Leon Ware
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Leon Ware:
Soul's Ultimate Sensualist
By David Chiu
If Leon Ware had his wait, sensualism would
be a worldwide religion that all of us would have no inner conflict
with. His reputation as a connoisseur of love and eroticism is
well warranted throughout his long career as a singer, songwriter,
and producer. He has penned lush, romantic songs such as "Body
Heat," "Inside My Love," and "I Wanna Be
Where You Are" for Quincy Jones, Minnie Ripperton, and Michael
Jackson respectively.
But perhaps his greatest contribution to
soul music was co-writing one of Marvin Gaye's biggest hits "I
Want You," as well as producing and writing the album of
the same name. For that alone, Ware will always have a place
in the Soul Music Hall of Fame and be forever linked with the
legendary Gaye.
Ironically, the songs that would appear
on Gaye's album were originally going to be used for Ware's album
called Comfort. When Berry Gordy, the founder of Motown
Records (Ware was signed to the label) heard the tracks, he felt
that Marvin Gaye was better suited for them. Ware had no problem
yielding his work to the Prince of Motown. Simultaneously as
he was producing and working with Gaye, Ware resumed writing
and recording for his own album. The result was Musical Massage,
a sensual erotic musical journey on a par with I Want You.
However, Musical Massage never got the acknowledgement
it deserved and got lost in the shuffle.
Perhaps now the public will give Musical
Massage a chance almost 30 years later since its release.
That record and Gaye's I Want You were both recently reissued
by Motown/Universal with extra bonus tracks recorded during both
recording sessions. These restored albums put into perspective
the magic weaved by Ware: silky grooves, exquisite production,
and velvety vocals by both Gaye and Ware.
Ware hasn't stopped making music (which
he was doing since he was three). He continues to record and
perform live. And he is also passing the soul music torch to
another generation. He had co-wrote "Sumthin' Sumthin' "
for Maxwell's Urban Hang Suite, and also co-wrote the
title track to Keb Mo's album The Door. At a youthful
63, Ware had recently released his latest album Love's Drippin',
offering the same delicious offering of romantic soul. He also
runs a ministry and is penning a song called "Soldier of
Love."
This cheerful, spiritually-minded person
discussed the making behind I Want You and Musical
Massage, while reflecting on his career and views on life
and love.
What are your feelings now about I
Want You and Musical
Massage?
I'm just thrilled that it's getting the
chance to be reissued and reintroduced to this particular generation
who presently really needs to hear some genuine, authentic sexy
music that is sensual without being tacky.
How did I Want You start out from being your own album to being
Marvin's record? What was the chemistry like?
All the songs that were on the I Want
You album were Comfort except for "I Want You."
Berry came in, heard the song, fell in love with it, took it
Marvin, and the rest is history. One evening, me and Marvin got
into a discussion. He listened to something through the wall
and came in and asked what was that. I said, That's my album.
So we spent all night listening to it over and over. Then he
looked at me and said, I'll do this for you if you give me the
whole album.
I'd play the piano and he'd walk in and
sing the melody I'm thinking of on more than one occasion.It
was the most telepathic--it was like being read and reading without
anything being said.I worked with quite a few people over the
last 30 years nothing like Marvin.
Were you unhappy that you had to turn
over the songs that you wrote and recorded to another artist?
We were floored. Marvin's second in my
line of the greatest singers: Nat King Cole, Frank Sinatra, and
Marvin Gaye.
You finally were able to record your
own album Musical Massage but it never got the proper
recognition it deserved.
Looking back the album was really never
released. Motown really wanted me to give that album to Marvin.
I probably would have but I didn't agree on how it was presented
to me. I said Marvin, When I finish this, I want to start working
on my music and I don't want anybody to get in the way. Marvin
even sang on a couple of tracks.
Were you upset with Motown and the result,
although you really didn't want to grab the spotlight?
I respected Motown's position. I can't
say I like it but I respected it though. They definitely wanted
it for Marvin. I could have taken the album to be my platform
for my artistry. The beauty of it again is that the work still
sounds really great.
Someone wrote an article that acknowledged
how little acknowledgment I had. I've been pretty responsible
for that because I intentionally have been a low profile individual.
What were the main ingredients that
made Musical Massage sound so lush?
It's all the things you can think of: spirit,
love, and atmosphere that will hopefully bring people together.
Leon, you are multitalented artist.
What do you prefer doing: singing, writing, or producing?
I am a better writer more than anything.
I love singing and writing as much.
Someone asked me which of my songs is my
favorite, and I looked at her and said, "I'm gonna take
the position that I heard Picasso make in an interview."
A lady asked him which of his paintings did he like, and he opened
his hands and said, "You have to ask which of my fingers
did I like the best."
What do you think of the current crop
of young soul singers like Maxwell and D'Angelo?
Those two singers I can say are really
the torchbearers of this generation from the old generation.,
and done a wonderful job. I feel that Max has a wonderful future
ahead of him and the same goes for D'Angelo.
You have been performing for so long
since your young days as a Motown artist, and you are still doing
this. What keeps you going?
The spirit. I've been performing for years
and I still feel just like that three year-old that got onstage.
There's nothing like the magic that you
have served or you have displayed and shared something with 1
or 100 or 100,000 people as they love it enough to stand up and
say Yeah!
What in your opinion makes I Want
You still hold up after
nearly 30 years?
What we did were from our hearts. They
are still rich and alive and I only hope this particular era
and any era to come will appreciate the spirit and atmosphere
of love in that piece of work. There's a part of me that says
I like the idea of giving a piece of work a new light. [Then]
Art Stewart [I Want You's engineer] said, "There's
a reason why they never accepted a mustache on the Mona Lisa."
It's a masterpiece that retains its richness
throughout all the times. It does not age. It still brings the
same atmosphere as I've been told many times, totally responsible
for making many, many babies.
What's your philosophy on sex and romance?
My religion is sensualism. Sensualism is
what made us. There has been a taboo about sex and sensualism.
However, the messages and the spirit and the platform for all
these love songs now have been validated as being part of my
religion. I will spread this in my music and makes this as honorable
as Catholicism, Buddhism, and all the other isms.
Sex is always good. But sex and love is
magic.
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