He developed his style after David Ruffin of The Temptations and Marvin Junior of The Dells and, encouraged by family and friends, pursued a career in music.
In 1984, Saunders sang lead on the international dance music hit "Today's Your Lucky Day" from the Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes' album Talk It Up (Tell Everybody).
The vocal line-up included Saunders with Melvin, Bill Spratley, Dwight "Blackey" Johnson and Rufus Thorne.
The video for "Today's Your Lucky Day" which featured the female vocalist Nikko, was filmed at a transformed club in south Philadelphia designed to look like a Las Vegas-style casino.
[5] Saunders recorded and toured with Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes for ten years before pursuing a solo career.