Jeannie Reynolds

Singer Jeannie Reynolds, best known for "The Fruit Song," was the sister of L.J. Reynolds of the Dramatics. Though "The Fruit Song" is her signature song, her highest-charting single was the snappy "The Phone's Been Jumping All Day" on Casablanca Records, which went to number ten R&B on Billboard in summer 1975. Her only other R&B charting single was its follow-up, "Lay Some Lovin' on Me." With its "fruitful" cover, the singer's LP Cherries, Bananas and Other Fine Things on Casablanca was issued in June 1976. One single from the LP, "The Fruit Song," written by Lawrence Payton of the Four Tops and Fred Bridges, became a huge disco hit, a post-release collectible, and a steppers standard. Another Casablanca LP, One Wish, was produced by Don Davis (Johnnie Taylor, the Dramatics, Marilyn McCoo, and Billy Davis, Jr.). Tragically, Jeannie Reynolds took her two children's lives before committing suicide in 1980. ~ Ed Hogan