Lobo

Best remembered for soft-rock perennials like "Me and You and a Dog Named Boo" and "I'd Love You to Want Me," Lobo was the alias of singer/songwriter Roland Kent LaVoie, born 1943 in Tallahassee, FL. At 17 he joined the Rumors, whose ranks also included future luminaries like Gram Parsons, Jim Stafford, and noted drummer Jon Corneal. From there LaVoie attended the University of South Florida, joining the Sugar Beats and making his recorded debut on their 1964 single "What Am I Doing Here?" Although the group proved short-lived, it inaugurated a lengthy collaboration between LaVoie and bandmate Phil Gernhard, who would later produce all of Lobo's hits. In 1971, LaVoie adopted the Lobo moniker, and his 1972 album, Of a Simple Man, scored his biggest chart hit, "I'd Love You to Want Me," as well as another Top Ten smash, "Don't Expect Me to Be Your Friend." With 1973's Calumet, Lobo earned three more Top 40 hits, but commercial momentum dissipated as the decade continued, and his chart run was over. After a short stay at Elektra, in 1981 he formed his own label, Lobo Records (later rechristened Evergreen), releasing a series of little-noticed singles before retiring from performing in 1985. Lobo returned to duty in 1989 with the Taiwanese release Am I Going Crazy; his popularity in the Far East is still strong. In 1995 he signed to the Singapore-based Pony Canyon imprint for a number of new LPs, including Asian Moon, Sometimes, and You Must Remember This.