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Aaron Neville music biography continued...

Charles, and Art had made a name for themselves in New Orleans's rhythm and blues circles by the mid-1950s. After serving a prison sentence for car theft, Neville promptly landed a solo recording contract and had his first chart success with "Over You," which went to the Number 21 spot on the rhythm and blues charts for Minit Records. Throughout the 1960s Neville recorded intermittently for many labels, including Instant, Parlo, Bell, and Safari. In 1966 Parlo released the ballad "Tell It Like It Is," which became a national Number 1 rhythm and blues hit and a national Number 2 pop hit. Due to an exploitative contract, Neville never received any royalties from the project, and struggled with drug addiction and through a series of day jobs over the next several years. In 1975 all four Neville brothers reunited and began performing whole sets as the Neville Brothers, singing four-part harmonies and opening for popular acts like Huey Lewis and the News and the Rolling Stones. Aaron Neville was also undergoing a personal transformation, replacing his dependence on drugs with a deep religious faith. In the late 1980s he worked with Linda Ronstadt on three duets-- "Don't Know Much", "All My Life", and "When Something Is Wrong with My Baby" of which the first two reached number one on the Adult Contemporary charts. In 1991, Neville followed with "Everybody Plays the Fool," a cover of the Main Ingredient's classic soul tune, and it, too reached number one on the charts. Finally, after years of false starts and setbacks, Neville had achieved the success he had always deserved.



Neville signed to SonyBMG's new Burgundy Records label in late 2005 and recorded an album of great classic soul songs by Otis Redding, Marvin Gaye, Curtis Mayfield, Sam Cooke and others for Bring It on Home...The Soul Classics, released in September 2006. He continues to record and perform at high profile gigs, including professional sporting events and Hurricane Katrina relief. (Neville's New Orleans home was destroyed by the hurricane.) And Neville continues to show fans that their faith in him was not misplaced.