles chart for two weeks. Vandross's rendition of Dionne Warwick's 1964 "A House Is Not a Home" became one of his signature songs, and received attention for its transformation into an "epic", since its duration was extended to seven minutes.
Track listing
All songs written by Luther Vandross; except "A House Is Not a Home" written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Never Too Much" | 3:50 |
| 2. | "Sugar and Spice (I Found Me a Girl)" | 4:57 |
| 3. | "Don't You Know That?" | 4:01 |
| 4. | "I've Been Working" | 6:35 |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 5. | "She's a Super Lady" | 5:04 |
| 6. | "You Stopped Loving Me" | 5:16 |
| 7. | "A House Is Not a Home" (Dionne Warwick cover) | 7:07 |
Personnel
Adapted from Allmusic[5]
- Luther Vandross – lead vocals, vocal arrangements, rhythm arrangements (1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7), backing vocals (3-6), arrangements (4), song arrangement (7)
- Nat Adderley, Jr. – keyboards (1–7), rhythm arrangements (1, 2, 3, 5, 6), arrangements (4), backing vocals (4, 5)
- Tawatha Agee – backing vocals (1–6)
- Phillip Ballou – backing vocals (3–6)
- Errol "Crusher" Bennett – percussion (1, 4, 5, 7), congas (4)
- Michelle Cobbs – backing vocals (1, 2)
- Cissy Houston – backing vocals (1, 2)
- Anthony Jackson – bass (7)
- Bashiri Johnson – congas (1, 2), percussion (2, 5)
- Billy King – congas (3, 5, 6)
- Brenda King White – backing vocals (1, 2)
- Gary King – arrangements (4)
- Yvonne Lewis – backing vocals (1, 2)
- Steve Love – guitar (3–6)
- Marcus Miller – bass (1–7)
- Leon Pendarvis – string arrangements (6, 7), horn arrangements (7)
- Paul Riser – horn arrangements (2, 5), string arrangements (2, 3, 5)
- Sybil Thomas – backing vocals (1, 2)
- Fonzi Thornton – vocal contractor, backing vocals (4, 5)
- Georg "Jojje" Wadenius – guitar (1, 2, 3, 7)
- Ed Walsh – synthesizer (2, 4)
- Buddy Williams – drums (1–7)
- Norma Jean Wright – backing vocals (4, 5)
Production
- Producer – Luther Vandross
- Executive Producer – Larkin Arnold
- Production Coordination – Sephra Herman
- Recorded and Mixed by Michael H. Brauer
- Engineer – Carl Beatty
- Assistant Engineers – Lincoln Clapp, Andy Hoffman, Nicky Kalliongos, Gregg Mann and Don Wershba.
- Mastered by Greg Calbi at Sterling Sound (New York, NY).
- Art Direction – Karen Katz
- Photography – William Coupon
- Wardrobe – Hutaff Lennon
- Management – David M. Franklin
Charts
| Chart (1981) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Billboard 200[6] | 19 |
| US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[7] | 1 |
| Chart (1987) | Peak position |
| UK Albums (OCC)[8] | 41 |
Certifications
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United States (RIAA)[9] | 2× Platinum | 2,000,000^ |
|
* Sales figures based on certification alone. | ||
See also
Notes
- ^ Never Too Much at AllMusic
- ^ Kot, Greg (1993-10-03). "The Best Of Vandross On Record". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2013-04-03.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Christgau, Robert. "CG: Luther Vandross". RobertChristgau.com. Retrieved 2013-04-03.
- ^ [1]
- ^ "Never Too Much" personnel at allmusic
- ^ "Luther Vandross Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved August 21, 2018.
- ^ "Luther Vandross Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved August 21, 2018.
- ^ "Luther Vandross | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved August 21, 2018.
- ^ "American album certifications – Luther Vandross – Never Too Much". Recording Industry Association of America.
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