"Love TKO" Teddy Pendergrass Signed AMERICAN BANDSTAND Card Todd Mueller COA

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"Love TKO" Teddy Pendergrass Hand Signed AMERICAN BANDSTAND Trading Card.
This item is authenticated By Todd Mueller Autographs and comes with their certificate of authenticity.
ES-6025E
Theodore DeReese Pendergrass
(March 26, 1950 – January 13, 2010) was an American singer. Born and raised in
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
, he initially rose to musical fame as the lead singer of
Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes
. After leaving the group in 1976, Pendergrass launched a successful solo career under the
Philadelphia International
label, releasing five consecutive platinum albums (a record at the time for an African-American R&B artist). Pendergrass's career was suspended after a March 1982 car crash left him paralyzed from the shoulders down. Pendergrass continued his successful solo career until announcing his retirement in 2007. Pendergrass died from respiratory failure in January 2010. He was born Theodore DeReese Pendergrass on Sunday, March 26, 1950, in
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
, United States. He was the only child of Jesse and Ida Geraldine (née Epps) Pendergrass. When Pendergrass was very young, his father left the family. As he grew older, his mother promised him that she would find his father so that they could meet. She fulfilled that promise, and Teddy met his father when he was 11 years old. Not long after, Jesse was stabbed to death on June 13, 1962, during an altercation with another man. He was 47 years of age. Pendergrass grew up in the impoverished section of
North Philadelphia
and often sang at church. He dreamed of being a pastor and got his wish when, at age 10, he was ordained a minister (according to author Robert Ewell Greene). Pendergrass also took up drums during this time and was a junior deacon of his church. He attended
Thomas Edison High School for Boys
in North Philadelphia. He sang with the Edison Mastersingers. He dropped out in the 11th grade to enter the music business, recording his first song "Angel with Muddy Feet". The recording, however, was not a commercial success. Pendergrass played drums for several local Philadelphia bands, eventually becoming the drummer of The Cadillacs (not the famed Harlem-based group of the same name). In 1970, he was spotted by the
The Blue Notes'
founder, Harold Melvin (1939–1997), who convinced Pendergrass to play drums in the group. However, during a performance, Pendergrass began singing along, and Melvin, impressed by his vocals, made him the lead singer. Before Pendergrass joined the group, the Blue Notes had struggled to find success. This all changed when they landed a recording deal with
Philadelphia International Records
in 1971, thus beginning Pendergrass's successful collaboration with label founders
Kenny Gamble
and
Leon Huff
. In 1972, Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes released their first single, a slow, solemn ballad entitled "I Miss You". The song was originally written for
The Dells
, but the group passed on it. Noting how Pendergrass sounded like Dells lead singer Marvin Junior, Kenny Gamble decided to build the song with Pendergrass, who was only 21 at the time of the recording. Pendergrass sings much of the song in a raspy
baritone
voice that would become his trademark. The song also featured Blue Notes member Lloyd Parks singing falsetto in the background and spotlighted Harold Melvin adding in a
rap
near the end of the song as Pendergrass kept singing, feigning tears. The song, one of Gamble and Huff's most creative productions, became a major rhythm and blues hit and put the Blue Notes on the map. The group's follow-up single, "
If You Don't Know Me by Now
", brought the group to the mainstream with the song reaching the top 10 of the
Billboard
Hot 100
, while also reaching number one on the soul no. 1 singles chart. Like "I Miss You" before it, the song was originally intended for a different artist, fellow Philadelphian native
Patti LaBelle
and her group
Labelle
but the group could not record it due to scheduling conflicts. Pendergrass and LaBelle developed a close friendship that would last until Pendergrass's death.The group rode to fame with several more releases over the years including "
The Love I Lost
", a song that predated the upcoming
disco
music scene, the ballad "
Hope That We Can Be Together Soon
", and socially conscious singles "
Wake Up Everybody
" and "
Bad Luck
". One of the group's notable singles was their original version of the
Philly soul
classic "
Don't Leave Me This Way
", which turned into a disco smash when
Motown
artist
Thelma Houston
released her version in 1976. By 1975, Pendergrass and Harold Melvin were at odds, mainly over financial issues and personality conflicts. Despite the fact that Pendergrass sang most of the group's songs, Melvin was controlling the group's finances. At one point, Pendergrass wanted the group to be renamed "Teddy Pendergrass and the Blue Notes" because fans kept mistaking him for Melvin.
[
Pendergrass left the group in 1975, and the Blue Notes struggled with his replacements. They eventually left Philadelphia International and toiled in relative obscurity, until Melvin's death in 1997. As of 2014, a version of the group still tours the old school circuit, performing as Harold Melvin's Blue Notes.