Charlene

Charlene Marilynn Oliver (née D'Angelo; born June 1, 1950), better known by the artist mononym Charlene, is an American easy-listening and R&B singer famous for the song "I've Never Been to Me", which, after its unsuccessful 1977 debut release, became a worldwide hit upon a re-release in 1982 and has remained an enduring adult contemporary music staple. Charlene is also a songwriter, record producer, and author.

Early career Charlene Marilynn D'Angelo was born June 1, 1950, in Hollywood, California. As an infant, she battled meningitis. She married at age 16, dropped out of high school and soon became a young mother.

Her musical career began as a backup singer for Petula Clark at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas.

After an impromptu audition for Berry Gordy in 1973, she signed with Motown and, using the moniker "Charlene Duncan" (her married name), released at age 23 two unsuccessful singles: "Relove/Give It One More Try" (M 1262) in July 1973 and in January 1974 a cover of "All That Love Went to Waste" (M 1285) from the film A Touch of Class.

Charlene sought to find her niche at Motown by writing her own songs, doing demos for other artists (including Michael Jackson's "One Day in Your Life"), and working with various producers and writers before finally being teamed up with Ron Miller.

Charlene and Songs of Love When Charlene's self-titled debut album (P6 10015S1) was released in November 1976 on Motown's Prodigal label, her artist name was shortened to Charlene and appeared as such on the cover, but confusingly the album still had "Charlene Duncan" printed on the spine. In March 1977, the first single, "It Ain't Easy Comin' Down" (P 0632F), went to #97 on the Hot 100 and #23 on AC.

In May 1977, an album entitled Songs of Love (Prodigal, P610018S1) (with cover artwork by Patrick Nagel) was issued. It was a repackaged version of Charlene with "Freddie" (an apparent tribute to Freddie Prinze, who had died that year) replacing "Shake a Hand" and the songs re-sequenced. Also, there is no spoken bridge in "I've Never Been to Me". "Freddie" was released as a single (P 0633F) and reached #96 in the Hot 100 (and #40 on the AC).

A third single from the Charlene/Songs of Love collections would turn out to have not only an unusual lyrical evolution but also an unexpected chart odyssey. The lyrics to "I've Never Been to Me" were originally written by Ron Miller from a male perspective, but he rewrote them from a woman's viewpoint for Charlene; and on her debut album, the ballad was recorded with a controversial narration to underscore the song's sentiment. On Songs of Love, the track omitted the spoken bridge; when this take was released as a single (P 0636F), it spent only three weeks on the Hot 100 and peaked at #97 in October 1977. When the song was revived in 1982, the rendition with the monologue (from the Charlene LP) was being played on radio, so it was the version that Motown reissued.

Success of "I've Never Been to Me" Charlene recorded "I've Never Been to Me" in 1976, and it reached #97 on the US Billboard Hot 100 singles chart in 1977. Five years later, the song became an unexpected sleeper hit. When released again in 1982, the single (1611 MF) spent 20 weeks on the Hot 100, peaked at #3, and stayed there for three weeks. The LP mixed previously recorded tracks with some new material and featured two different album covers: one showed Charlene in an elegant white dress with a bow and the other used her image in a moody pastel rendering.

Subsequent recordings and releases The Last American Virgin soundtrack "It Ain't Easy Comin' Down" was recycled on the I've Never Been to Me LP and re-released as its second, follow-up single (1621 MF). The 1982 bid bubbled under at #109 in America but did ascend to #8 on the Norwegian charts. Radio airplay affixed an ending harmony, "It ain't easy without you," which is not on the album version. This rendition (with the extra harmony) was also used in the 1982 film The Last American Virgin. Although the original Virgin compilation did not contain the cut, "It Ain't Easy Comin' Down" was subsequently added to the 2004 extended edition of the soundtrack.

The Sky Is the Limit When Charlene re-signed with Motown in 1982, Motown agreed not only to the mainstream production of a brand new album of material but also to the U.S. release of a religious set she had already started with Chapel Lane Records in England. The 1982 outing, The Sky Is the Limit (Motown 6024 ML), offers reflective gospel music with several songs penned by Charlene herself plus a cover of Lionel Richie's "Jesus Is Love".

Used to Be Toward the end of the year, Charlene also released a new single, a duet with Stevie Wonder entitled "Used to Be" (1650 MF), which the authors-composers of "I've Never Been to Me" also wrote and composed. But it stalled in the Hot 100 at #46 (and reached #31 on the AC and #35 on the R&B). The controversial lyrics of "Used to Be", which lamented an uncaring, self-centered society, caused some radio stations in the U.S. to refuse to play the single and facilitated its actual ban in England. The lines deemed most unacceptable were delivered by Wonder in the song's first verse: "Have another Chivas Regal/You're 12-years old and sex is legal." Peaking at #162 on Billboard's Top 200, Charlene's corresponding Used to Be album (Motown 6027 ML) was not as successful as the I've Never Been to Me LP. Although Charlene was offered the power ballad "We Belong", which soon after became a big hit for Pat Benatar, the song's inclusion on the album was opposed by executive producer Ray Singleton.

In May 2021, she released a new single called "Destiny", accessible on streaming services.

In 2022, Paul Stuart Davies, a British soul singer who had already worked with other Motown artists, contacted Charlene via social media to let her know that her signature song was #1 on the day he was born. Although they had not met in person, Charlene and Davies virtually composed and recorded a duet together called "Fairytale Life", which became available on iTunes on September 23, 2022.

In 2026, Charlene recorded her first new piece of music since 2022 - “Divide of Ten” a duet with Irish singer Rían. It was recorded both in Ireland and in the USA.

Legacy Over the years, memorable performances of and references to "I've Never Been to Me" have appeared on TV shows such as Will & Grace, Desperate Housewives, The Simpsons, This Is Us and The Flight Attendant and in films such as Shrek the Third in 2007 and You Were Never Really Here in 2017. In the 2018 episode of Splitting Up Together entitled "Asking for a Friend", Jenna Fischer's Lena longingly begins singing the song to her children, and her performance prompts her youngest son, Milo, to question aloud if his mother is having a nervous breakdown.

A popular choice for drag performers, "I've Never Been to Me" was spotlighted as the opening number to the 1994 movie The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert. "Used to Be" (#4) and "I've Never Been to Me" (#3) both made the top ten in Jimmy Guterman and Owen O'Donnell's 1991 book The Worst Rock n' Roll Records of All Time.

Personal life

Charlene has one sibling, a sister.

Charlene has been married twice. Her first marriage to music producer Larry Duncan ended in divorce. Larry Duncan died in 2024. He was the father of Charlene's first child.

Charlene has three daughters and several grandchildren.

With her second and current husband Jeff Oliver, Charlene has been the co-operator of a legal document assistance agency servicing clients in and around Los Angeles County.

In 2020, Charlene was living in Fort Worth, Texas, where she taught piano as an instructor at the Creative Soul Music School.

Discography Albums

Soundtrack appearances