Charlie Singleton was best known as the guitarist and sometime falsetto singer and keyboardist for the '80s funk group Cameo. Born July 15, 1954, he joined Cameo in 1981, as the band was making a transition from hard George Clinton-style funk to more synth-driven urban funk. By 1985, Singleton had assembled his own band, Modern Man, but continued to perform and record with Cameo on a regular basis. His first solo project, Modern Man, was released in 1985 on Arista. The following year, Cameo enjoyed their biggest hit with "Word Up," and Singleton subsequently switched over to Epic for two more albums, 1987's Nothing Ventured, Nothing Gained and 1989's Man on a Mission. In the years that followed, Singleton made his living as a session and touring musician for a variety of artists, from pop and rock to urban R&B to jazz to gospel. He also branched out into production work, mostly for urban and dance artists, but occasionally branching out into left-field assignments like Pat Boone. ~ Steve Huey