A love we lost

TEDDY PENDERGRASS may go down in music history books as the last of the great red-hot and raw, gospel fueled, deep voiced soul belters — as the final heir to the throne occupied previously by Sam Cooke, Otis Redding and Marvin Gaye.

Like those predecessors, TP was a singer who smoldered with sensuality — on string-swept seducers like "If You Don't Know Me By Now," "Love TKO," "Turn Off The Lights" and "Feel The Fire." And who also, on occasion, motivated social change and personal growth with rousers like "Wake Up Everybody."

Exactly how hot was the "Teddy Bear," an artist sadly taken late Wednesday night at age 59, after an eight-month bout with colon cancer?

In the 1970s, as the front man for Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes, and then as the top solo act of the Philadelphia International Records empire, Pendergrass racked up an amazing 10 platinum (million-copy selling) album hits in row. "And some were multiplatinum," marveled PIR co-founder Leon Huff — the man who first heard Teddy humming behind the drum kit in the Blue Notes and declared, "This guy can really sing."

The ultimate seducer in song, Pendergrass likewise raised eyebrows (and sold out venues) across the country with the first-ever series of "ladies-only" concerts.

But unlike today's "neo-soul" crooners (think Usher — who also packaged a ladies-only tour a couple of years back — John Legend or Maxwell), Teddy didn't mince words because young girls were listening, too.

"His fans were women and his songs were about adult relationships," suggested music critic Nelson George, who remembers a Pendergrass concert at Madison Square Garden having "the sexiest moment on stage I've ever seen," when Pendergrass duetted with Stephanie Mills on their hit "Feel The Fire."

Even in the post-1982 era of T.P.'s career, after a horrendous auto accident on Wissahickon Drive (now called Lincoln Drive) had severed his spinal cord and left him a wheelchair-bound quadriplegic, Pendergrass still had a gift.

While he could barely lift anything more than his voice, Pendergrass returned to recording a year later "with less power and control in his throat but more romance in his heart," assessed the other PIR kingpin, Kenny Gamble, who remained a lifelong friend even though Pendergrass moved on to other labels. One of Teddy's most momentous post-PIR recordings, Gamble recalls, was the 1984 duet track called "Hold Me," which introduced Whitney Houston.

Likewise, when facing audiences anew from the wheelchair — in a national tour of the gospel musical "Your Arm's Too Short To Box with God," at the landmark "Live Aid" mega-charity concert co-staged at Philly's JFK Stadium in 1985 and then with his own solo concert turns — Pendergrass continued to light fires in the hearts and libidos of female fans.

"He had such a presence," recalled Gamble. "He could light up a room, just with that look in his eyes and the glow of his smile. You know, right before the accident, he was talking to Hollywood guys about getting into the movies. Sidney Poitier was ready to mentor him."

"On the last, 2002-2003 tour that he felt strong enough to undertake, my job wasn't just to lead the band and play keyboards," Pendergrass' musical director Bill Jolly noted yesterday. "I also had to pick up the panties that the women would still throw up on the stage, when he sang songs like 'Turn Off The Lights.'"

Offstage, out of the spotlight, Teddy could be, well, difficult — even when participating in interviews the man had instigated to promote, say, his 1998 autobiography, "Truly Blessed," or his final, June 2007 concert appearance at the Academy of Music (with a host of support talent including Mills, Patti Labelle, Musiq Soulchild, Monique and Bill Cosby.)

Commemorating his 25 years in the wheelchair and a period of personal growth, that last appearance was billed as "Teddy 25 — A Celebration of Life, Hope and Possibilities," and was intended to raise money for other victims of spinal-cord injuries through his Teddy Pendergrass Alliance.

Still, Pendergrass practically bit this reporter's head off when I asked him how the Alliance operated, and who else was involved in the cause.

"Yeah, he could be like that," said Jolly, with a laugh. "Teddy was a very proud and private person, who only allowed people he absolutely trusted into his inner circle. He was an extremely smart guy, who 'read' what he thought your intentions were in asking something. If he felt like this was something he didn't want to talk about, he would not budge.

"But despite whatever anybody's feelings about him might have been, there's no question he did some amazing things," continued the musical director. "On that last tour, I'd watch him do an hour and a half of singing in the wheelchair, in the spotlight, without taking a sip of water. I don't know any singers standing who don't drink a couple bottles of water in that time. Then at the end of the show, he would say 'I want to thank you for another chance at touring. It doesn't matter what your physical limitations are, it's the size of your heart and what you want to accomplish in life that matter.'"

With his passing, an uptick in Pendergrass radio play and album sales is a given — with the recently released, career-spanning PIR/Legacy two-disc collection "The Essential Teddy Pendergrass" likely to do best. "But the truth is, even though he hasn't recorded any albums since 1998" (the Surefire/Wind-up release "This Christmas I'd rather have love"), "Teddy's never stopped being a staple on adult-format radio stations, worldwide, and he never stopped selling albums," said Gamble.

Jolly said that Pendergrass was hoping that more love would be bestowed on a play about his life, "I Am What I Am," which had a "well received run in 2008 at the Black Ensemble Theater, in Chicago. Teddy and I wrote three songs for it. The title tune pretty much summed up his philosophy of life."

A Pendergrass biopic project, being pitched with actor/singer Tyrese Gibson in the lead, could also pick up some steam, now that the final chapter has been written. In his final months, Teddy was actively engaged in sharing information with the creative team, hoping to push the project forward.

"He was the greatest R&B singer of all time, and strongest person I ever knew," said his son Teddy Pendergrass II. "He was tremendously headstrong, did things his way, whether it was good or bad. He did it his way and he was determined and he continued to blaze trails. He also installed in us kids the concept that we should not make excuses, that we should see things for what they are and get it done at the end of the day.

"Of course there were times in his life when he was depressed," Ted II continued. "I remember when he first had the accident and wasn't sure if he wanted to live. But we as a family rallied around him and let him know how much we loved him. There have been other times when he had to move on, like from a divorce, when you have to continue to find what you stand for and live for.

"I can count 10 to 12 times when he was in and out of the hospital. I always expected, and I'd tell him, 'Dad, you go in the hospital, you get better and you come out.' This time, it didn't happen like that."

Besides his son, Pendergrass is survived by his mother, Ida Pendergrass; his wife, Joan; his daughters, Tisha and Le Donna; those children's mother, Rose Croutch; his former wife and longtime caregiver, Karen Pendergrass; daughters from his marriage to Joan, Sherilla Lestrade and Jessica Avila; and seven grandchildren.