Linda Clifford

occupation = Singer years_active = 1972–present label = Paramount, Curtom, RSO, Capitol, Red Label website =

Linda Clifford (born June 14, 1948)

Career Clifford is a former Miss New York State, and fronted a jazz music trio before switching to R&B. After winning her title, Clifford worked as an actress, playing minor roles in films such as The Boston Strangler with Tony Curtis and Henry Fonda, Coogan's Bluff with Clint Eastwood and Sweet Charity with Shirley MacLaine. Unsatisfied with her roles, Clifford decided to concentrate on her singing career, performing for a year in Miami-area night clubs with the Jericho Jazz Singers, before forming her own group Linda & the Trade Winds.

In 1973, she was signed to Paramount Records and her first single, "(It's Gonna Be) A Long Long Winter", was a minor hit on the U.S. Billboard R&B chart in the winter of 1974. She moved to Curtis Mayfield's Curtom Records label in the mid 1970s. It was her first number one on Billboard Dance chart. Her album of the same name became her most successful and included also "Runaway Love", a mid-tempo R&B track that proved to be one of her most recognizable tunes. In 1979, she released her disco version of "Bridge over Troubled Water" from the album Let Me Be Your Woman. A year later it was covered by Sister Sledge, in 1990 by Whitney Houston and in 1994 by Luther Vandross, under the name "All the Woman That I Need". On his album Songs, Vandross even credited Houston for being the "artist who did the original version of the song", forgetting that it was originally Clifford's song and that he was a background vocalist and the vocal arranger of her version.

Her 1984 offering, Sneakin' Out did relatively well on the American R&B chart. Her most recent single, "Baby I'm Yours", was released in 2011.

In 1982, she sang the opening theme to the NBC crime drama "Chicago Story".

In 2012, her minor hit from 1979, "I Just Wanna Wanna", resurfaced as the love theme in the Lee Daniels film, The Paperboy.

In 2015, Clifford collaborated with disco and house vocalists Martha Wash and Evelyn "Champagne" King on the download-only single "Show Some Love", which reached number #6 on the Billboard Dance chart the same year, and released on Martha Wash's own label Purple Rose Records. Their collaboration was credited as a group as First Ladies of Disco. A video was released to promote the single along with an alternate video featuring a remix by John LePage and Brian Cua.

Discography Studio albums Year Title Peak chart positions Record label US USR&B CAN 1977 Linda — — — — Curtom 1978 If My Friends Could See Me Now 22 9 86 28 1979 Let Me Be Your Woman 26 19 90 39 Curtom/RSO Here's My Love 117 47 — — 1980 The Right Combination (with Curtis Mayfield) 180 53 — — I'm Yours 160 47 — — 1982 I'll Keep on Loving You — — — — Capitol/EMI 1984 Sneakin' Out — 49 — — Red Label 1985My Heart's on Fire — — — — "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

Compilation albums Greatest Hits (1989, Curtom) Runaway Love and Other Hits (1999, Rhino) Runaway Love: The Curtom Anthology (2000, Sequel)

Singles Year Single Peak chart positions Album US 1972 "Love Is Not the Question" — — — — — — Non-album single 1974 "(It's Gonna Be) A Long Long Winter" — 75 — — — — "After Loving You" — — — — — — "Turn the Key Softly" — — — — — — 1977 "From Now On" — 94 28 — — — Linda "You Can Do It" — — — — — 1978 "Runaway Love" 76 3 1 — 61 95 If My Friends Could See Me Now "If My Friends Could See Me Now" 54 68 — — 50 "Gypsy Lady" — — — — — 1979 "Bridge over Troubled Water" 41 49 11 86 70 28 Let Me Be Your Woman "Don't Give It Up" — 15 — — — "Sweet Melodies" — — — — — "Between You Baby and Me" (with Curtis Mayfield) — 14 87 — — — The Right Combination "I Just Wanna Wanna" — 36 73 — — — Here's My Love 1980 "Love's Sweet Sensation" (with Curtis Mayfield) — 34 87 — — — The Right Combination "Red Light" 41 40 1 — — — I'm Yours "Shoot Your Best Shot" — 43 1 — — — "It Don't Hurt No More" — — — — — "I Had a Talk with My Man" — 53 — — — — 1982 "Let It Ride" — — 1 — — — I'll Keep on Loving You "Don't Come Crying to Me" — — — — — 1984 "A Night with the Boys" — 76 — — — — Sneakin' Out "Sneakin' Out" — 62 — — — — 1985 "You're Mine" — — — — — — "The Heat in Me" — — 17 — — — My Heart's on Fire 1995 "Whatcha Gonna Do" — — — — — — Non-album single 1999 "Wanna Give It Up" (with Ralphi Rosario) — — 16 — — — 2001 "Changin'" — — 17 — — — "Ride the Storm" (with Akabu) — — — — — 69 "Philly Groove" (with Romain & Danny Krivit) — — 29 — — — 2002 "Back to My Roots 2002" — — — — — 85 "Sunshine" — — — — — 99 2003 "Spinnin" (with Prospect Park) — — — — — 93 2008 "How Long" — — — — — — 2011 "Baby I'm Yours" — — — — — — "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.