Steve Lawrence, a talented American singer-actor, achieved success both as a solo artist and as one-half of a musical duo with his wife, Eydie Gormé. Hailing from a Jewish family in Brooklyn, New York, Lawrence developed a love for singing and music from a young age.
He made his first recordings with ‘King Records’ at the age of 16, drawing inspiration from Frank Sinatra’s music but always maintaining his own unique and mature vocal style.
Childhood
Lawrence was born on July 8, 1935, in Brownsville, Brooklyn, New York City as Sidney Liebowitz. His parents were Helen and Max Liebowitz, with his father working as both a house painter and cantor. Being raised in a Jewish household, Lawrence’s gift for singing was first noticed when he performed in a synagogue during his childhood.
After attending Thomas Jefferson High School and participating in a glee club, he took a break from singing during his teenage years to adapt to his changing voice. During this time, he focused on learning the piano and saxophone. Eventually, he rebranded himself as “Steve Lawrence” when he was approached by music companies in Manhattan.
Steve Lawrence’s Musical Career
He achieved success in 1951 as the first-place winner in ‘Arthur Godfrey’s Talent Scouts.’ At 16, he was signed by ‘King Records’ in April 1952 and released eight singles over the next two years.
His song ‘Poinciana’ reached high positions on major charts in June 1952. His self-titled debut album, ‘Steve Lawrence,’ was released in 1953. From July 1953, he made regular appearances on the local talk show ‘Tonight’ and later on the national channel NBC beginning in 1954. The show often featured him performing alongside Eydie Gormé.
Steve Lawrence’s subsequent albums, ‘About That Girl’ and ‘Songs by Steve Lawrence,’ were both published under Coral Records in 1955 and 1956 respectively. Two of his most popular covers, ‘The Banana Boat Song’ and ‘Party Doll,’ made it onto prominent music charts.
His fourth record, ‘Here’s Steve Lawrence,’ made it into the “Top 20” in June of 1958. In July and August of that same year, he and Eydie took over as hosts of ‘NBC’s’ ‘Steve Lawrence-Eydie Gormé Show,’ replacing Steve Allen.
At the age of 23, Lawrence enlisted in the military in late 1958 and became a singer in the ‘US Army Band and Orchestra’ stationed in Fort Myers, Virginia. During his 2-year service, he released his fifth album, ‘All About Love,’ under the Coral label.
It was also during this time that two of his singles, ‘Pretty Blue Eyes’ and ‘Footsteps,’ became popular in 1959, and his sixth album, ‘Swing Softly with Me’ (1960), was released under ‘ABC-Paramount Records.’
Following his time in the military, Steve and Eydie joined forces and created a duo under their own names. They took their act to various nightclubs, and their debut album together, titled ‘We Got Us’ (released by ‘ABC-Paramount’), featured the award-winning title track that won them the 1960 ‘Grammy’ for ‘Best Performance by a Vocal Group.’
Steve Lawrence made an appearance in the TV film ‘Carol for Another Christmas’ and released the album ‘That Holiday Feeling’ with his partner in December 1964. On September 13, 1965, ‘The Steve Lawrence Show’ premiered on ‘CBS’ and continued until December of that year. Following this, Lawrence and his wife performed together on television and at live events for the following two years.
Lawrence and his wife founded their music company, ‘GL Music,’ in 1989 and put out the record ‘Alone Together.’ They also served as the opening act for Sinatra’s ‘Diamond Jubilee Tour’ (1990-1991). In 2003, Lawrence produced ‘Steve Lawrence Sings Sinatra: A Musical Tribute to the Man and His Music.’
From 2003 to 2004, he played live on their ‘One More for the Road’ tour. In 2005, a compilation of their popular songs was put out under the title ‘All My Love Belongs to You.’ Then, in 2010, Lawrence and Eydie marked the 50th anniversary of their successful partnership as a singing duo.
Personal Life
On December 29, 1957, Lawrence and Eydie Gormé tied the knot in Las Vegas. The couple welcomed two sons, David Nessim and Michael Robert.
Tragically, in 1986, their younger son Michael passed away at the age of 23 due to heart problems. As a result, the pair took a break from performing for a year. Sadly, Eydie passed away on August 10, 2013.
Steve Lawrence, aged 88, passed away on March 7, 2024. According to his spokesperson, Susan DuBow, Lawrence died on Thursday due to complications from Alzheimer’s disease.
Net Worth
As reported by Celebrity Net Worth, the multiple Emmy award winner has accumulated a wealth of approximately $10 million from his numerous hit shows and performances.
