JOHNNY MATHIS, American singer, born; Although he is frequently described as a romantic singer, his vast discography includes jazz, traditional bop, Brazilian and Spanish music, Soul, R&B, soft rock, Broadway, Tin Pan Alley standards, some blues and country songs, and even a few disco tunes for his album Mathis Magic (1979). In 1980/81 Mathis recorded an album with Chic’s Bernard Edwards and Niles Rodgers, I Love My Lady, which remains unreleased. Mathis also remains highly associated with holiday music, having recorded nine Christmas albums. According to British recordings chart historian and Guinness Book of Records Music writer Paul Gambaccini,

Mathis has recorded over 110 albums and sold more than 350 million records worldwide. His Merry Christmas album of 1958 has made the USA charts almost every year since its release and is now approaching 6 Million unit sales. This makes Mathis the third most successful male recording artist ever. He was given the title The Voice Of Romance. Mathis has the distinction of having the longest stay of any recording artist on the Columbia Record label, having been with the label from 1956 to 1963 and from 1968 to the present.

A 1982 US Magazine article quoted Mathis as having said, “Homosexuality is a way of life that I’ve grown accustomed to.” He further confirmed a sexual relationship with a male saxophonist. After more than twenty years of silence on the subject, in 2006, Mathis revealed in an interview his silence was due to death threats he received as a result of that 1982 article. On April 13, 2006 Mathis granted a podcast interview with The Strip in which he touched on the subject once again. Chances are…indeed.