Bruce Sudano

Songwriter Bruce Sudano was born on September 26, 1948, in Brooklyn, New York, where he co-founded the pop/rock band Alive N Kickin' in 1968. A protégée of Tommy James, he co-wrote Tommy James and the Shondells' Top 20 hit, "Ball of Fire," one year later. James returned the favor by writing Alive N Kickin's signature song, "Tighter, Tighter," which peaked at Number 7 on the American charts in 1970. Following the band's breakup, Sudano formed the R&B group Brooklyn Dreams and began a series of collaborations with disco queen Donna Summer. Brooklyn Dreams' three members appeared on Summer's "Heaven Knows," which climbed to Number 4 in 1977, and co-wrote her Grammy-nominated disco classic "Bad Girls," which topped the American charts for five weeks in 1979. Sudano and Summer became romantic partners, too, marrying in 1980 and starting a family shortly thereafter. Although Brooklyn Dreams disbanded that same year, Sudano's songwriting career flourished throughout the 1980s, with his biggest successes including Dolly Parton's chart-topping country hit "Starting Over Again" and Jermaine Jackson's Grammy-nominated duet with Michael Jackson, "Tell Me I'm Not Dreamin' (Too Good to Be True)." He performed as a solo artist, too, releasing his debut in 1981 landing a string of adult contemporary hits with latter-day albums like 2004's Rainy Day Soul and 2009's Life and the Romantic.

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