Chubby Tavares Bids His Final Farewell on Mother’s Day
The surprise phone call came just minutes before my morning show was to end for the day.
"Hello, my good friend, it's Chubby Tavares," the Grammy-award winning lead singer of Tavares started. "It pains me to say, the upcoming Mother's Day concert at the Zeiterion will be my very last! It's my final farewell to all my family and loyal friends."
Hearing Chubby's raspy voice reminded me of a different time in the 1970s, when the group changed their name from Chubby and the Turnpikes to Tavares, and scored their first R&B Top 10 hit with "Check It Out." The planets were firmly in alignment, as Tavares serenaded Hall & Oates' "She's Gone" to a No. 1 R&B hit across the nation.
The year 1975 turned out to be their most successful year chart-wise, with a Top 40 Pop album that included "Remember What I Told You To Forget," and their all-time biggest hit, the Top 10 Pop/No. 1 R&B smash "It Only Takes a Minute," followed by a string of chart busters: "Heaven Must Be Missing an Angel," "Don't Take Away the Music," and "Whodunit."
Their success continued to take flight with their appearance on the soundtrack to the film Saturday Night Fever in 1977, when they recorded the Bee Gees song "More Than a Woman," with their version moving up to another Pop Top 40 money-spinner. The soundtrack became one of the most successful in music history, giving Tavares their only Grammy Award.
How do you say goodbye to all of this?
Jay, listening in Islamorada, a Florida key, sent in a message this a different perspective.
"Your call from Chubby Tavares brought tears to my eyes, thinking about how many hours of their music that I enjoyed over the years," he wrote. "Thank you for airing that call with your listeners, although it was somber in many ways, I think it brought many of us a measure of joy knowing how fortunate we are to have Chubby as part of our lives and happy memories. Thank you for all you do."
The thanks go to Chubby, Ralph, Pooch, Butch and Tiny Tavares for all they've done to enrich our lives.
A second show had to be added, after the first one sold out effortlessly. The second show will definitely sell out, so act quickly, and give back some of the love Tavares gifted us with, all through our lives.
This isn't about promoting a final musical act, rather, it's about promoting a kind act!
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