Van Allen Clinton McCoy (January 6, 1940 – July 6, 1979) was an American record producer, arranger, songwriter and singer. He is known for his 1975 internationally successful hit "The Hustle". He has approximately 700 song copyrights to his credit, and produced songs by such recording artists as Brenda & the Tabulations; David Ruffin; The Stylistics; The Presidents; Faith, Hope & Charity; New Censation; Gladys Knight & the Pips; Aretha Franklin; Peaches & Herb; Lesley Gore; and Stacy Lattisaw.
Childhood, family and education
Van McCoy was born on January 6, 1940, in Washington, D.C., the second child of Norman S. McCoy, Sr. and Lillian Ray. He learned to play piano at a young age and sang with the Metropolitan Baptist Church choir as a youngster.
In September 1958, McCoy entered Howard University and studied psychology, but he left school two years later in order to resume his musical career.
By the age of 12, he had begun writing his own songs, in addition to performing in local amateur shows alongside his older brother, Norman Jr. The two brothers formed a doo-wop combo named the Starlighters with two friends while in Theodore Roosevelt High School. In 1956, they recorded a single, "The Birdland", a novelty dance record. It gained some interest, resulting in a tour with saxophonist Vi Burnside. In 1959, the Starlighters produced three singles for End Records that included "I Cried". Marriage and other commitments eventually caused the group to disband during the mid-1950s. Van also sang with a group the Marylanders.
McCoy relocated to Philadelphia after leaving Howard University. He formed his own recording company, Rockin' Records, releasing his first single, "Hey Mr. D.J.", in 1959. This single gained the attention of Scepter Records owner Florence Greenberg, who hired McCoy as a staff writer and A&R representative for the label. As a writer there, McCoy composed his first success, "Stop the Music", for the popular female vocal group The Shirelles in 1962, who he also arranged for. He was co-owner of Vando Records with Philly D.J. Jocko Henderson. He owned the Share record label and co-owned the Maxx record label in the mid-1960s, supervising such artists as Gladys Knight & the Pips, Chris Bartley and The Ad Libs.
McCoy came into his own after first working for top producers Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller as a writer, and then signing with the major April-Blackwood music publishing concern, connected with Columbia Records. He began writing a string of hits as the 1960s progressed. He penned "Giving Up" for Gladys Knight & the Pips (later a hit for both The Ad Libs and Donny Hathaway), "The Sweetest Thing This Side of Heaven" for Chris Bartley, "When You're Young and in Love" for Ruby & the Romantics (later a hit for The Marvelettes), "Right on the Tip of My Tongue" for Brenda & the Tabulations, "Baby I'm Yours" for Barbara Lewis, "Getting Mighty Crowded" for Betty Everett, "Abracadabra" for Erma Franklin, "You're Gonna Make Me Love You" for Sandi Sheldon, and "I Get the Sweetest Feeling" for Jackie Wilson.
Joe Cobb was a songwriting partner of Van McCoy. The duo composed at least eighteen chart hits, including "So Much Love" by Faith, Hope & Charity, "Triangle Of Love (Hey Diddle Diddle)" by The Presidents [on whom McCoy produced "5,10,15.20 (25,30 Years of Love)"], "Right on the Tip of My Tongue" by Brenda & the Tabulations, and "Come Back and Finish What You Started" by Gladys Knight & the Pips.
Cash Box reported in the June 13, 1964, issue that McCoy was appointed to the position of staff writer for the music publishing company April-Blackwood Music. He was working under Jerry Teifer. His duties included writing music and lyrics for all their labels, major and independent labels. He also had the responsibility to maintain the liaison with artists and producers. At that time, McCoy's composition "Giving Up" by Gladys Knight & the Pips was doing well in the charts. It was at no. 56 in the Cash Box Top 100 and no. 10 in the Cash Box Top 50 in R&B Locations chart.
In 1965, Barbara Lewis had the Van McCoy-composed "Baby I'm Yours" released. She was originally reluctant to record it. It went to no. 11 that year.
Daedalus Productions – VMP Productions
By July 1965, McCoy and David Kapralik had formed Daedalus Productions. Their first production was to be a release by The Spellbinders. At the time, McCoy's composition "Before and After" by Chad and Jeremy and "Baby I'm Yours" by Barbara Lewis were both in the Cash Box Top 100.
Around 1965, McCoy was promoting the Sweet Things, a female vocal outfit. Walking into a Washington, D.C., record store one day, he was roped into giving a young salesman there an audition in the storeroom. Soon he had an idea that he could put the salesman, Herb Fame, together with the Sweet Things lead singer Francine Barker, and they would be a duo. And that was the beginning of Peaches & Herb. He ended up arranging and co-producing their first hit, "Let's Fall in Love", for the Columbia subsidiary Date in 1966.
In 1966, he started his own short-lived label, Vando.
By March 11, 1967, McCoy had left Daedalus Productions and had started his own production company, VMP (Van McCoy Productions). The new company formed new labels and distributed the product via independents. It also produced artists for various labels. Already by then a Daedalus production that McCoy had arranged, produced and conducted, "Let's Fall in Love" by Peaches & Herb was in the charts. Also the previous week, a Sandi Sheldon record ("You're Gonna Make Me Love You") had been released by Okeh Records. It was done under the banner of Soul Sound Productions.
One outfit Van wrote or produced most consistently for was The Presidents, who had the hit "5-10-15-20 (25-30 Years of Love)".
In the early 1970s, McCoy had begun a long, acclaimed collaboration with songwriter/producer Charles Kipps, and arranged several hits for the soul group The Stylistics etc.
McCoy also had success with David Ruffin's comeback album, Who I Am (1975), featuring "Walk Away from Love", (US No. 9, US No. 1 R&B) in the US and a UK top 10 success. He went on to produce the next two albums for Ruffin, which spawned further successes. His early discovery, Faith, Hope And Charity, had major success in 1975 with "To Each His Own". It was another R&B chart-topper. Also in 1975, he arranged two of his compositions, "My Heart's Too Big for My Head" and "You've Got to Tell Her", for the Asha Puthli album She Loves to Hear the Music.