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Vandellas
Martha and the Vandellas (known from 1967 to 1972 as Martha Reeves & The Vandellas) were an American vocal girl group formed in Detroit in 1957. The group achieved fame in the 1960s with Motown. An act founded by friends Annette Beard, Rosalind Ashford and Gloria Williams, the group eventually included Martha Reeves, who moved up in ranks as lead vocalist of the group after Williams' departure in 1962. The group signed with and eventually recorded all of their singles for Motown's Gordy imprint. The group's string of hits included " Come and Get These Memories", " Heat Wave", "Quicksand", "Nowhere to Run", "Jimmy Mack", "I'm Ready for Love", "Bless You" and " Dancing in the Street", the latter song becoming their signature single. During their nine-year run on the charts from 1963 to 1972, Martha and the Vandellas charted over twenty-six hits and recorded in the styles of doo-wop, R&B, pop, blues, rock and roll and soul. Ten Vandellas songs reached the top ten of the ''Bi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Martha Reeves
Martha Rose Reeves (born July 18, 1941) is an American R&B and pop singer. She is the lead singer of the Motown girl group Martha and the Vandellas which scored over a dozen hit singles, including "Come and Get These Memories", " Nowhere to Run", "Heat Wave", "Jimmy Mack", and their signature "Dancing in the Street". From 2005 until 2009, Reeves served as an elected council woman for the city of Detroit, Michigan. Martha Reeves and the Vandellas were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995. Early life Martha Rose Reeves was born in Eufaula, Alabama, the first daughter of Elijah Joshua Reeves and Ruby Lee Gilmore Reeves, and the third of the couple's 11 children. She was a baby when the family moved from Eufaula to Detroit, Michigan, where her grandfather, Reverend Elijah Reeves, was a minister at Detroit's Metropolitan Church. The family was very active in the church and its choir. Elijah played guitar, and Ruby liked to sing; the children acquired their love o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lois Reeves
Sandra Delores Reeves (born April 12, 1948), better known as Lois Reeves, is an American singer, most notable for being the younger sister of Motown legend Martha Reeves, for having replaced popular Martha and the Vandellas member Betty Kelly as member of her sister's group in 1967, and for later singing background for records by Al Green in the 1970s as a member of the backing group Quiet Elegance. Lois' nickname was "Pee Wee" as she is only 5'1" tall. Biography Music career The daughter of Elijah Joshua Reeves and Ruby Lee Gilmore, Lois was part of a family of 11 children. Before her older sister, Martha, was a year old, the family moved from Eufaula, Alabama to Detroit. Both Elijah and Ruby enjoyed singing and playing the guitar, passing their love of music on to their children. Elijah's father, Reverend Elijah Reeves, was a minister at Detroit's Metropolitan Church; the family was very active in the church and in its choir. Upon graduatation from high school, Lois Reev ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Annette Beard
Annette Beard, also known as Annette Helton or Annette Sterling, is an American R&B and soul singer. Beard is best known for her work with Motown and as an original member of the singing group Martha and the Vandellas during the 1960s. Beard is currently known as a member of the singing group The Original Vandellas. Early years Born in Detroit, Michigan to Ann and Roger El Wood Beard, Annette started singing in church choirs at an early age. When she was fourteen, she was discovered by a man named Edward "Pops" Larkins, who was holding auditions for a female group at the local YMCA to complement a male group he had started. Fourteen-year-old Annette impressed him with a single note and she joined friends Rosalind Ashford and Gloria Williams to form the original version of The Del-Phis in 1957. The group performed at local get-togethers, high school parties, YMCA benefits and lawn parties. Annette, who was a shy girl growing up, did not mind singing background behind Gloria Wil ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rosalind Ashford
Rosalind "Roz" Ashford-Holmes (born September 2, 1943) is an American soprano R&B and soul singer, known for her work as an original member of the Motown singing group Martha and the Vandellas. Early years Born Rosalind Ashford on September 2, 1943, to John and Mary Ashford in Detroit, Michigan, Ashford sang in church choirs and learned to dance in local centers. Developing a passion for music, she joined the glee club and mixed choruses while attending Wilbur Wright High School. According to Ashford, in 1957 her mother and sister helped land her an audition at a local Detroit YMCA club, where a man named Edward "Pops" Larkins recruited her, Annette Beard and Gloria Williams to form a sister group to a male vocal group. Martha Reeves, contrary to belief, was not an original member of The Del-Phis, as she was a member of another group. Reeves would not join until 1960. Naming themselves The Del-Phis, the group performed in local benefit parties throughout Detroit and performed a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dancing In The Street
"Dancing in the Street" is a song written by Marvin Gaye, William "Mickey" Stevenson and Ivy Jo Hunter. It first became popular in 1964 when recorded by Martha Reeves & The Vandellas whose version reached No. 2 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart and peaked at No. 4 in the UK Singles Chart. It is one of Motown's signature songs and is the group's premier signature song. In 1965 Cilla Black included this song on her first LP, recorded with help from The Beatles and produced by George Martin. A 1966 cover by the Mamas & the Papas was a minor hit on the Hot 100 reaching No. 73. In 1982, the rock group Van Halen took their cover of "Dancing in the Street" to No. 38 on the Hot 100 chart and No. 15 in Canada on the ''RPM'' chart. A 1985 duet cover by David Bowie and Mick Jagger charted at No. 1 in the UK and reached No. 7 in the US. The song has been covered by many other artists, including The Kinks, Tages, Black Oak Arkansas, Grateful Dead, Little Richard, Myra, and The Struts. M ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Heat Wave (Martha And The Vandellas Song)
"Heat Wave" is a 1963 song written by the Holland–Dozier–Holland songwriting team. It was first made popular by the Motown vocal group Martha and the Vandellas. Released as a 45 rpm single on July 9, 1963, on the Motown subsidiary Gordy label, it hit number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot R&B chart—where it stayed for four weeks—and peaking at number 4 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. It was recorded 12 years later by rock vocalist Linda Ronstadt on her Platinum-selling 1975 album ''Prisoner in Disguise''. Ronstadt's version of the song was released as a single in September 1975, reaching number 5 in '' Billboard'', 4 in ''Cash Box'', and 6 in '' Record World''. In 2010, British musician Phil Collins spent a single week (number 28) on the ''Billboard'' Adult Contemporary listing with his retooling of the song. Martha and the Vandellas version Background "Heat Wave" was one of many songs written and produced by the Holland–Dozier–Holland songwriting and producing team. I ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Betty Kelly
Betty Kelly (born September 16, 1944) (also known as Betty Kelley) is an American singer most noted as being a member of the popular Motown singing group Martha and the Vandellas. Early years Born in Attalla, Alabama, Kelly moved with her family to Kalamazoo, Michigan when she was a child. In 1964, she replaced Annette Beard as a member of Martha and the Vandellas, the group led by Martha Reeves and featuring Rosalind Ashford. In 1961, she joined Motown singing group The Velvelettes. Martha and the Vandellas Kelly joined what became the most famed lineup of the Vandellas, which recorded "I'm Ready for Love", " Nowhere to Run" and " My Baby Loves Me". The group performed on ''The Ed Sullivan Show'', ''Shindig!'' and ''American Bandstand''. Kelly was fired from the group in the summer of 1967—about the same time that Florence Ballard was fired from The Supremes—and was replaced by Martha's younger sister Lois Reeves with the group's name changed to ''Martha Reeves and the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
I'm Ready For Love
"I'm Ready for Love" is a 1966 single by Motown girl group Martha and the Vandellas. The song, produced and written by Holland–Dozier–Holland, and was written in a similar style to The Supremes' smash hit, "You Can't Hurry Love". Background The song, which has the narrator longing to be in love with her object of affectionThe Vandellas' version was issued as the first official release off the group's 1966 album, '' Watchout!'', though the album's actual first single, the emotive ballad "What Am I Going to Do Without Your Love" bombed on the chart. This song renewed the Vandellas' popularity among mainstream audiences with its top ten showing. ''Cash Box'' said that it is a "hard driving rocker has the girls spilling out a potent, effective romance lyric in a mood that should have every dancer who spins the disk on the floor." Personnel * Lead vocals by Martha Reeves * Background vocals by the Andantes: Marlene Barrow, Jackie Hicks and Louvain Demps * Instrumental track reco ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sandra Tilley
Sandra L. Tilley (May 6, 1945 or 1946 – September 9, 1983)was an American Rhythm and blues, R&B and Soul music, soul singing, singer, best known for being a member of Motown Records, Motown girl group the Velvelettes; and later joining Martha and the Vandellas. Early life and career Sandra Tilley was born in Cleveland, Ohio on May 5, 1946. Her parents both died when she was an infant. After her parents' death, Tilley was raised by her relatives in Ohio. While In attending school in Cleveland, she would take music classes, and play violin in her school orchestra. Tilley would enter into a career in show business not too long after she graduated from high school. She would become a familiar face in the Cleveland music scenes of the 1960s, taking work as a fill in back up singer for The Orlons. Tilley’s talent was noticed by Carolyn Gill of The Velvelettes who was looking for a fill in for her group. She recruited into The Velvelettes in late 1965 by Gill, as a permanent rep ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gloria Williams
Gloria Williams (August 1, 1942 - July 5, 2000) was an Americans, American singer notable for being the original lead singer of an early incarnation of Martha and the Vandellas under the name, The Del-Phis. Born Gloria Jean Williamson in Detroit, Michigan in 1942, Williams auditioned for a spot in a girl group in 1957, and found herself accompanying Annette Beard, Rosalind Ashford and Martha Reeves in the christened Del-Phis. The group performed in benefits and high school parties before being signed to the Chess Records subsidiary Checkmate (later bought by Motown Records), where the group recorded a single, "I'll Let You Know", with Williams on lead. Once at Motown, the group sang backing vocals for other acts/artists on studio recordings, such as Marvin Gaye during this period. Williams sang lead on an early single, "There He Is (At My Door)", on the Mel-O-Dy subsidiary of Motown after the group changed their name to The Vels. On the single's flip side, "You'll Never Cherish A L ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jimmy Mack
"Jimmy Mack" is a pop/soul song that in 1967 became a hit single by Martha and the Vandellas for Motown's Gordy imprint. Written and produced by Motown's main creative team, Holland–Dozier–Holland, "Jimmy Mack" was the final Top 10 pop hit for the Vandellas in the United States, peaking at number 10 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in 1967 and at number-one on the ''Billboard'' R&B Singles chart. ''Billboard'' named the song #82 on their list of 100 Greatest Girl Group Songs of All Time. History The song, with a lead vocal by the Vandellas' lead singer Martha Reeves in the 1967 version, is sung from the point of view of a woman who longs for the return of boyfriend "Jimmy Mack". The woman is being courted by another suitor, who she says "talks just as sweet as" her long-gone Jimmy, and she hopes for Jimmy to return before she falls for the other man. The inspiration for the song came from a 1964 music industry awards dinner, which Lamont Dozier attended. At the ceremony th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Quicksand (Martha And The Vandellas Song)
"Quicksand" is a song recorded by the Motown girl group Martha and the Vandellas. It was written by the songwriting team of Holland-Dozier-Holland and released as a single in November 1963. Background "Quicksand" was built around a similar gospel-inspired delivery of the Martha and the Vandellas' breakout hit " Heat Wave", but with a slightly slower tempo and a harder edge. Like "Heat Wave", it features an analogy to a natural phenomenon, with the narrator comparing falling in love to sinking in quicksand. ''Cash Box'' said that "it continues the hard-hitting excitement of Heat Wave']." "Quicksand" was Martha and the Vandellas' third single to be written by Holland–Dozier–Holland, who would later write songs for other Motown artists such as The Supremes and the Four Tops. Personnel *Lead vocals by Martha Reeves *Background vocals by Rosalind Ashford and Annette Beard *Produced by Brian Holland and Lamont Dozier *Written by Brian Holland, Lamont Dozier and Edward Holland ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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