Today’s classic song of the day is “Too Late to Turn Back now” by Cornelius Brothers & Sister Rose. They were a family band from Dania Beach, Florida, comprised of brothers Carter and Eddie Cornelius and, not surprisingly, their sister Rose. The brothers Cornelius first started singing together professionally in the mid 1960s, adding sister Rose to the mix in 1970; another sister, Billie Jo, joined up in 1972.
The Cornelius family first hit the charts in 1971 with the single “Treat Her Like a Lady,” which went all the way to #3 on the Billboard Hot 100. They released “Too Late to Turn Back Now” in May of 1972 and this one did even better, hitting #2 on the Billboard Hot 100, #1 on the Cash Box Top 100, #5 on Billboard’s R&B Singles chart, and #6 on the Adult Contemporary chart. The tune was written by brother Eddie Cornelius.
While “Too Late to Turn Back Now” was the family’s last big hit, they released two other singles in 1972 that cracked the top forty, “Don’t Ever Be Lonely” and “I’m Never Gonna Be Alone Anymore.” Cornelius Brothers & Sister Rose broke up in 1976 when brother Carter joined a Black Hebrew sect and changed his name to Prince Gideon Israel; he passed away in 1991, aged 43. Eddie became a born-again Christian and later an ordained pastor; he published a memoir, It’s Not Too Late to Turn Back Now: Back to the Open Arms of God, in 2020. Sister Rose is currently living in Port Saint Lucie, Florida, where she still performs with local groups.
So here’s your daily bonus video of the day, Cornelius Brothers & Sister Rose (along with other sister Billie Jo), performing “Too Late to Turn Back Now” live on the January 24, 1973, episode of The Mike Douglas Show. They had a nice sound.
