Post by Pete70s on Dec 7, 2007 22:31:16 GMT -5
I'm on a HUGE soul music kick lately, and since I've sadly neglected a lot of great soul artists in past seasons of "Contender", I'm going to be leaning toward more soul artists in the coming weeks.
This artist is someone who scored VERY high in our Hall Of Fame poll, and when I think of it, I'm astonished that this person is not already in! Although, unlike many "contenders", I think that she may actually stand a chance!
Mary Wells
Between 1960-1963 (what I like to refer to as the "pre-Supremes" era of Motown), Mary Wells was unquestionably their biggest star. Scoring hit after hit for the growing young label, much of that companies later success would not have happened had it not been for Mary Wells.
Berry Gordy tells the story of how he met Mary in his autobiography "To Be Loved" (which I'm currently reading, a PHENOMENAL book if you haven't read it!). She approached him at a club where he was promoting a concert, saying she'd written a great song for Jackie Wilson. Very busy, and not really wanting to be bothered with her, he told her just to sing it to him right there and then. She did. The song was "Bye Bye Baby", and it blew him away. So much so that he had her record it herself.
Though "Bye Bye Baby" missed the Top 40, it was a huge hit in many markets, and (alongside "Shop Around") one of the cornerstones of the Motown legacy. A string of hits followed, "Two Lovers", "You Beat Me To The Punch", "You Lost The Sweetest Boy", "The One That Really Loves You", all leading up to her biggest hit, her signature song: "My Guy", in early 1964.
Unfortunately, ego got the better of Mary after "My Guy" hit #1. She wanted a better deal, and in a move that rivals Shelly Long leaving Cheers (or Pernell Roberts leaving Bonanza) among the dumbest career moves ever, she left Motown for 20th Century Records. She barely scraped the top 40 with "Use Your Head" in 1965, and never had another hit (though she recorded for several different labels over the years. It's been speculated that Berry may have had her records blackballed from radio).
Her later years saw her health decline. Diagnosed with cancer in 1990, she had to sell her house and possessions to pay her medical bills. Suffering from pneumonia as well as the effects of cancer, she died in the summer of 1992.
Here's hoping the Hall committee will come to their senses and "use their heads", (although I think at this point Madonna and The Beastie Boys are way more important to them)....
This artist is someone who scored VERY high in our Hall Of Fame poll, and when I think of it, I'm astonished that this person is not already in! Although, unlike many "contenders", I think that she may actually stand a chance!
Mary Wells
Between 1960-1963 (what I like to refer to as the "pre-Supremes" era of Motown), Mary Wells was unquestionably their biggest star. Scoring hit after hit for the growing young label, much of that companies later success would not have happened had it not been for Mary Wells.
Berry Gordy tells the story of how he met Mary in his autobiography "To Be Loved" (which I'm currently reading, a PHENOMENAL book if you haven't read it!). She approached him at a club where he was promoting a concert, saying she'd written a great song for Jackie Wilson. Very busy, and not really wanting to be bothered with her, he told her just to sing it to him right there and then. She did. The song was "Bye Bye Baby", and it blew him away. So much so that he had her record it herself.
Though "Bye Bye Baby" missed the Top 40, it was a huge hit in many markets, and (alongside "Shop Around") one of the cornerstones of the Motown legacy. A string of hits followed, "Two Lovers", "You Beat Me To The Punch", "You Lost The Sweetest Boy", "The One That Really Loves You", all leading up to her biggest hit, her signature song: "My Guy", in early 1964.
Unfortunately, ego got the better of Mary after "My Guy" hit #1. She wanted a better deal, and in a move that rivals Shelly Long leaving Cheers (or Pernell Roberts leaving Bonanza) among the dumbest career moves ever, she left Motown for 20th Century Records. She barely scraped the top 40 with "Use Your Head" in 1965, and never had another hit (though she recorded for several different labels over the years. It's been speculated that Berry may have had her records blackballed from radio).
Her later years saw her health decline. Diagnosed with cancer in 1990, she had to sell her house and possessions to pay her medical bills. Suffering from pneumonia as well as the effects of cancer, she died in the summer of 1992.
Here's hoping the Hall committee will come to their senses and "use their heads", (although I think at this point Madonna and The Beastie Boys are way more important to them)....
