Mary Frierson, later Mary Cross (1947 – December 16, 2014),
[Bob Mehr, "Stax singer Wendy Rene dies", ''The Commercial Appeal'', 17 December 2014]
/ref> better known by her stage name of Wendy Rene, was an American 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 attes ...
singer and songwriter. She recorded for Stax Records
Stax Records is an American record company, originally based in Memphis, Tennessee. Founded in 1957 as Satellite Records, the label changed its name to Stax Records in 1961. It also shared its operations with sister label Volt Records.
Stax was ...
in the mid 1960s.
Biography
Mary Frierson was born in Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the seat of Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 U.S. census, Memphis is the second-mos ...
.[Biography by Andrew Hamilton at Allmusic.com]
Retrieved April 27, 2013 Her father was of mixed race and married a Memphis musician who was nearly 20 years his junior; the couple had three sons and one daughter. The family were members of the Church of God in Christ
The Church of God in Christ (COGIC) is a Holiness–Pentecostal Christian denomination, and the largest Pentecostal denomination in the United States. Although an international and multi-ethnic religious organization, it has a predominantly Bl ...
.
As a teenager, Mary Frierson formed a singing quartet, the Drapels, with her brother Johnnie Frierson and two friends, Marianne Brittenum and Wilbur Mondie. They auditioned for Stax co-founder Jim Stewart in 1963, and were immediately offered a recording contract. Before leaving, Mary showed Stewart some of the songs she had written, and was also offered a solo contract.[Liner notes at LightInTheAttic.net]
Retrieved April 27, 2013 While in her teens, she married a military man, but the young couple soon parted ways.
She needed a stage name, and several options came up including the name Wendy Storm, suggested by Stax receptionist-turned PR head Deanie Parker.[ ]Otis Redding
Otis Ray Redding Jr. (September 9, 1941 – December 10, 1967) was an American singer and songwriter. He is considered one of the greatest singers in the history of American popular music and a seminal artist in soul music and rhythm and blues. ...
then came up with the name Wendy Rene, which she preferred, and she used that name regularly as a solo artist. Her first solo single, " After Laughter (Comes Tears)", co-written with her brother, was released in August 1964, and became a local hit but failed to make the national R&B chart (the single did, however, reach Billboard's Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart in Oct. 1964). The record featured Booker T. Jones
Booker Taliaferro Jones Jr. (born November 12, 1944) is an American musician, songwriter, record producer and arranger, best known as the frontman of the band Booker T. & the M.G.'s. He has also worked in the studios with many well-known art ...
on organ.[ The song had been recorded by the Drapels, but was released under Wendy Rene's name. The group split up soon afterwards.][
Her second solo single, "Bar-B-Q", was released in November 1964, to cash in on the popularity of ]dance craze
''Dance Craze'' is a 1981 American documentary film about the British 2 Tone music genre.
The film was directed by Joe Massot, who originally wanted to do a film only about the band Madness, whom he met during their first US tour. Massot lat ...
records. Featuring Steve Cropper
Steven Lee Cropper (born October 21, 1941), sometimes known as "The Colonel", is an American guitarist, songwriter and record producer. He is the guitarist of the Stax Records house band, Booker T. & the M.G.'s, which backed artists such as Ot ...
on guitar, it failed to reach the charts. However, she continued to record and to tour with Stax stars, including Rufus Thomas
Rufus C. Thomas, Jr. (March 26, 1917 – December 15, 2001) was an American rhythm-and-blues, funk, soul and blues singer, songwriter, dancer, DJ and comic entertainer from Memphis, Tennessee. He recorded for several labels, including Chess Rec ...
and Otis Redding, and to sing backing vocals on their records. In 1967, she married songwriter and Stax employee James Cross.[ In December of that year, she was scheduled to fly with Redding and the ]Bar-Kays
The Bar-Kays are an American funk band formed in 1964. The band had dozens of charting singles from the 1960s to the 1980s, including "Soul Finger" (US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 number 17, R&B number 3) in 1967, "Son of Shaft" (R&B number 10) in ...
for what would have been her final live performance for the foreseeable future. A new mother, she backed out at the last minute to stay home with her child. Tragically, the plane crashed in Madison, Wisconsin
Madison is the county seat of Dane County and the capital city of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census the population was 269,840, making it the second-largest city in Wisconsin by population, after Milwaukee, and the 80th-lar ...
leaving Redding and six others dead.[ Bob Mehr, ''Unsung Stax star Wendy Rene gets due on 'After Laughter Comes Tears' '', GoMemphis.com, 16 February 2012]
Retrieved April 28, 2013[Interview with Andria Lisle, Autumn 2011, Published with CD release ''After Laughter Comes Tears'', Light in the Attic records c 2012]
Wendy Rene then retired from the music business and, as Mary Cross, devoted herself to her family and church, the Bountiful Blessing Church of God in Christ in Memphis. She and James Cross have five sons and one daughter. In 2010, she returned to the stage briefly at the Ponderosa Stomp
The Ponderosa Stomp is an annual American roots music festival dedicated to "recognizing the architects of rock-n-roll, blues, jazz, country, swamp pop and soul music." It was founded in New Orleans in 2002 and produced by the non-profit Mystic K ...
in .[
Several of her songs have been used in films ('' Gegen die Wand'', '']The Fighting Temptations
''The Fighting Temptations'' is a 2003 American musical comedy film directed by Jonathan Lynn, written by Elizabeth Hunter and Saladin K. Patterson, and distributed by Paramount Pictures and MTV Films. The main plot revolves around Darrin Hill (C ...
'', ''Lucky Number Slevin
''Lucky Number Slevin'' (also known as ''The Wrong Man'' in Australia, ''The 7 Affair'' in Spain, ''Hitman for Hire'' in Mexico and ''Check-Mate'' in Brazil) is a 2006 neo-noir action crime thriller film directed by Paul McGuigan and written by ...
'', ''The Wackness
''The Wackness'' is a 2008 American coming-of-age comedy-drama film written and directed by Jonathan Levine and starring Josh Peck, Ben Kingsley, Mary-Kate Olsen, Famke Janssen, and Olivia Thirlby. The film is distributed by Sony Pictures Classi ...
'', ''Felix and Meira
''Felix and Meira'' (french: Félix et Meira) is a 2014 Canadian drama film directed by Maxime Giroux, and starring Martin Dubreuil, Hadas Yaron, and Luzer Twersky. It is about an improbable affair between two Montreal residents - one a marri ...
'', '' The Lady in the Car with Glasses and a Gun'') and sampled/redone by current artists such as Wu-Tang Clan
Wu-Tang Clan is an American hip hop group formed in Staten Island, New York City, in 1992. Its original members include RZA, GZA, Ol' Dirty Bastard, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God, and Masta Killa. Close affili ...
(in "Tearz
''Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)'' is the debut studio album by American hip hop group Wu-Tang Clan, released on November 9, 1993, by Loud Records. Recording sessions took place during late 1992 to early 1993 at Firehouse Studio in New York Cit ...
"), Metro Boomin
Leland Tyler Wayne (born September 16, 1993), professionally known as Metro Boomin, is an American record producer, record executive, beatmaker, and DJ. He is known for his dark production style and its influence on modern hip hop and trap.
R ...
, Ariana Grande
Ariana Grande-Butera ( ; born June 26, 1993) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Her four-octave vocal range has received critical acclaim, and her personal life has been the subject of widespread media attention. She has received ...
, Alicia Keys
Alicia Augello Cook (born January 25, 1981), known professionally as Alicia Keys, is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. A classically trained pianist, Keys started composing songs when she was 12 and was signed at 15 years old by Col ...
and Lykke Li
Li Lykke Timotej Zachrisson (born 18 March 1986), known as Lykke Li (), is a Swedish singer. Her music often blends elements of indie pop, dream pop and electronic. Her debut studio album, ''Youth Novels'', was released in 2008, and has been fol ...
. Chili's
Chili's Grill & Bar is an American casual dining restaurant chain. The company was founded by Larry Lavine in Texas in 1975 and is currently owned and operated by Brinker International.
History
Chili's first location, a converted postal statio ...
Restaurant used Rene's "Bar-B-Q" single for their 2013 commercial.
In 2003 Ace Records released a compilation CD of her recordings, ''You Thrill My Soul'', which included several that were originally unreleased.[ Another compilation, ''After Laughter Comes Tears'', was issued by Light in the Attic Records in 2012.][
Wendy Rene died on December 16, 2014, after a stroke. She was 67.][
]
Discography
Singles
:with Volt Records
Stax Records is an American record company, originally based in Memphis, Tennessee. Founded in 1957 as Satellite Records, the label changed its name to Stax Records in 1961. It also shared its operations with sister label Volt Records.
Stax was ...
*1964: "Wondering" / "Please Don't Leave" (with The Drapels)
*1964: "Young Man" / "Your Love Is All I Need" (with The Drapels)
:with Stax Records
Stax Records is an American record company, originally based in Memphis, Tennessee. Founded in 1957 as Satellite Records, the label changed its name to Stax Records in 1961. It also shared its operations with sister label Volt Records.
Stax was ...
*1964: "After Laughter (Comes Tears)" / "What Will Tomorrow Bring"
*1964: "Bar-B-Q" / "Young and Foolish"
*1965: "Give You What I Got" / "Reap What You Sow"
Compilations
*2003: ''You Thrill My Soul'' ( Ace Records)
*2012: ''After Laughter Comes Tears: Complete Stax & Volt Singles + Rarities 1964–1965'' (Light In The Attic Records
Light in the Attic Records is an independent record label that was established in 2002 in Seattle, Washington by Matt Sullivan. The label is known for its roster of reissue projects and for its distribution catalog. Light in the Attic has re-rel ...
)
Soundtracks
* "After Laughter" – ''Lucky Number Slevin
''Lucky Number Slevin'' (also known as ''The Wrong Man'' in Australia, ''The 7 Affair'' in Spain, ''Hitman for Hire'' in Mexico and ''Check-Mate'' in Brazil) is a 2006 neo-noir action crime thriller film directed by Paul McGuigan and written by ...
''
* "After Laughter" – ''Gegen die Wand'' (''Head-On'')
* "Bar-B-Q" – ''Once Upon a Time in the Midlands
''Once Upon a Time in the Midlands'' is a 2002 British romantic comedy film directed by Shane Meadows, and co-written with Paul Fraser. The film stars Robert Carlyle, Rhys Ifans, Kathy Burke, Ricky Tomlinson, Shirley Henderson and Andrew Shi ...
''
* "After Laughter" – ''The Wackness
''The Wackness'' is a 2008 American coming-of-age comedy-drama film written and directed by Jonathan Levine and starring Josh Peck, Ben Kingsley, Mary-Kate Olsen, Famke Janssen, and Olivia Thirlby. The film is distributed by Sony Pictures Classi ...
''
* "After Laughter" – '' Felix & Meira''
* "After Laughter" – '' La dame dans l'auto avec des lunettes et un fusil''
* "After Laughter" – ''This is England '88
''This Is England '88'' is a 2011 Television in the United Kingdom, British drama miniseries written by Shane Meadows and Jack Thorne (writer), Jack Thorne as a spin-off from the 2006 film ''This Is England''. It is also a sequel to the 2010 tele ...
''
References
External links
Wendy Rene at Stax Museum of American Soul Music
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rene, Wendy
American gospel singers
Musicians from Memphis, Tennessee
American soul musicians
1947 births
2014 deaths
Stax Records artists
20th-century African-American women singers