{"artistName":"Kleeer","artistId":4834,"artistDefaultImage":"https://artist99.cdn107.com/7f1/7f10bbfc01db3dbea4d3991fde7a9660_xl.jpg","srcset":"https://artist99.cdn107.com/7f1/7f10bbfc01db3dbea4d3991fde7a9660_sm.jpg 50w,https://artist99.cdn107.com/7f1/7f10bbfc01db3dbea4d3991fde7a9660_md.jpg 80w,https://artist99.cdn107.com/7f1/7f10bbfc01db3dbea4d3991fde7a9660_lg.jpg 200w,https://artist99.cdn107.com/7f1/7f10bbfc01db3dbea4d3991fde7a9660_xl.jpg 340w","artistBio":"\u003cp\u003eKleeer was a New York based funk, disco and post-disco band which was formed in 1972 under the name The Jam Band, as a backup group to different disco bands and vocalists. The group consisted of Woody Cunningham, vocalist/percussionist Paul Crutchfield, guitarist Richard Lee and bassist Norman Durham.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAfter a switch to the name Pipeline in 1975, the group also decided to switch to making hard rock instead of disco. Record labels competed to sign them but, when they finally ended up at Columbia Records, their single \"Gypsie Rider\" did not fare well commercially.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn 1976 they got the opportunity to become The Universal Robot Band along with underground disco producers Patrick Adams and Greg Carmichael. This project was more successful than their former projects. They made the single \"Barely Breaking Even\" alongside singer Leroy Burgess, and they also recorded an album. The track \"Barely Breaking Even\" is still hailed by disco aficionados as a good track and an instant disco classic.[citation needed] The group toured as The Universal Robot Band until 1978.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAfter 1978 the band decided to get rid of their producers and make all their music themselves under the name Kleeer.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBetween 1979 and 1985 the group released seven albums and had several hits in the Billboard Hot 100 and in R\u0026amp;B charts. The most mentionable are \"Tonight's the Night\", \"Winners\", \"Intimate Connection\", and \"Get Tough.\" The sound was now more focused on 1980s style funk, and electronic instruments, like vocoders and synthesizers.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAfter the 1985's album Seeekret, the band disappeared for unknown reasons. Most of the musicians continued working with other projects. In the 1990s, however, the group re-enacted as Kleeer at some occasions.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe group's influence today is best found in many hip hop songs, where DJs have frequently sampled Kleeer, for example by 2Pac, Snoop Dogg, DJ Quik, Lil Jon and The Eastside Boys.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eEven the present day dance community have rediscovered the acts' music, as one of their recordings, \"Keeep Your Body Workin\", which reached number 54 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play Chart in 1979, was \"reworked\" into an updated recording by Tony Moran featuring Martha Wash, under the title \"Keep Your Body Working.\" The Moran/Wash version reached number one on the Hot Dance Club Play chart in December 2007. Woody Cunningham died on January 9 2010.\u003c/p\u003e","musicPath":"/music/Kleeer","playStationPath":"/stations/114095442/play","stationId":114095442,"bioPath":"/music/Kleeer/_full_bio","similars":[{"musicPath":"/music/Delegation","artistDefaultImage":"https://artist99.cdn107.com/63b/63b37a63b6dee3015a4b846b9e5c7779_md.jpg","artistName":"Delegation","artistId":8188,"station_id":113611211},{"musicPath":"/music/The+Meters","artistDefaultImage":"https://artist99.cdn107.com/243/243d4504097ce7b30f7c22d9c63dfc20_md.jpg","artistName":"The Meters","artistId":2762,"station_id":113359504},{"musicPath":"/music/Yarbrough+Peoples","artistDefaultImage":"https://artist99.cdn107.com/322/3220e714266d6e847e178ca725ebafa2_md.jpg","artistName":"Yarbrough \u0026 Peoples","artistId":3589,"station_id":113537753},{"musicPath":"/music/The+Blackbyrds","artistDefaultImage":"https://artist99.cdn107.com/139/13932e1bdd37081fef6c2753801b0ddd_md.jpg","artistName":"The Blackbyrds","artistId":9158,"station_id":113545616},{"musicPath":"/music/Ohio+Players","artistDefaultImage":"https://artist99.cdn107.com/5d3/5d30991ff57e8143d7535f91f675fa63_md.jpg","artistName":"Ohio Players","artistId":2433,"station_id":113282673},{"musicPath":"/music/Maze","artistDefaultImage":"https://artist99.cdn107.com/99e/99e73f90b77702557260d373cdf99a2d_md.jpg","artistName":"Maze","artistId":12249,"station_id":113279919},{"musicPath":"/music/Cheryl+Lynn","artistDefaultImage":"https://artist99.cdn107.com/af5/af5612d7c4d76c3a8669f7f075acb7e9_md.jpg","artistName":"Cheryl Lynn","artistId":259,"station_id":113334698},{"musicPath":"/music/Sister+Sledge","artistDefaultImage":"https://artist99.cdn107.com/a07/a075839f417e4ffdd763f91767180a60_md.jpg","artistName":"Sister Sledge","artistId":3494,"station_id":113266204},{"musicPath":"/music/Central+Line","artistDefaultImage":"https://artist99.cdn107.com/fd3/fd349e29d0abd20b29fcbcef82409103_md.jpg","artistName":"Central Line","artistId":134807,"station_id":285971484},{"musicPath":"/music/Jean+Carn","artistDefaultImage":"https://artist99.cdn107.com/15b/15bd2c18c6273e15fc6e85cc00036ca3_md.jpg","artistName":"Jean Carn","artistId":3407,"station_id":113610251},{"musicPath":"/music/T+Connection","artistDefaultImage":"https://artist99.cdn107.com/0e1/0e1427ff45f3161dd59e139c24a1027a_md.jpg","artistName":"T-Connection","artistId":3586,"station_id":113650670},{"musicPath":"/music/Stephanie+Mills","artistDefaultImage":"https://artist99.cdn107.com/d49/d49176016e583df260afceda67ade90c_md.jpg","artistName":"Stephanie Mills","artistId":461280,"station_id":401346144},{"musicPath":"/music/Tavares","artistDefaultImage":"https://artist99.cdn107.com/dbb/dbbb45751b77af6dff5e8764ba62934c_md.jpg","artistName":"Tavares","artistId":3579,"station_id":113332329},{"musicPath":"/music/The+Bar+Kays","artistDefaultImage":"https://artist99.cdn107.com/45f/45fe19c60602671148e7b07ce7f8dc98_md.jpg","artistName":"The Bar-Kays","artistId":3458,"station_id":113314969},{"musicPath":"/music/Keni+Burke","artistDefaultImage":"https://artist99.cdn107.com/3db/3dba02f9c83b48cace996473abc927b3_md.jpg","artistName":"Keni Burke","artistId":108809,"station_id":281863339},{"musicPath":"/music/Inner+Life","artistDefaultImage":"https://artist99.cdn107.com/5c7/5c75d45acc67d85c5951cb59815b71fe_md.jpg","artistName":"Inner Life","artistId":9191,"station_id":114691416},{"musicPath":"/music/Ashford+Simpson","artistDefaultImage":"https://artist99.cdn107.com/413/413c2d33cb7f048f98bf4c5fde2444b1_md.jpg","artistName":"Ashford \u0026 Simpson","artistId":3674,"station_id":113269653},{"musicPath":"/music/Gwen+Guthrie","artistDefaultImage":"https://artist99.cdn107.com/b80/b80840ad288dd643af05e66df0c48a54_md.jpg","artistName":"Gwen Guthrie","artistId":3687,"station_id":113380296}]}