Jim Gilstrap

James Earl Gilstrap is an American singer and session musician. He is best known for his 1975 solo hit single "Swing Your Daddy", as well as singing co-lead to the theme from the TV series Good Times.

Gilstrap was born November 10, 1946, in Daingerfield, Texas to Jodie and Pearlie Mae (Tolbert) Gilstrap. He joined the U.S. Navy Reserve. He began his career in the music industry when he returned from serving in the Vietnam War. Early groups he worked with include the Doodletown Pipers and The Cultures.

In the early 1970s, Gilstrap was one of the backing vocalists in Stevie Wonder's backing outfit, "Wonderlove", appearing on Wonder's albums, Talking Book and Innervisions. Gilstrap sang the opening two lines of the Wonder song, "You Are the Sunshine of My Life" (with Lani Groves singing the next two lines). He subsequently signed a recording contract with Chelsea Records in 1975. His recording of the Kenny Nolan-penned "Swing Your Daddy" was a nmuber 4 hit in the UK Singles Chart in April 1975, and reached number 10 in the U.S. Billboard Black Singles chart. The song peaked at number 64 in Australia.

Gilstrap also recorded two albums of his own during the 1970s. The first, titled Swing Your Daddy, contained three more singles in "I'm on Fire" (covering 5000 Volts; it made nmuber 78 in the U.S.), "House of Strangers" and "Put Out the Fire". The second album, Love Talk (1977), was not as successful.

He worked as a session artist for the UK singer Elkie Brooks on her album Live and Learn (1979), among other performances.

He can be heard in a vocal performance on Quincy Jones' 1974 jazz-funk composition "Soul Saga (Song Of The Buffalo Soldier)", from Jones' Body Heat album. Gilstrap also provided the male lead vocals for the theme music to the 1970s television program Good Times. "I've Got You Where I Want You" (1975) was used in the soundtrack of the film Three Days of the Condor. In addition, he sang the theme song for the 1990s cartoon series TaleSpin. More recently he did an original song for the Japanese film Survive Style 5+ entitled "A Lament".

He worked with the group Side Effect on their track "Run, Run, Run" that was released on Bell Records.