Kenny Loggins (born Kenneth Clark Loggins on January 7, 1948 in Everett, Washington) is an American singer and songwriter best known for a number of soft rock and adult contemporary hit singles beginning in the 1970s. Originally a part of the duo Loggins and Messina, he has also recorded as solo artist and written hit songs for other artists.
Biography
Loggins was born in Everett, Washington and raised in Alhambra, California. The early 70s found him in the band "Gator Creek" with Mike Deasy. An early version of "Danny's Song" (later recorded by Loggins and Messina) was included on this effort on Mercury Records. Two covers are featured as well, Jackson Browne's "These Days" and "Don't Try to Lay no Boogie Woogie on the King of Rock and Roll" which was made famous by Long John Baldry.
Loggins continued his career in the 1970s. After attracting the attention of fellow singer-songwriter Jim Messina, the two began a duo career as Loggins and Messina. It lasted until 1976. In 1977, Loggins went on to produce his first solo album, Celebrate Me Home, which included the hit "I Believe In Love". Nightwatch, a popular album released in 1978, included the hit "Whenever I Call You Friend", a duet with Stevie Nicks of Fleetwood Mac. He followed this in 1979 with Keep the Fire, whose "This Is It" would be sampled by hip hop rapper Papoose for his 2005 track "Sharades." In 1982 he recorded the album "High Adventure" where he collaborated with Michael McDonald on "Heart to Heart" and also with Journey lead singer Steve Perry to record "Don't Fight It", both Billboard Top 20 hits that year.
Loggins also wrote the song "What a Fool Believes" with Michael McDonald of the Doobie Brothers. Furthermore, he penned "Danny's Song" and "A Love Song" for Anne Murray in the early 70's.
Over the next decade, Loggins recorded many hit songs for movie soundtracks. This began with "I'm Alright" from Caddyshack. Hits followed with "Footloose" and "I'm Free (Heaven Helps the Man)" from Footloose, "Meet Me Halfway" from Over the Top, "Danger Zone" and "Playin' With The Boys", from Top Gun. He also performed as a member of USA for Africa on the famine-relief fundraising single We Are the World.
In the 1990s, Loggins continued his album career, including the popular 1994 children's album, Return to Pooh Corner, which included the title single, a reworking of "House at Pooh Corner", his top 40 hit from 1969 with an added verse and backing vocals by Amy Grant. Some people criticized Loggins for changing the song, but it was well received by the public. Loggins also produced a song called "Forever", which would become an internationally recognized piece, translated into several languages. With the Sherman Brothers he also eventually wrote and then solo performed "Your Heart Will Lead You Home," a popular song for The Tigger Movie - part of the Winnie-the-Pooh series - in 2000.
In 1991, Loggins recorded and produced Leap of Faith, an important album in his career featuring the hit "Conviction of the Heart." Former Vice-President Al Gore billed this song as "the unofficial anthem of the environmental movement." On Earth Day in 1995, Loggins performed at The National Mall in Washington, D.C. for a live audience of 500,000.
Loggins was married to Julia Cooper in 1992 but they were divorced in 2004. They had two children together. Previously, Loggins had been married to Eva Ein (1978-1990) with whom he had three children.
In recent years, Loggins has continued to record and produce within the Adult Contemporary genre, and scored a #1 single on Billboard's AC chart in 1997 with "For The First Time."
In 2005, Loggins reconnected with Jim Messina. The two decided to hit the road again; the result was a successful nationwide tour that resulted in the CD and DVD, "Loggins and Messina Sittin' In Again".
After a gap of nearly four years, 2007 saw Loggins join start-up label 180 Music for the release of his "How About Now" album. It also saw him inducted into Hollywood’s Sunset Boulevard RockWalk.
Listen to his songs.
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