This husband-and-wife team comprise of:
Cecil Womack (Cecil Dale Womack a.k.a. Zekuumba Zekkariyas, b. 25th September 1947, Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.A. d. 1st February 2013, Johannesburg, South Africa.)
and
Linda Cooke Womack (b. Linda Marie Campbell (a.k.a. Zeriiya Zekkariyas), 25th April 1953, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.A.)
Cecil Womack was the youngest of the Womack Brothers, who later became the Valentinos.
Linda is the daughter of the late Sam Cooke and the pair first met when they were children.
the valentinos
The Valentinos signed to Sam Cooke's Star label, however, Sam Cooke's subsequent death left them without a label, and after a brief liaison with Chess Records, Bobby Womack left the group to go solo.
Cecil became the second husband of Motown star Mary Wells in 1967, and together they had three children, Cecil Jr, Stacy and Harry.
Cecil managed Mary until the couple separated in 1977.
Following the divorce, Mary dated Cecil's other brother, Curtis Womack and the pair had a daughter called Sugar.
Linda commenced a songwriting career in 1964 at the age of 11, composing 'I Need A Woman', and would also co-write 'I'm In Love' for Wilson Pickett and 'A Woman's Gotta Have It' in 1972 for Bobby Womack, James Taylor, along with many others.
She later began a professional and personal partnership with Cecil, recalling:
'My father had the deepest regard for all the Womack brothers. He had talked about how talented Cecil was since I was four years old ... We didn't actually meet until I was eight'.
Together they worked extensively as a writing team for Philadelphia International, achieving a notable success with 'Love T.K.O.', a soul hit in 1980 for Teddy Pendergrass.
They also penned 'I Just Want To Satisfy You' for the O'Jays, and 'Love Symphony' for Patti LaBelle.
love wars - 1983 / radio m.u.s.c. man - 1985
In 1983, as Womack & Womack, Cecil and Linda released a debut album, for Elektra Records, entitled 'Love Wars'.
The album was well received, with 'Baby I'm Scared Of You', making the U.K. chart (Top 75).
The set also featured their own take on their song 'Love T.K.O.' and the dancer 'Love Wars' (later covered by The Beautiful South).
1983 also saw the duo penning the song 'New Day' for George Benson, featured on his 'In Your Eyes' album released that year.
'Radio M.U.S.C. Man' followed in 1985, and featured 'Night Rider' and 'Love's Calling'.
starbright - 1986 / conscience - 1988
'Starbright was released in 1986, with 'Soul Love / Soul Man' making the Top 60 in the charts.
'Conscience' followed in 1988, continuing a run of quality releases, consolidating the duo's songwriting reputation, and featured two further hits 'Life Is Just A Ballgame' and 'Teardrops', both making the Top 40.
family spirit 1991 / transformation to the house of zekkariyas - 1993
1991's 'Family Spirit' was the final release under the Womack & Womack name, before they adopted the names Zeriiya (Linda) and Zekkariyas (Cecil), relating to the Afrocentricity movement.
They had journeyed to Nigeria, where they discovered ancestral ties to the Zekkariyas tribe.
'Transformed To The House Of Zekkariyas' was their final album, for Warner Brothers, in the current catalogue, however, they continued to write for other artists, contributing 'Hurting Inside' and 'Sexy' for Ruby Turner.
Cecil Womack passed away in South Africa in 2013.
Albums:
Love Wars (Elektra Records 1983)
Radio M.U.S.C. Man (Elektra Records 1985)
Starbright (Manhattan / EMI Records 1986)
Conscience (Island Records 1988)
Family Spirit (Arista 1991)
Transformed To The House Of Zekkariyas (Warner Brothers Records 1993)
