Early career Ware worked at
ABC Records as an arranger and songwriter before he joined
Motown as a songwriter in 1967.
Early major songwriting success: 1971–1973 In 1971, Ware collaborated with
Ike & Tina Turner, co-writing six songs on their
United Artists album
'Nuff Said. The album reached the number 21 on the
Billboard R&B chart and also appeared on the
Billboard 200. This led to a contract as a solo artist on United Artists where he released his self-titled debut album in 1972. Around this time, Ware began collaborating with
Arthur "T-Boy" Ross, younger brother of
Diana Ross. One of the songs they wrote together was "
I Wanna Be Where You Are," recorded by
Michael Jackson for his 1972 album
Got To Be There. The
single reached number two on the R&B charts and peaked at number 16 on the
Billboard Hot 100 in 1972. Ware wrote for numerous artists during this period including
Donny Hathaway and
The Miracles.
Subsequent success: 1974–1976 In 1974,
Quincy Jones booked Ware as songwriter and performer for two songs on Jones'
Body Heat album. and was covered by the
Average White Band. Ware and Ross worked on demos for Ware's second album, this one to be issued on Motown and also for Ross to win a deal.
Recording, songwriting, producing, and later career: 1976–2010s Having given away the material for his album, Ware began again on a solo effort for Motown's
Gordy label. The result would become his second album,
Musical Massage, released in September 1976. However, it became a
cult hit among soul music fans that were intrigued by Gaye's
I Want You album and the songs from Ware himself. After his brief stint as a recording artist at Motown, Ware decided to focus on writing and producing for other artists, and he wouldn't release another album until 1979. and he released his fourth album in 1981, titled ''Rockin' You Eternally'', which spawned two R&B singles chart entries, "Baby Don't Stop Me" and the title song, but the album itself did not reach the charts. Unfortunately for Ware, the label dropped him when the album failed to sell many copies.
Teena Marie,
Jeffrey Osborne,
Loose Ends,
James Ingram,
Melissa Manchester,
Krystol,
Bobby Womack, and
Lulu, co-writing the latter's European hit, "Independence." William Ruhlmann of
AllMusic wrote, "Such success didn't increase Ware's exposure as an artist, but it substantially increased his publishing income. At the same time, he was being discovered as a soul music progenitor, particularly in England, where the
Expansion label began reissuing his solo albums." In 2019, after two years of his death, a posthumous album,
Rainbow Deux, was released. == Personal life ==