LeRoy Bell, at times Leroy Bell, is an American singer and songwriter. He and his friend Casey James played in Special Blend, and then went on to form their own duo Bell and James, also composing songs that were hits for other artists most notably two charting hit singles for Elton John. Later Bell became a member of the trio Only Friends. In 2011, Bell applied for the AmericanThe X Factor and was chosen for the Final 16 and went on to the live shows being mentored by Nicole Scherzinger. He was eliminated after the fifth live show finishing 8th overall in the inaugural season of the American The X Factor when he was in bottom three with Marcus Canty and Lakoda Rayne.
Bell and James
Bell and James was a duo soul group formed by LeRoy Bell and Casey James. They both had played for a while in the band Special Blend, before they decided to team up together as Bell and James. The duo released three albums: Bell and James, Only Make Believe and In Black and White, and had a number of singles, the most successful and well-known being "Livin' It Up " released on A&M Records. It reached #15 on the U.S. Hot 100. LeRoy also released his own EP "Spending Time" on his own label, Martez Music Group, releasing "Two Sides to Every Story" from the EP as a single.
Songwriting
LeRoy Bell also co-wrote many songs for others in partnership with Casey James. They were encouraged by LeRoy's uncle Thom Bell who owned Mighty Three Music, a music production company along with Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff. The latter were a famous composing duo collaboration Gamble and Huff to whom Bell and James provided some of their composition. Their songs were recorded by a number of groups including:
Most notably, two of the LeRoy Bell songs were recorded by Elton John. One was "Mama Can't Buy You Love" and the other "Are You Ready for Love". The songs, a LeRoy Bell-Casey James co-composition appeared in "The Thom Bell Sessions" in 1977. Elton John's song version of "Mama Can't Buy You Love" went to the Top 10 in the general charts and #1 the Adult/Contemporary chart in the fall of 1979, earning Elton a Grammy Nomination for "Best Male R&B Vocal Performance". His song "Are You Ready for Love" did not chart. Track list of Elton John single:
Side 1: "Are You Ready for Love"
Side 2.1: "Three Way Love Affair"
Side 2.2: "Mama Can't Buy You Love"
In February 1989, The Complete Thom Bell Sessions was released by MCA Records, although it had been recorded in 1977. In addition to "Mama Can't Buy You Love" and "Are You Ready for Love", it featured three additional songs, including "Country Love Song" also co-written by LeRoy Bell.
LeRoy Bell also formed his band Only Friends as LeRoy Bell and His Only Friends, featuring Terry Morgan on bass and Davis Martin on drums. Both are experience musicians. Morgan had played with Dee Daniels, Pat Wright & The Total Experience Gospel Choir, Dave Lewis, Thelma Houston and others, whereas Martin was previously a member of the band Maktub.
''The X Factor''
In 2011, he applied for the American version of The X Factor, singing the song "Lean on Me" at his audition. Becoming one of the Top 32, he performed in Judges House Bob Dylan's "Make You Feel My Love" in front of Enrique Iglesias and mentor Nicole Scherzinger becoming one of the finalists, qualifying for the live shows in the over 30s category mentored by Scherzinger. During the live shows, he had the following performances:
Performances and results
On November 22, 2011, he was voted bottom three by public vote and had to sing for survival against Marcus Canty. He chose to sing The Beatles song "Don't Let Me Down". The result went to deadlock and the public vote revealed Bell had received the fewer votes and accordingly was eliminated after Live Show 5 finishing 8th overall in competition.
