Linda Clifford

American R&B, disco and house music singer and actress, born June 14, 1948, Brooklyn, New York, USA. She is a former Miss New York State and fronted a jazz band before moving to R&B. After winning her title, Clifford worked as an actress, playing minor roles in films. She recorded some singles at [l=Paramount Records] before signing with [l=Curtom]. She released 9 albums between 1977 and 1985, among them a whole duet album with her producer [a=Curtis Mayfield]. Her breakthrough single was her cover version of the 1966 Broadway tune "If My Friends Could See Me Now", a hit for [a=Shirley MacLaine] in the late 1960s. Other highlights from her career include the one-vinyl side long cover version of [a=Simon & Garfunkel]'s "Bridge Over Troubled Water", her cover of [a=Rod Stewart]'s "Tonight's The Night", "Runaway Love", "Red Light" (from the "Fame" soundtrack), "Shoot Your Best Shot" "Don't Come Crying To Me" and the original 1982 version of "All The Man That I Need", a hit later for [a=Sister Sledge], [a=Whitney Houston] and [a=Luther Vandross]. She is considered a legendary diva by the newer house music generation and she is often a guest on modern house records like [a=Ralphi Rosario]'s "Wanna Give It Up" and [a=Akabu]'s "Ride The Storm". In 2015, Clifford formed the [a=First Ladies of Disco] originally with [a=Martha Wash] and [a=Evelyn King]. Clifford released two singles with the group: "Show Some Love" (2015) and "Don't Stop Me Now" (2019).