Debby Boone Debby Boone (LP)

Debby Boone

Childhood and first musical steps

Born on 22 September 1956 in Hackensack (New Jersey). Growing up in suburban New Jersey and California, Debby Boone was surrounded by music. The third of four daughters born to singer-actor Pat Boone and his wife Shirley (daughter of country legend Red Foley), Debby learned to raise her voice in song at a young age, often in tandem with her older sisters Cherry and Lindy and youngest sister Laury.

"My dad was busy, and out and about singing," she elaborates. "But because my mother came from a musical family and sang in a girl group and also with her sisters growing up, she started teaching us to sing as soon as we were able. She would teach us four and five-part harmony with her being the fifth part. We all loved sing-ing, and quickly it became clear that we all could sing. We became the entertainment for company," Debby laughs, "and it was the way we kept ourselves entertained in long car drives. I never anticipated that we would use it in any way professionally but the soundtrack of our lives became a lot of singing together."

Successes

Ultimately, Debby did become a professional vocalist, first with her family and then as a solo artist. In 1977, she made history at the age of 21 when her debut solo single "You Light Up My Life" spent ten consecutive weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100, setting a record and finally won a Grammy. The inspirational hit subsequently anchored an LP of the same name, featuring both Debby's solo recordings and several made with her sisters as The Boones. The 'You Light Up My Life' album was certified platinum, reaching the top ten of both the Billboard Pop and Country charts, and launching the artist on a career that flourishes to this day. This musical journey took her from one-fourth of a sister act to a headlining star with an iconic song of her own.