Most of us Old Schoolers remember C+C Music Factory’s ’90s classics, “Gonna Make You Sweat” and “Things That Make You Go Hmmm.” But if you’re like some of here at ILOSM, you may not have known that the Grammy award winning, multiplatinum selling group lost one of it’s founding members, David Cole, at a very young age.
If you recall, C+C Music Factory’s first album, “Gonna Make You Sweat,”- which featured David’s music partner, Robert Clivillés, as well as rapper, Freedom Williams, and singers, Zelma Davis, and Martha Wash- had huge success in the U.S. and abroad. Their second album in 1994, was a different story though, it barely made the Billboard charts and fans didn’t flock to the stores for it, like they’d done previously. Throughout that time, the public was unaware that David Cole was very sick. Check out the shocking details surrounding his death…
On January 24, 1995, just one year after C+C+Music Factory released their sophomore album, Anything Goes!, David Cole passed away from spinal meningitis. The thing that shocked folks even more is that his spinal condition was listed as a complication from the AIDS virus, which David had quietly been battling for a while, according to several media reports.
He was just 32 years old at the time of his death and as far as we know, he didn’t have any children and wasn’t married, but he was survived by his mother, grandmother, and three sisters- all of whom are from Passaic, NJ.
David Cole, along with his C+C Music Factory co-founder, Robert Clivillés, produced several hits and remixes for music legends like Natalie Cole, Luther Vandross, Mariah Carey, and others. David also won a Grammy for his work on The Bodyguard soundtrack, starring the late Whitney Houston and Kevin Costner.
MARIAH CAREY RELEASED “ONE SWEET DAY” WITH BOYZ II MEN IN MEMORY OF DAVID COLE
David Cole- one of the underrated musical gems of the ’90s R&B/hip hop/pop eras. Although he had to leave this earth so soon, his musical legacy will continue to live on. Rest easy David Cole.
