Today we’d like to introduce you to Charlotte Crossley
Hi Charlotte , please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I was born and raised in Chicago Illinois. The middle child of my parents, who were from the Mississippi Delta. My parents were aspiring “talented 10th” Negro/black, intellectual, working class folk who left Mississippi for Chicago’s Greener pastures and the 1940s, after World War II. I grew up, listening to a lot of music. Everything that I could get my hands on. I listen to all the 78 ‘s that my dad and my mom‘s family had in the house and every relatives house that I went to I was always listening to their music and looking at what they had and just so enRaptured with music and television, of which I wasn’t allowed to watch much of in those days, I grew up going to church in the Methodist Church my grandmother sang in the choir ( my dad‘s mom. My dad also sang in the choir. All of the (Crossley)‘s had great voices beautiful voices. I think I inherited that from their side of the family..
My mother wanted me and my sister to have good deportment and Manners and be lovely little polite and interesting black girls and so we took ballet and piano and I loved it, but I had a good ear for music, but I hated to practice. My sister did better at the piano And dance that I did, but I loved public speaking. I was always being called on to recite poetry or hymns or give announcements at church services. I was very active in school plays. I loved it. I love theater arts and so when I was in high school after being in girls chorus And mixed chorus, all through high school in Chicago, I got involved with the young men’s Jewish community center on the southside of Chicago in South Shore, and was around a lot of Jewish people who were encouraging and loving and interested and seeing me improve my talent skills . So, by this time I had watched a lot of television and was at the movies constantly. On Sundays after church I would go to the regal theater on 47th and South Park And watch the Motown review. I would sit through it twice first to be entertained then to be schooled and boy did I get an education! I was already obsessed with the new sound coming out of England. I was an incredible Beatle fan!! I was so inspired by them and the entire English beat music entire scene. I loved it. It inspired me. That’s all I thought about. I couldn’t wait to grow up and get out of the house and experience all these things musical. I love the theater also and so the community theater group became a place where I Found community and love and I learned so much about performing.
I was obsessed with all the musical shows on TV. The Ed Sullivan show the Bell telephone hour, Arthur Godfrey‘s talent scouts Hollywood Palace shindig hullabaloo where the action is all of those teen oriented shows and of course I watched American Bandstand and soul train so I was always looking at what was going on with performance Arts talent presentation. The whole thing I was obsessed. But my obsession was a lonely life so I didn’t have a lot of support. My father was vehemently against my choice of the arts and so I had gotten a scholarship to southern Illinois University. I had no interest in going to college but I knew that if I was gonna have if I was not gonna stay at home, I had to go and pursue what I wanted to be doing and so I prayed, and I asked God to give me a way of escape so I wouldn’t have to go to school. I just didn’t want to be in that environment of academia. I was so set on going in the Show business and that’s what happened. That’s what I did! The director of the Jewish community center suggested that I audition for the musical HAIR which was going to be launched in Chicago. The Chicago cast. This is in 1969 the year I graduated And so after my graduation in June, I auditioned for (Hair) I went to an open call cattle call with thousands of people and I was not discouraged. I kept my mind in my eye on the prize and worked my way through that gauntlet that day thousands of people I had a Motown songbook and I Prepared three songs out of that book. I had a Judy Collins book. I sang three songs out of that song book and do you know what I just went for it but I knew I could not keep living in my dad‘s house that was not a good place for me to be it just wasn’t. He did not want me to go in the show business and he let me know With great specificity and intensity. Oh,I failed to mention that when I was 12 years old my dear mother, who I love so much succumbed to cancer. It was absolutely devastating to me as she was my touchstone in this life, and perhaps if she had lived, I would’ve had a different type of career, certainly more of a classical type because she would’ve insisted that I go to university and get a degree in arts music, the humanities. All things classical she would’ve insisted that I do that and if I wanted to go often into jazz or pop music, I would’ve had a firmer foundation. Her absence in this life has had a huge effect on me so I had to make it up as I went along what I was going to do. No matter what, I have wanted my career to honor my mother, her beauty, her poise, her grace I’ve tried to bring that into my work.
Anyway, long story short I got into the Chicago cast of (Hair) in 1969 right out of high school. It changed my life forever and I went on to do hair the rock musical in Las Vegas and I did the first national tour and sat down in DC for six months and then moved to New York City in 1971 where I fulfilled another dream of Being on Broadway and the original cast of Jesus Christ superstar. These two shows the rock musical (Hair) and JC superstar were pivotal in my growth as a stage performer, and it also forever tied me to the wonder and the brilliance of Tom O’Horgan who was our director who was the
Far reaching awesome visionary Director on so many levels he took us on such a journey, emotionally and spiritually creatively artistically.!!
It changed me forever and everyone who worked with him we all had a very similar experience that drew us together to this day!
It was while I was doing a superstar in New York that I met and became very close friends with Bette Midler who was the toast of New York the toast of Manhattan‘s supper club seen at the time. We had a fun girlfriend relationship. We would hang out at her house and listen to music listen to 78 and 45s and LPs and talk about music and talk about movies and we like the same things that Andrew sisters, the Boswell sisters Ella Fitzgerald And we liked all the R&B music and Dinah Washington and we listen to a lot of stuff and talked about movies talked about Marlena Dietrich and talked about May West, and all of these influences and it was great to have a friend who was also a very theatrical person, but she was forging her own path and was the toast of Manhattan and the gay scene the men they loved her. The boys loved her. The continental bath was a place that I got to see her perform, and it was a phenomenon what was happening in that very steamy basement of the Estonia hotel in the upper west side under the auspices of a man named Stephen Ostrow. NewYORK was Dogra in those early 70s and it was delightful to go and see her. It was such an education. I left superstar to go to another show called the foibles of Scapa and was out of town for about eight weeks and I came home. We were getting ready to open. We were in our last day of previews at the Alban theater in New York City and Bette Midler came and asked me if I would be Interested in replacing one of the girls who was leaving her singing group. The background group called the Hart. And that young lady who was leaving her employee was the wonderful and talented Melissa Manchester! I said yes sure I’d be happy to join the group Little did. I know that after our preview that Wednesday we would open and receive our closing notice on Saturday that we were closing on Sunday That show is! But on Monday, I started rehearsals to become one of FThatt’s Harle’s and Melissa taught me everything I needed to know and then I sat down at the piano with Barry Manilow and we went over all of the songs and he said you got a good voice You’ll be a good match for doubling BETTE’’S vocals! Soon, I was touring with that all over the eastern seaboard played every college New York Boston, Rhode Island Pennsylvania. It was amazing and I sang background for her from 1972 to 1978. That was a long haul and I learned so much from her and got to meet amazing people But I had to find out who I was and I was pretty scared about that in 1977 the Hart were myself Sharon READ and Ula Hedwig and we got a record deal on Columbia and we have an album that we recorded produced by David Robinson called FTH formally the HARLETTES. We got a little bit of a taste of what could’ve been monumental, and we were also able to, after a great deal of negotiations, tears, threats, blood and sweat, we were able to open for a bit during our last tour with her in 1977 and it was a wonderful thing. But sadly, we got dropped from the label and it was at that time that I had to confront my own creative self. Who am I? Where am I going? What will I find inside the grab bag that I called my mind talk about your existential crisis. I left New York City And came out to California went to the beach every weekend and sat by friends pools and tried to figure out what’s next I joined another vocal trio. This time produced by the late great Richard Perry, who at the time had The Pointer Sisters and that trio was with Lorraine feather and the great Steve March Torme, and we were called SWING and we became Full Swing. We recorded for planet records, which was a subsidiary of Electra Asylum/Warner Brothers. We were a cult favorite a local band. We had some good gigs, but you know I guess we were kind of the poor man’s Manhattan Transfer, it’s funny when you come up around all these people you watch people become famous and become huge. And there you are an assault mines still shredding it out still always trying to be good striving toward excellence authenticity. Truth.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
It was not a smooth road. It was difficult. The years with Bette Midler were good financially, but they were emotionally a landmine.
Looking back as you gain more information about mental health and codependency, it was a highly dysfunctional working environment! Without going into hideous detail, it was emotionally draining, although creatively, brilliant and satisfying it had a lot of Ups and downs. I would come home from being on the road and I would be emotionally exhausted, but I have to get up and go find some other work or do something to keep food on the table so I sang background for a lot of people who were unknown. I went on the road with Barry Manilow who was very sweet and lovely Living in New York City was challenging, but there was no place I’d rather be going back home was not an option. It’s true when they say you can never go home anymore and (Chicago) was the city. I’d rather pass through. Come home. Do a great show. Get on a plane go somewhere else. Was also very difficult emotionally relationally. My personal life was always in a state of flux. I had to learn how to live and take care of myself and be be at peace with myself. It took a long time to get to that, and it was only after I came to California. I found that the intrinsic racism that exist within this industry over the decades from the 60s and 70s and 80s and 90s it’s so pervasive that if you’re black and you’re good and you get in there and you make a name for yourself without steam rolling over people because that wasn’t how I was raised! Being kind and being grateful to the people you’re working with and and showing up and being excellent, you had to have so much more than that, but that had to be in play, especially in this town Hollywood. It was really important to show up and be great so when I was in New York, I started doing a background work background singing, and I really learned a lot about from the craft. I started working with Luther Vandross. I was so grateful to meet him and and watch him and work with him. He was so brilliant. I was very very fortunate that I got a chance to learn on the job even though I had a great deal of music training I got a chance to learn on the job and watch how the business was changing especially the music, the vibe with music, the dance music that was out the R&B music that was happening to the smooth jazz that came in to play you know and The incredible musicians that I got a chance to meet and work with they help shape me and I just had to make my mind up that I wasn’t gonna let any racism or any lack of inclusion, diversity or equity discourage me in anyway! I still stand on that.!
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I have 53 years as a professional singer and actress!
My theatrical stage credits include:
Hairspray, first national tour, and Broadway cast.
The color purple, Broadway cast.
Bette Midler‘sclams on the half shell review, Broadway cast.
🎭
My film credits include most recently Studio one forever documentary
Academy award winning documentary 20 feet from stardom.
Sister Act one and two
When Harry Met Sally
City Slickers, Preacher’s wife
Beaches
Leave it on the floor
Behind the candelabra
Faster
My Recording Credits are:
Barry Manilow
Bette Midler
Luther Vandross
Blues Brothers
Chaka Khan
Kiss
I have recorded so many songs and so many projects over the years. Had so much joy and fun working with incredible singers at the top of the game. I learned so much from them and I feel like I’m not done. Still working on myself improving my craft, listening to incredible music finding my voice, a mature voice, grateful, blessed, and always in a state of wonder at God‘s grace and mercy toward me. He has been faithful to me sustained creative, artistry, and excellence. Black excellence.. I pray that that sets me apart from others, but most of all, being able to encourage the next generation the ones coming up the ones who wanted more than anything, but to be excellent and to be authentic and to be just so giving in full of life and wonder and beauty and truth. Those are qualities that are ingrained in a person. I believe we come here with those things, and they can be developed and expanded upon and groomed for goodness for good and not for evil. God’s plans for us are for good and not for evil to give us a future and a hope I’m standing on that forever. 🩷.
What do you like best about our city? What do you like least?
When I came out here to work in the 70’s, I was living in New York so when I would come to California, I was just always so enthralled with the weather the palm tree swaying so beautifully the beautiful neighborhoods back then it was quite a restful change from the concrete and busy intensity of New York City. I liked (L.A.) in the 70s wasn’t a lot of traffic. It was beautiful great places to go and eat it !! The El coyote was so cheap!! It’s changed a lot.! Going to the movies on Hollywood Boulevard to Groman‘s was always so much fun that cinema Dome on Sunset was just it was a great date place you know! Westwood was popping back then and so was Fox Hills Mall.
One of the things that I don’t like about (L.A.) now is the homeless they’re just everywhere and I think that there’s enough empty offices, empty business office spaces and industrial parks that can be made into affordable housing developing places that are safe and green spaces, where on how people can live safely! I don’t like that the rents the affordable housing is just not affordable. That’s a problem that has to be addressed and can be addressed feasibly decently and in order I feel that I don’t like how expensive everything has gotten feels like we’re robbing Peter to pay Paul just to live basically. When I came out here rents were cheap. You could get a nice little one bedroom or studio apartment and it was decent and it was clean. You didn’t feel like somebody was price gouging you were taking you to the cleaners. The housing situation has to be addressed and made affordable for people people who work in the city who work in LA not people who live in the valley or live somewhere else, but specifically people who live in LA proper in the basin.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: Charlotte Crossley
- Facebook: Charlo Crossley Fortier
- LinkedIn: Charlo Crossley Fortier
- Youtube: Charlotte Crossley
Image Credits
Photo Credits
Rich Fabris
Mel Peters
