Lionel Cartwright | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Lionel Burke Cartwright[1] |
| Born | (1960-02-10)February 10, 1960 (age 65) Gallipolis, Ohio, U.S. |
| Origin | Glen Dale, West Virginia, U.S. |
| Genres | Country |
| Occupations |
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| Instruments |
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| Years active | 1988–present |
| Labels | MCA |
Lionel Burke Cartwright (born February 10, 1960) is an Americancountry music artist. Between 1988 and 1992, Cartwright charted twelve singles on theBillboardHot Country Singles & Tracks charts, including aNo. 1 single in 1991's "Leap of Faith". He also charted in the Top 10 on the same chart with "Give Me His Last Chance", "I Watched It All (On My Radio)" and "My Heart is Set on You". Cartwright has also released three studio albums, all onMCA Records.
Cartwright was born inGallipolis, Ohio, but was raised inGlen Dale, West Virginia. Cartwright was interested in music from an early age. He first took piano lessons as a child, before going on to master guitar and eight other instruments.[2] Lionel first performed publicly at age ten in community gatherings.[3] He also went on to serve as performer, arranger and musical director onThe Nashville Network's musicalsitcomsI 40 Paradise andPickin' at the Paradise.[3]
Later on, Cartwright moved toNashville, Tennessee, and worked as a demo singer.[4] He was eventually spotted byTony Brown, a producer atMCA Records, while performing inKnoxville, Tennessee. Brown thought that Cartwright needed more experience before being signed to a record deal, and by 1986, Cartwright was signed to MCA.[3]
Cartwright'sself-titled debut album was released in 1989 under the production ofTony Brown. Lead-off single "You're Gonna Make Her Mine" charted at No. 45 on the country charts, followed by three straight Top 20 hits: "Like Father, Like Son" at No. 14, "Give Me His Last Chance" at No. 3 and "In My Eyes" at No. 12.[3] Cartwright wrote nine of the album's ten songs, and playedguitar,fiddle,piano andmandolin on it.[5]
In 1990, Lionel received a nomination forTop New Male Vocalist of the Year by theAcademy of Country Music Awards, alongsideClint Black andGarth Brooks, losing to Black.[6]
His next album,I Watched It on the Radio, followed in 1990. It was led off by the No. 8 "I Watched It All (On My Radio)", which he co-wrote withDon Schlitz. After it came the No. 7 "My Heart Is Set on You" and No. 31 "Say It's Not True". The album was also his highest peak onTop Country Albums, at No. 21. Brown produced this album as well.
Chasin' the Sun was the title of his third and final MCA release, which was issued in 1991. Unlike with his first two albums, Cartwright worked with several producers and studio musicians. Although the album produced his only No. 1 country hit in its lead-off single "Leap of Faith", the other two singles were not as successful: "What Kind of Fool" reached No. 24 and "Family Tree" missed the Top 40, with a No. 62 peak. After the latter, he charted two more singles ("Be My Angel" and "Standing on the Promises") which were never included on an album, and left MCA in 1992. He wrote "If That's What You Call Love" onKathy Mattea's 1997 albumLove Travels,[7] a song which also featured him on piano and background vocals.[8]
Since exiting MCA, Cartwright has composed themes for many television series, and continues to composed cues and underscores for various shows.
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | |
|---|---|---|---|
| US Country | US | ||
| Lionel Cartwright[9] |
| 44 | — |
| I Watched It on the Radio |
| 21 | — |
| Chasin' the Sun |
| 27 | 170 |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | |||
| Year | Single | Peak chart positions | Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Country [10] | CAN Country [11] | |||
| 1988 | "You're Gonna Make Her Mine" | 45 | — | Lionel Cartwright |
| 1989 | "Like Father Like Son" | 14 | 21 | |
| "Give Me His Last Chance" | 3 | 7 | ||
| "In My Eyes" | 12 | 6 | ||
| 1990 | "I Watched It All (On My Radio)" | 8 | 14 | I Watched It on the Radio |
| "My Heart Is Set on You" | 7 | 6 | ||
| 1991 | "Say It's Not True" | 31 | 29 | |
| "Leap of Faith" | 1 | 3 | Chasin' the Sun | |
| "What Kind of Fool" | 24 | 19 | ||
| 1992 | "Family Tree" | 62 | 90 | |
| "Be My Angel" | 63 | 56 | The Real Story[12](unreleased) | |
| "Standing on the Promises" | 50 | 89 | ||
| 2013 | "Free Me from Myself" | — | — | — |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | ||||
| Year | Video | Director |
|---|---|---|
| 1989 | "Give Me His Last Chance" | Stephen Buck[13] |
| 1990 | "I Watched It All (On My Radio)" | John Lloyd Miller |
| "Say It's Not True"[14] | ||
| 1991 | "Leap of Faith" | |
| 1992 | "Family Tree" | — |
| "Be My Angel" | John Lloyd Miller | |
| 2013 | "Free Me from Myself" | David Moses Perez |
| Year | Organization | Award | Nominee/Work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | Academy of Country Music Awards | Top New Male Vocalist | Lionel Cartwright | Nominated |
{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link){{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)| International | |
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