His initial rise to stardom occurred under tutelage of producer's Kenny Gamble & Leon Huff on the then CBS subsidiary Philadelphia International in 1970. The Blue Notes had hits such as "I Miss You," "Bad Luck," "Wake Up Everybody," the two million seller "If You Don't Know Me By Now" and many more. Following personality conflicts between Melvin and Pendergrass, Pendergrass launched a solo career and released hit singles like "The More I Get the More I Want," "Close the Door," "I Don't Love You Anymore," "Turn Off the Lights" and others.
His first solo album was self titled Teddy Pendergrass (1977), followed by Life is a Song Worth Singing (1978), Live! Coast to Coast and Teddy (1979), 1980's TP and the final Philadelphia International Records album It's Time for Love (1981). He also sang a duet with Whitney Houston on "Hold Me," from her self-titled debut album.
Teddy Pendergrass started singing gospel music in Philadelphia churches, becoming an ordained minister at ten years old. While attending public school, he sang in the citywide McIntyre Elementary School Choir and in the All-City Stetson Junior High School Choir. A self-taught drummer, Pendergrass had a teen pop vocal group when he was 15.
By his late teens, Pendergrass was a drummer for local vocal group the Cadillacs. In the late 60s, the Cadillacs merged with another more-established group, Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes. In 1970, when the Blue Notes broke up, Melvin, now aware of Pendergrass' vocal prowess, asked him to take the lead singer spot. It's no secret that Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff wanted Marvin Junior of the Dells for their Philadelphia International Records roster. Since the Dells were signed to Chess, they were unavailable. When the gruff'n'ready vocals of Pendergrass came their way, they eagerly signed the group.
Beginning with "I Miss You," a steady stream of hit singles flowed from the collaboration of Pendergrass and Gamble & Huff: "If You Don't Know Me By Now," "The Love I Lost," "Bad Luck," "Wake Up Everybody" (#1 R&B for two weeks in 1976), and two gold albums, To Be True and Wake Up Everybody.
Unfortunately, the more success the group had, the more friction developed between Melvin and Pendergrass. Despite the revised billing of the group, Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes featuring Theodore Pendergrass, Pendergrass felt that he wasn't getting enough recognition. Around 1976, Pendergrass left Melvin's Blue Notes and formed his own Blue Notes, featuring Teddy Pendergrass. Briefly, there was some confusion as to which Blue Notes was which. The resolution came when Pendergrass disbanded his Blue Notes in favor of a solo career and Melvin's group signed a recording contract with Source Records, distributed through ABC Records, scoring a hit with "I Want to Be Your Lover."
Pendergrass signed a new contract with Philadelphia International Records sometime between late 1976 and early 1977. He burst back on the scene with Teddy Pendergrass, a platinum solo debut that included the top-notch singles "I Don't Love You Anymore," "You Can't Hide From Yourself," and "The More I Get the More I Want." Around this time, Pendergrass began to institute his infamous "Ladies Only" concerts. His next three albums went gold or platinum: Life Is a Song Worth Singing, Teddy, and Live! Coast to Coast. The hit single "Close the Door" was used in the film Soup for One, where Pendergrass had a minor role.
The singer received several Grammy nominations during 1977 and 1978, Billboard's 1977 Pop Album New Artist Award, an American Music Award for best R&B performer of 1978, and awards from Ebony magazine and the NAACP. He was also in consideration for the lead in the movie biopic The Otis Redding Story. The '70s ended, but Pendergrass kept racking up the hits. TP, his fifth solo album, went platinum in the summer of 1980 off the singles "Turn Off the Lights," "Come Go With Me," "Shout and Scream," "It's You I Love," and "Can't We Try." It's Time for Love gave Pendergrass another gold album in summer 1981, which included the hit singles "Love TKO" and "I Can't Live Without Your Love." However in the UK chart success was limited to a handful of singles peaking just short of the top 40. Amazingly "Love TKO" failed to even grace the top 100.
A 1982 car accident left Pendergrass paralyzed from the waist down and wheelchair-bound. After almost a year of physical therapy and counseling, Pendergrass returned to the recording scene, signing a contract with Elektra/Asylum in 1983. His ninth solo album, his Elektra/Asylum debut, Love Language went gold the spring of 1984. Philadelphia International issued two albums of unreleased tracks, This One's for You (1982) and Heaven Only Knows (1983). Other albums included Workin' It Back (1985), Joy (1988, whose title track stayed at #1 in the R&B charts for two weeks), and A Little More Magic (1993). The latter half of '90s found Pendergrass recording for the Surefire/Wind Up label. Truly Blessed (the name of an 1991 Elektra album) is the title of the autobiography Pendergrass co-authored with Patricia Romanowski.
Pendergrass passed away at age 59 on January 13, 2010 from complications following surgery for colon cancer.
Two Hearts
Teddy Pendergrass Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You captured my heart
Now I've got to face the danger I'm ready to start
Thought that I could make it on my own
All alone I tried to hard to fake it
Now the truth must be known
Two hearts are always better
Together forever
True romance we'll treasure
You've given me so much of yourself
Till I don't need nobody else
And with each passing day
My love for grown strong in ever way
You are my life ooo
Never thought that love could touch me
Move me this way
Don't you ever leave me, baby
Promise you'll stay I'm so glad I got you, girl
Turnin' my world all around
We won't let nobody change
This love that we, we found
Two hearts are always better
Together forever
Two hearts are always better
True romance we'll treasure
You given me so much of yourself
Till I don't need nobody else
And with each passing day
My love for grows strong in every way
You are my life
Two hearts are always better (Always, always)
Two hearts (Two) are always better [Me and you, yeah]
(Just me and you) [Me and you] (Tell them two)
Two hearts [Two hearts] are always better [Always better]
(Don't you know, you got to know) [Baby, me and you]
(Talkin' 'bout two) Two hearts
[One and one makes two, heh] are always better
[Me and you, yeah] (Oh, oh, yeah)
Two hearts are always better (Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, yeah)
Two hearts (Yeah, two) are always better
(Don't you know, two, yeah two)
Two hearts are always better
Two hearts are always better [Don't you know, talkin' bout me and you]
Two hearts [That makes two] are always better
[Always] (Yeah) [Always better, girl]
(Two) Two hearts (Two hearts) are always better
[Tried so hard to make it, girl]
Two Hearts is a classic 80's R&B ballad by Teddy Pendergrass that tells the story of two people who were once strangers but ended up falling in love. The song starts with the singer acknowledging that the woman he's singing to came into his life as a stranger, but she captured his heart. He's now ready to start a new journey with her and face whatever dangers may come their way. At first, he thought he could make it on his own and fake his way through life all alone, but he soon realized the truth - that two hearts are always better together.
He goes on to sing about the woman and the gift of love she's given him, saying that he doesn't need anyone else but her. He praises her for the love she's shown him, and how he's grown in love with her with each passing day. Throughout the song, he reiterates that two hearts are always better, and that true romance is something that they'll treasure forever. He's so grateful to have found her, and he vows to hold on to this love and never let anyone come between them.
In summary, the song is a beautiful tribute to the power of love between two people as they navigate the obstacles of life together. It showcases Teddy Pendergrass's soulful voice and the excellent delivery of the message behind the song. The lyrics are easy to follow, and the melody is unforgettable, which has made it a timeless classic.
Line by Line Meaning
Came into my life a stranger
You were someone I did not know before you entered my life
You captured my heart
You won over my affection
Now I've got to face the danger I'm ready to start
Being in love involves risks, but I am prepared to take them on
Thought that I could make it on my own
I believed I could handle things alone
All alone I tried too hard to fake it
I pretended that I did not need anyone's help
Now the truth must be known
However, I must acknowledge the truth
Two hearts are always better
Having two hearts in a relationship is always better than just one
Together forever
We will be together forever
True romance we'll treasure
We will value and cherish our genuine love
You've given me so much of yourself
You have offered me a lot of who you are
Till I don't need nobody else
I no longer desire anyone else
And with each passing day
With each new day
My love for grown strong in ever way
My love has gotten stronger in every possible way
You are my life ooo
You are everything to me
Never thought that love could touch me
I never expected to experience love
Move me this way
It has shaken me up in the best way possible
Don't you ever leave me, baby
Please do not ever abandon me
Promise you'll stay I'm so glad I got you, girl
Promise me that you will stay; I am happy that I have you in my life
Turnin' my world all around
You have revolutionized my world for the better
We won't let nobody change
We will not allow anyone to alter
This love that we, we found
The love that we have discovered
Two hearts are always better
Having two hearts in a relationship is always better than just one
You given me so much of yourself
You have given me so much of who you are
And with each passing day
With each new day
My love for grows strong in every way
My love becomes stronger in every possible way
You are my life
You are everything to me
Two hearts are always better (Always, always)
Having two hearts in a relationship is always better than just one (always)
Two hearts (Two) are always better [Me and you, yeah]
Having two hearts in a relationship is always better than just one (me and you)
(Just me and you) [Me and you] (Tell them two)
(Just me and you) [Me and you] (We do not need to involve anyone else)
Two hearts [Two hearts] are always better [Always better]
Having two hearts in a relationship is always better than just one (always better)
(Don't you know, you got to know) [Baby, me and you]
(You have to know) [Baby, it is just me and you]
(Talkin' 'bout two) Two hearts
(I am talking about two) Two hearts
[One and one makes two, heh] are always better
[When you add one heart with another, you get two, heh] It is always better
[Me and you, yeah] (Oh, oh, yeah)
[Me and you, yeah] (Oh, oh, yeah)
Two hearts are always better (Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, yeah)
Having two hearts in a relationship is always better than just one (Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, yeah)
Two hearts (Yeah, two) are always better
Having two hearts in a relationship is always better than just one (Yeah, two)
(Don't you know, two, yeah two)
(You have to know, two, yeah two)
Two hearts are always better
Having two hearts in a relationship is always better than just one
Two hearts are always better [Don't you know, talkin' bout me and you]
Having two hearts in a relationship is always better than just one (You have to know, I am talking about me and you)
Two hearts [That makes two] are always better
Having two hearts in a relationship is always better than just one (That makes two)
[Always] (Yeah) [Always better, girl]
[Always] (Yeah) [Always better, girl]
(Two) Two hearts (Two hearts) are always better
(Two) Having two hearts in a relationship is always better than just one (Two hearts)
[Tried so hard to make it, girl]
[I tried so hard to make it, girl]
Lyrics © SOAR MUSIC GROUP, BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: TAWATHA AGEE, JAMES MTUME, EDWARD MOORE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@terracejohnson9251
This song is Life… Who’s listening now 2023-24
@TroyButler-uy7es
I'm listening to it because that's One of my Favorite Songs.
@TroyButler-uy7es
I absolutely agree with you 100 Percent.
@kevseb66
I was in Walmart the other day and this was playing. I got hit with such a sense of nostalgia.I got a little teary eyed. I was such a kid when this was on the "radio" and this style of r&b is long gone. Thank God for YouTube.
@jamescalifornia2964
💞🎶 Loong gone .. . sadly .
@cartierwhite_lasvegas
I get like that sometimes
As I get older
@annmariemccooey6731
"Without music life would be a mistake" Nietzsche
@coachrobinson9958
@@annmariemccooey6731 🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰
@gordoncampbell100
Love your comment dude .Totally agree .
@conradford7493
Two outstanding vocalist. This is still strong in 2024.. Can I get a witness.