The Monitors were an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

vocal group A vocal group is a performing ensemble of vocalists who sing and harmonize together. The first well-known vocals groups emerged in the 19th century, and the style had reached widespread popularity by the 1940s. Types Vocal groups can come in s ...

who recorded for

Motown Records Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ''mot ...

in the 1960s. The group, which consisted of lead singer

Richard Street Richard Allen Street (October 5, 1942 – February 27, 2013) was an American soul and R&B singer, most notable as a member of Motown vocal group The Temptations from 1971 to 1993. Born and raised in Detroit, Michigan, Street was the first memb ...

, Sandra Fagin, John "Maurice" Fagin, and Warren Harris, had two minor hits, " Say You" (#36 R&B), and then a cover of the

Valadiers The Valadiers are an American vocal group from Detroit, Michigan, who became notable as the first white vocal group signed to Motown in the early 1960s. The group was formed in 1959 by Stuart Avig (born 1943, lead vocals), Marty Coleman (lead, ba ...

' " Greetings (This is Uncle Sam)", which reached #21 on the

Billboard R&B Chart The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by ''Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 p ...

, and #100 on the Billboard Pop Singles Chart.

Career

Harris and Street were school friends of Otis Williams and Melvin Franklin. Street became a member of the Distants with Williams and Franklin, but left before the group merged with the Primes to become

The Temptations The Temptations are an American vocal group from Detroit, Michigan, who released a series of successful singles and albums with Motown Records during the 1960s and 1970s. The group's work with producer Norman Whitfield, beginning with the Top ...

. Street recorded on Thelma Records, as Richard Street & the Distants, releasing the unsuccessful single "Answer Me", produced by

Norman Whitfield Norman Jesse Whitfield (May 12, 1940 – September 16, 2008) was an American songwriter and producer, who worked with Berry Gordy's Motown labels during the 1960s. allmusic Biography/ref> He has been credited as one of the creators of the Mo ...

, and also worked as a songwriter and as a member of another group, the Peps. Street and Harris then formed a group together with Sandra and John Fagin. Their first release, as The Majestics, was to have been "Hello Love" on Motown's V.I.P. label in 1964, but release was cancelled. A year later, "Say You" was released initially as The Majestics, but a name change to The Monitors was made after it was found there was another group already recording as The Majestics for another company. " Say You" reached #36 on the

Billboard R&B chart The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by ''Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 p ...

. " Greetings (This is Uncle Sam)" was their third release and reached #100 on Billboard's Pop Chart in 1966. The song explores the feelings felt by many young men, as they were drafted into the

army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

to serve in the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

. Two more singles appeared on V.I.P., "Since I Lost You Girl" (November 1966) and "Bring Back the Love" (January 1968). They were switched to Motown's Soul label with "Step by Step (Hand in Hand)" in the summer of 1968, but this was to be their final single with Motown. However, they also released an album, '' Greetings! We're The Monitors'', in 1968. Because of The Monitors' lack of success, its members held other positions within the Motown corporation to sustain income. Richard Street, for example, worked in Motown's Quality Control department, and later traveled with The Temptations as a stand-in for Paul Williams, who became increasingly ill during the late 1960s and early 1970s due to

alcoholism Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol that results in significant mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognized diagnostic entity. Predomi ...

and other health problems. When Williams was forced to leave the Temptations in 1971 because of his failing health, Street took his place, and The Monitors were dissolved. British producer Ian Levine recorded a new version of The Monitors in the late 1980s, with lead singer Darrell Littlejohn (a nephew of

Smokey Robinson William "Smokey" Robinson Jr. (born February 19, 1940) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and former record executive director. He was the founder and front man of the Motown vocal group the Miracles, for which he was also chief ...

), Warren Harris, Maurice Fagin, Herschel Hunter, and Leah Harris, but without Street. The group released a new album, ''Grazing in the Grass'', on Levine's

Motorcity ''Motorcity'' is an American animated television series created by Chris Prynoski. It is produced by Titmouse, Inc. and Disney Television Animation. The series ran from April 30, 2012 to January 7, 2013 on Disney XD. On November 5, 2012, the ser ...

label. One single, "Standing Still" was released, in 1990. ''The Elgins Meet The Monitors'', a British import CD, was released in 1997. It pairs their sole album for Motown with one by fellow Motown group The Elgins. It contains every track from each of their LPs, along with some previously unreleased Monitors songs. In 2011, their compilation album, ''Say You! The Motown Anthology 1963-1968'', was released. It compiles all the songs recorded by The Monitors at their tenure at Motown, released under the Kent Soul label (an Ace Records subsidiary that releases Northern Soul music), including every track from their 1968 album ''Greetings! We're The Monitors''. The album also contains many other songs that were not included in their debut album; there are several B-sides from singles that were released by the group, including "All for Someone" and "Don't Put Off 'Til Tomorrow What You Can Do Today", as well as some previously unreleased tracks like "Crying in the Night".

Discography

Albums

*'' Greetings! We're The Monitors'' (

Soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun '' soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest att ...

, 1968) *''Grazing in the Grass'' (

, 1990) *''The Monitors Meet the Elgins'' (Marginal, 1997) *''Say You! The Motown Anthology'' ( Kent Soul, 2014)

Singles

References

External links

The Monitors biography at Doo Wop Heaven
{{DEFAULTSORT:Monitors American soul musical groups Motown artists Northern soul musicians