Mary Wells
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Mary Wells
Birth Date
May 13, 1943. Motown’s first big star, Mary Wells was born at Detroit, MI. She was known for such hits as “You Beat Me to the Punch,” “Two Lovers” and her signature song, “My Guy.” She was one of a group of black artists of the ’60s who helped end musical segregation by being played on white radio stations. Mary Wells died July 26, 1992, at Los Angeles, CA.
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Mary Wells
singer
Personal Information
Born on May 13, 1943, in Detroit, Michigan; died on July 26, 1992; married Herman Griffin, early 1960s (later divorced); married Cecil Womack, 1966 (later divorced); children: Stacy, Cecil Jr., Harry, and Sugar.
Career
Singer. Signed to Motown label, 1960; debut single release, "Bye Bye Baby," 1960; recorded and released signature single "My Guy," 1964; signed to 20th Century label, 1964, precipitating court battle with Motown; signed to Atco label, 1966; recorded for Jubilee and Epic labels, 1970s and 1980s; appeared on Motown 25th anniversary television special, 1983; toured with Motown revues, 1980s.
Life's Work
The first star to bring consistent sales and recognition to Detroit's Motown label in the 1960s, Mary Wells was also the first of many Motown stars to break away from that label acrimoniously. Her signature hit, "My Guy," is known to virtually all Americans who came of age in the 1960s, and she notched a string of other hits in collaboration with Motown's prolific songwriter and producer, William "Smokey" Robinson. Yet her career floundered until her tragic death in 1992.
Mary Esther Wells was born in Detroit on May 13, 1943. When she was three years old, she contracted spinal meningitis and had to remain in bed for two years. Wells also suffered from tuberculosis as a young woman. Her family was poor, and at the age of 12 she began to help her mother with housecleaning work. "Daywork they called it," Wells was quoted as saying in Nowhere to Run: The Story of Soul Music. "And it was damn cold on hallway linoleum. Misery is Detroit linoleum in January--with a half-froze bucket of Spic-and-Span."
Nevertheless, Wells found time to perform solos with the choir at Detroit's Northwestern High School, from which she graduated when she was 17. Shaken by the illnesses she had survived, she thought about trying to become a scientist. But the new Motown Records studio was not far from where she lived, and music seized her imagination. "I could sing, and all the entertainers looked so glamorous and wonderful, so I started writing songs," she was quoted as saying in People. When she was 16, she met an assistant to Motown owner Berry Gordy Jr., and wangled an appointment to pitch one of her songs to Gordy in person.
Signed to Motown Label
Wells had composed the song, "Bye Bye Baby," with R&B vocalist Jackie Wilson in mind, but Gordy quickly brought Wells herself into the studio to record it. It required 22 takes to coax a usable rendition from the nervous young vocalist, but Gordy's judgment was vindicated when "Bye Bye Baby" rose to the R&B Top Ten and even cracked the pop Top 50 in 1960. Wells signed a contract with Motown, and as she gained experience, the label began to put its top creative people behind her career. The most important of these was Smokey Robinson, who wrote many of her songs and produced her recordings between 1962 and 1964.
Her voice, gentle and coy and subtly playful at unexpected moments, was the perfect foil for Robinson's songwriting, and the combination yielded for Wells and for Motown a consistent string of hits. In 1962, "You Beat Me to the Punch" and "Two Lovers" both topped R&B charts, with both of those songs and "The One Who Really Loves You" making it into the pop Top Ten. "Laughing Boy," "Your Old Stand By," and "What's Easy for Two Is So Hard for One" all reached upper chart levels the following year, and by 1964, "Mary Wells was our first big, big star," former Motown sales executive Lucy Gordy Wakefield told the New York Times. Her personal appearances with the touring Motown Revue confirmed her popularity.
Opened for Beatles on Tour
Wells's high-water mark as a chart-topper came in 1964 with "My Guy," which topped the pop charts for two weeks in May at the height of the "British invasion." The song even did well in Britain, and Wells became the first Motown artist to appear across the Atlantic when she opened for the Beatles on a 1964 British tour. Despite the chart competition between them, Wells got along well with the mop-topped British sensations and always maintained a friendly relationship with them.
When she turned 21 in 1964, however, Wells left Motown, spurred on by promises of greater riches to come by her husband, backup vocalist Herman Griffin. Already having undergone two abortions at Griffin's behest, she signed a $500,000 deal with the Twentieth-Century Fox label in Hollywood that included promises of starring film roles. Motown took her to court, but Wells and her lawyers maintained that she had been deceived by the contract she had signed when she was just 17. Gordy angled to prevent other labels from signing Wells, but she eventually prevailed.
Wells would be succeeded by a long line of other Motown vocalists, predominantly female, who would tangle with the label in court. Some would move on to stardom with other labels, but Wells proved to be dependent upon the synergy between her own talents and those of Robinson and the rest of the Motown assembly line. Except for the forgettable Catalina Caper (1967), Wells's film career came to nought, and her recordings for Fox fared little better. Moving to the Atco label in 1965 she notched a few Top Ten R&B hits, but her days at the top of the charts were essentially over. She later recorded for Epic, Reprise, Warner Brothers, and a host of smaller labels, all without notable success. Her marriage to Griffin ended in divorce.
Appeared on Motown Television Special
Wells married R&B vocalist Cecil Womack; she had three children with him and one, after the couple's 1977 divorce, with his brother Curtis. For a time in the 1970s, she dropped out of the music business altogether to concentrate on raising her children, but as nostalgia for the golden age of Motown grew among baby-boom music lovers, Wells returned to the road. She became a fixture of Motown retrospectives, such as the 1983 television special mounted on the occasion of the company's 25th anniversary. Around that time, possibilities surfaced that she might return to the label, but a deal was never struck.
The last chapters of Wells's life were tragic ones. A heavy smoker who also battled heroin addiction for a time, Wells was diagnosed with throat cancer in 1990. Like many other musicians, she had no health insurance, and the illness wiped her out financially. Through the Rhythm & Blues Foundation, established partly to assist musicians who encountered financial problems in later life, various entertainment figures, including Bruce Springsteen, Rod Stewart, and fellow Motown star Diana Ross, donated money for Wells's medical treatment. Her life might have been saved by removal of her larynx, but that would have meant that she would never sing or talk again. Instead Wells chose dangerous and painful option of radiation therapy, but it did not save her life. She died in Los Angeles on July 26, 1992, at age 49.
Works
Selected discography
- Bye Bye Baby, I Don't Want to Take a Chance, Motown, 1961.
- The One Who Really Loves You, Motown, 1962.
- Two Lovers and Other Great Hits, Motown, 1963.
- Recorded Live on Stage, Motown, 1963.
- Second Time Around, Motown, 1963.
- Together (with Marvin Gaye), Motown, 1964.
- Mary Wells Sings My Guy, Motown, 1964.
- Greatest Hits, Motown, 1964.
- Mary Wells, 20th Century, 1965.
- Mary Wells Sings Love Songs to the Beatles, 20th Century, 1965.
- The Two Sides of Mary Wells, Atco, 1966.
- Servin' Up Some Soul, Jubilee, 1968.
- In and Out of Love, Epic, 1981.
Further Reading
Books
- Bianco, David, Heat Wave: The Motown Fact Book, Pierian Press, 1988.
- Hitchcock, H. Wiley and Stanley Sadie, eds., The New Grove Dictionary of American Music, Macmillan, 1986.
- Larkin, Colin, ed., The Encyclopedia of Popular Music, Muze UK, 1998.
- Romanowski, Patricia and Holly George-Warren, eds., The New Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll, Fireside, 1995.
- Stambler, Irwin, The Encyclopedia of Pop, Rock & Soul, St. Martin's, 1989.
- Billboard, August 8, 1992, p. 10.
- Entertainment Weekly, August 7, 1992, p. 62.
- New York Times, July 27, 1992.
- People, August 10, 1992, p. 96.
— James M. Manheim
Gale Musician Profiles:
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Mary Wells
| For The Record... |
| Born on May 13, 1943, in Detroit, MI; died on July 26, 1992; married Herman Griffin, early 1960s (later divorced); married Cecil Womack, 1966 (later divorced); children: Stacy, Cecil Jr., Harry, and Sugar. Signed to Motown label, 1960; debut single released, "Bye Bye Baby," 1960; recorded and released signature single "My Guy," 1964; signed to 20th Century label, 1964, precipitating court battle with Motown; signed to Atco label, 1966; recorded for Jubilee and Epic labels, 1970s and 1980s; appeared on Motown 25th anniversary television special, 1983; toured with Motown revues, 1980s. |
Singer
The first star to bring consistent sales and recognition to Detroit's Motown label in the 1960s, Mary Wells was also the first of many Motown stars to break away from that label acrimoniously. Her signature hit, "My Guy," is known to virtually all Americans who came of age in the 1960s, and she notched a string of other hits in collaboration with Motown's prolific songwriter and producer, William "Smokey" Robinson. Yet her career floundered until her tragic death in 1992.
Mary Esther Wells was born in Detroit on May 13, 1943. When she was three years old, she contracted spinal meningitis and had to remain in bed for two years. Wells also suffered from tuberculosis as a young woman. Her family was poor, and at the age of 12 she began to help her mother with housecleaning work. "Daywork they called it," Wells was quoted as saying in Nowhere to Run: The Story of Soul Music. "And it was damn cold on hallway linoleum. Misery is Detroit linoleum in January—with a half-froze bucket of Spic-and-Span."
Nevertheless, Wells found time to perform solos with the choir at Detroit's Northwestern High School, from which she graduated when she was 17. Shaken by the illnesses she had survived, she thought about trying to become a scientist. But the new Motown Records studio was not far from where she lived, and music seized her imagination. "I could sing, and all the entertainers looked so glamorous and wonderful, so I started writing songs," she was quoted as saying in People. When she was 16, she met an assistant to Motown owner Berry Gordy Jr., and wangled an appointment to pitch one of her songs to Gordy in person.
Signed to Motown Label
Wells had composed the song, "Bye Bye Baby," with R&B vocalist Jackie Wilson in mind, but Gordy quickly brought Wells herself into the studio to record it. It required 22 takes to coax a usable rendition from the nervous young vocalist, but Gordy's judgment was vindicated when "Bye Bye Baby" rose to the R&B top ten and even cracked the pop top 50 in 1960. Wells signed a contract with Motown, and as she gained experience, the label began to put its top creative people behind her career. The most important of these was Smokey Robinson, who wrote many of her songs and produced her recordings between 1962 and 1964.
Her voice, gentle and coy and subtly playful at unexpected moments, was the perfect foil for Robinson's songwriting, and the combination yielded for Wells and for Motown a consistent string of hits. In 1962, "You Beat Me to the Punch" and "Two Lovers" both topped R&B charts, with both of those songs and "The One Who Really Loves You" making it into the pop top ten. "Laughing Boy," "Your Old Stand By," and "What's Easy for Two Is So Hard for One" all reached upper chart levels the following year, and by 1964, "Mary Wells was our first big, big star," former Motown sales executive Lucy Gordy Wakefield told the New York Times. Her personal appearances with the touring Motown Revue confirmed her popularity.
Opened for Beatles on Tour
Wells's high-water mark as a chart-topper came in 1964 with "My Guy," which topped the pop charts for two weeks in May at the height of the "British invasion." The song even did well in Britain, and Wells became the first Motown artist to appear across the Atlantic when she opened for the Beatles on a 1964 British tour. Despite the chart competition between them, Wells got along well with the mop-topped British sensations and always maintained a friendly relationship with them.
When she turned 21 in 1964, however, Wells left Motown, spurred on by promises of greater riches to come by her husband, backup vocalist Herman Griffin. Already having undergone two abortions at Griffin's behest, she signed a $500,000 deal with the Twentieth-Century Fox label in Hollywood that included promises of starring film roles. Motown took her to court, but Wells and her lawyers maintained that she had been deceived by the contract she had signed when she was just 17. Gordy angled to prevent other labels from signing Wells, but she eventually prevailed.
Wells would be succeeded by a long line of other Motown vocalists, predominantly female, who would tangle with the label in court. Some would move on to stardom with other labels, but Wells proved to be dependent upon the synergy between her own talents and those of Robinson and the rest of the Motown assembly line. Except for the forgettable Catalina Caper (1967), Wells's film career came to nought, and her recordings for Fox fared little better. Moving to the Atco label in 1965 she notched a few top ten R&B hits, but her days at the top of the charts were essentially over. She later recorded for Epic, Reprise, Warner Brothers, and a host of smaller labels, all without notable success. Her marriage to Griffin ended in divorce.
Appeared on Motown Television Special
Wells married R&B vocalist Cecil Womack; she had three children with him and one, after the couple's 1977 divorce, with his brother Curtis. For a time in the 1970s, she dropped out of the music business altogether to concentrate on raising her children, but as nostalgia for the golden age of Motown grew among baby-boom music lovers, Wells returned to the road. She became a fixture of Motown retrospectives, such as the 1983 television special mounted on the occasion of the company's 25th anniversary. Around that time, possibilities surfaced that she might return to the label, but a deal was never struck.
The last chapters of Wells's life were tragic ones. A heavy smoker who also battled heroin addiction for a time, Wells was diagnosed with throat cancer in 1990. Like many other musicians, she had no health insurance, and the illness wiped her out financially. Through the Rhythm & Blues Foundation, established partly to assist musicians who encountered financial problems in later life, various entertainment figures, including Bruce Springsteen, Rod Stewart, and fellow Motown star Diana Ross, donated money for Wells's medical treatment. Her life might have been saved by removal of her larynx, but that would have meant that she would never sing or talk again. Instead Wells chose dangerous and painful option of radiation therapy, but it did not save her life. She died in Los Angeles on July 26, 1992, at age 49.
Selected discography
Bye Bye Baby, I Don't Want to Take a Chance, Motown, 1961.
The One Who Really Loves You, Motown, 1962.
Two Lovers and Other Great Hits, Motown, 1963.
Recorded Live on Stage, Motown, 1963.
Second Time Around, Motown, 1963.
Together (with Marvin Gaye), Motown, 1964.
Mary Wells Sings My Guy, Motown, 1964.
Greatest Hits, Motown, 1964.
Mary Wells, 20th Century, 1965.
Mary Wells Sings Love Songs to the Beatles, 20th Century, 1965.
The Two Sides of Mary Wells, Atco, 1966.
Servin' Up Some Soul, Jubilee, 1968.
In and Out of Love, Epic, 1981.
Sources
Books
Bianco, David, Heat Wave: The Motown Fact Book, Pierian Press, 1988.
Hitchcock, H. Wiley and Stanley Sadie, editors, The New Grove Dictionary of American Music, Macmillan, 1986.
Larkin, Colin, editor, The Encyclopedia of Popular Music, Muze UK, 1998.
Romanowski, Patricia and Holly George-Warren, editors, The New Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll, Fireside, 1995.
Stambler, Irwin, The Encyclopedia of Pop, Rock & Soul, St. Martin's, 1989.
Periodicals
Billboard, August 8, 1992, p. 10.
Entertainment Weekly, August 7, 1992, p. 62.
New York Times, July 27, 1992.
People, August 10, 1992, p. 96.
AMG AllMusic Guide: Pop Artists:
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Mary Wells
- Genres: Rhythm & Blues
Biography
Time and legions of other soul superstars have obscured the fact that for a brief moment, Mary Wells was Motown's biggest star. She came to the attention of Berry Gordy as a 17-year-old, hawking a song she'd written for Jackie Wilson; that song, "Bye Bye Baby," became her first Motown hit in 1961. The full-throated approach of that single was quickly toned down in favor of a pop-soul sound. Few other soul singers managed to be as shy and sexy at the same time as Wells (Barbara Lewis is the only other that springs to mind), and the soft-voiced singer found a perfect match with the emerging Motown production team, especially Smokey Robinson. Robinson wrote and produced her biggest Motown hits; "Two Lovers," "You Beat Me to the Punch," and "The One Who Really Loves You" all made the Top Ten in the early '60s, and "My Guy" hit the number one spot in mid-1964, at the very height of Beatlemania.Mary turned 21 years old as "My Guy" was rising to the top of the charts, and left Motown almost immediately afterward for a reported advance of several hundred thousand dollars from 20th Century Fox. The circumstances remain cloudy years later, but Wells and her husband-manager felt Motown wasn't coming through with enough money for their new superstar; she was also lured by the prospect of movie roles through 20th Century Fox (which never materialized). It's been rumored that Wells was being groomed for the sort of plans that were subsequently lavished upon Diana Ross; more nefariously, it's also been rumored that Motown quietly discouraged radio stations from playing Wells' subsequent releases. What is certain is that Wells never remotely approached the success of her Motown years, entering the pop Top 40 only once (although she had some R&B hits). Motown, for their part, took care throughout the rest of the '60s not to lose their big stars to larger labels.
Wells' departure from Motown was so dramatic and unsuccessful that it has tended to overshadow the quality of her later work, which has almost always been dismissed as trivial by critics. True, it didn't match the quality of her Motown recordings -- Smokey Robinson could not be replaced. But her '60s singles for 20th Century Fox (whom she ended up leaving after only a year), Atco, and Jubilee were solid pop-soul on which her vocal talents remained undiminished. She wrote and produced a lot of her late-'60s and early-'70s sessions with her second husband, guitarist Cecil Womack (brother of Bobby), and these found her exploring a somewhat earthier groove than her more widely known pop efforts. She had trouble landing recording deals in the '70s and '80s, and succumbed to throat cancer in 1992. ~ Richie Unterberger, Rovi
Wikipedia on Answers.com:
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Mary Wells
For other people named Mary Wells, see Mary Wells (disambiguation).
| Mary Wells | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Mary Esther Wells |
| Also known as | Mary Wells Womack |
| Born | May 13, 1943 Detroit, Michigan |
| Origin | Detroit, Michigan, United States |
| Died | July 26, 1992 (aged 49) Los Angeles, California |
| Genres | R&B, pop, soul, Motown, disco |
| Occupations | Singer-songwriter |
| Years active | 1960–1990 |
| Labels | Motown, 20th Century Fox, Atco, Jubilee, Reprise, Epic, Motorcity |
| Associated acts | Smokey Robinson, Marvin Gaye, Cecil Womack, Bobby Womack |
Mary Esther Wells (May 13, 1943 – July 26, 1992) was an American singer who helped to define the emerging sound of Motown in the early 1960s. Along with The Miracles, The Temptations, The Supremes, and the Four Tops, Wells was said to have been part of the charge in black music onto radio stations and record shelves of mainstream America, "bridging the color lines in music at the time."[1]
With a string of hit singles composed mainly by Smokey Robinson, including "Two Lovers" (1962), the Grammy-nominated "You Beat Me to the Punch" (1962) and her signature hit, "My Guy" (1964), she became recognized as "The Queen of Motown" until her departure from the company in 1964, at the height of her popularity. She was one of Motown's first singing superstars.
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Humble beginnings
Mary Esther Wells was born near Detroit's Wayne State University on May 13, 1943, to a mother who worked as a domestic and an absentee father. One of three children, she contracted spinal meningitis at the age of two and struggled with partial blindness, deafness in one ear and temporary paralysis. During her early years, Wells lived in a poor residential Detroit district. By age 12, she was helping her mother with house cleaning work.[2] She described the ordeal years later:
"Daywork they called it, and it was damn cold on hallway linoleum. Misery is Detroit linoleum in January -- with a half-froze bucket of Spic-and-Span."[2]—Mary Wells
Wells used singing as her comfort from her pain and by age 10 had graduated from church choirs to performing at local nightclubs in the Detroit area. Wells graduated from Detroit's Northwestern High School at the age of 17 and set her sights on becoming a scientist, but after hearing about the success of Detroit musicians such as Jackie Wilson and The Miracles, she decided to try her hand at music as a singer-songwriter.
Early career
In 1960, 17-year-old Wells approached Tamla Records founder Berry Gordy at Detroit's Twenty Grand club with a song she had intended for Jackie Wilson to record, since Wells knew of Gordy's collaboration with Wilson. However, a tired Gordy insisted Wells sing the song in front of him. Impressed, Gordy had Wells enter Detroit's United Sound Studios to record the single, titled "Bye Bye Baby". After a reported 22 takes, Gordy signed Wells to the Motown subsidiary of his expanding record label and released the song as a single in September 1960; it eventually peaked at No 8 on the R&B chart in 1961, later crossed over to the pop singles chart, where it peaked at number 45.
Wells' early Motown recordings reflected a rougher R&B sound that predated the smoother style of her biggest hits. Wells became the first Motown female artist to have a Top 40 pop single after the Mickey Stevenson-penned doo-wop song, "I Don't Want to Take a Chance", hit No. 33 in June,1961. In the fall of that year, Motown issued her first album and released a third single, the bluesy ballad "Strange Love". However when that record bombed, Gordy set Wells up with The Miracles' lead singer Smokey Robinson. Though she was hailed as "the first lady of Motown", Wells was technically Motown's third female signed act: Claudette Rogers of Motown's first star group The Miracles, has been referred to by Berry Gordy as "the first lady of Motown Records" due to her being signed as a member of the group, and in late 1959 Detroit blues-gospel singer Mable John signed to the then-fledging label a year prior to Wells' arrival. Nevertheless, Wells' early hits as one of the label's few female solo acts did make her the label's first female star and its first fully successful solo artist.
Success
Wells' teaming with Robinson led to a succession of hit singles over the following two years. Their first collaboration, 1962's "The One Who Really Loves You", was Wells' first smash hit, peaking at No. 2 on the R&B chart and No. 8 on the Hot 100. The song featured a calypso-styled soul production that defined Wells' early hits. Known for releasing songs with a repetitive sound, Motown released the similar-sounding "You Beat Me to the Punch" a few months later. The song became her first R&B No. 1 single and peaked at No. 9 on the pop chart. The success of "You Beat Me to the Punch" helped to make Wells the first Motown star to be nominated for a Grammy Award when the song received a nod in the Best Rhythm & Blues Recording category.
In late 1962, "Two Lovers" became Wells' third consecutive single to hit the Top 10 of Billboard's Hot 100, peaking at No. 7 and becoming her second No. 1 hit on the R&B charts. This helped to make Wells the first female solo artist to have three consecutive Top 10 singles on the pop chart. The track sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc.[3] Wells' second album, also titled The One Who Really Loves You, was released in 1962 and peaked at No. 8 on the pop albums chart, making the teenage singer a breakthrough star and giving her clout at Motown. Wells' success at the label was recognized when she became a headliner during the first string of Motortown Revue concerts, starting in the fall of 1962. The singer showcased a rawer stage presence that contrasted with her softer R&B recordings.
Wells' success continued in 1963 when she hit the Top 20 with the doo-wop ballad "Laughing Boy" and scored three additional Top 40 singles, "Your Old Standby", "You Lost the Sweetest Boy", and its B-side, "What's Easy for Two Is So Hard for One". "You Lost the Sweetest Boy" was one of the first hit singles composed by the successful Motown songwriting and producing trio of Holland-Dozier-Holland, though Robinson remained Wells' primary producer.
Also in 1963, Wells recorded a session of successful B-sides that arguably became as well known as her hits, including "Operator", "What Love Has Joined Together", "Two Wrongs Don't Make a Right" and "Old Love (Let's Try It Again)". Wells and Robinson also recorded a duet titled "I Want You 'Round", which would be re-recorded by Marvin Gaye and Kim Weston.
1964: Brief superstardom
In 1964, Wells recorded "My Guy". The Smokey Robinson song became her trademark single, reaching No. 1 on the Cashbox R&B chart for seven weeks and becoming the No. 1 R&B single of the year. The song successfully crossed over to the Billboard Hot 100, where it eventually replaced Louis Armstrong's "Hello, Dolly!" at No. 1, where it remained for two weeks. The song became Wells' second million-selling single.[3]
To build on the song's success, Motown released a duet album recorded with fellow Motown singing star Marvin Gaye, Together. The album peaked at No. 1 on the R&B album chart and No. 42 on the pop album chart, and yielded the double-sided hits "Once Upon a Time" and "What's the Matter With You Baby".
"My Guy" was one of the first Motown songs to break on the other side of the Atlantic, eventually peaking at No. 5 on the UK chart and making Wells an international star. Around this time, The Beatles stated that Wells was their favorite American singer, and soon she was given an invitation to open for the group during their tour of the United Kingdom, thus making her the first Motown star to perform in the UK. Wells was only one of three female singers to open for The Beatles, the others being Brenda Holloway and Jackie DeShannon. Wells made friends with all four Beatles and later released a tribute album, Love Songs to the Beatles, in mid-decade.
When describing Wells' landmark success in 1964, former Motown sales chief Barney Ales:
"In 1964, Mary Wells was our big, big artist, I don't think there's any audience with an age of 30 through 50 that doesn't know the words to My Guy."[1]— (1992)
Departure from Motown
Ironically during her most successful year, Wells was having problems with Motown over her original recording contract, which she had signed at the age of 17. She was also reportedly angry that the money made from "My Guy" was being used to promote The Supremes, who had found success with "Where Did Our Love Go". Though Gordy reportedly tried to renegotiate with Wells, the singer still asked to be let go of her contract with Motown.
A pending lawsuit would keep Wells away from the studio for several months, as she and Gordy went back and forth over the contract details, Wells fighting to gain larger royalties from earnings she had made during her tenure with Motown. Finally, she invoked a clause that allowed her to leave the label, telling the court that her original contract was invalid since she signed while she was still a minor. Wells won her lawsuit and was awarded a settlement, leaving Motown officially in early 1965, whereupon she accepted a lucrative ($200,000) contract with 20th Century Fox Records.
Part of the terms of the agreement of her release was that she could not receive any royalties from her past works with the label, nor use of her likeness to promote herself.
Career struggles
A weary Wells worked on material for her new record label while dealing with other issues, including being bed-ridden for weeks suffering from tuberculosis. Wells' eponymous first 20th Century Fox release included "Ain't It The Truth", the B-side "Stop Taking Me for Granted", the lone top 40 hit, "Use Your Head" and "Never, Never Leave Me". However, the album flopped, as did the Beatles tribute album she released not too long afterwards. Rumors have hinted Motown may have threatened to sue radio stations for playing Wells' post-Motown music during this time.[4] After a stressful period in which Wells and the label battled over various issues after Wells' records failed to chart successfully, the singer asked to be let go in 1965 and left with a small settlement.
In 1966, Wells signed with Atlantic Records subsidiary Atco. Working with producer Carl Davis, Wells scored her final Top 10 R&B hit with "Dear Lover", which also became a modestly successful pop hit, peaking at No. 51. However, much like her tenure with 20th Century Fox, the singer struggled to come up with a follow-up hit, and in 1968 she left the label for Jubilee Records, where she scored her final pop hit, "The Doctor", a song she co-wrote with then-husband Cecil Womack, of the famed Womack family. (Meanwhile, she had attempted a film career, but only managed a bit part in 1967's "Catalina Caper".) In 1970, Wells left Jubilee for a short-lived deal with Warner Music subsidiary Reprise Records and released two Bobby Womack-produced singles. In 1972, Wells scored a UK hit with a re-issue of "My Guy", which was released on the Tamla-Motown label and climbed to No. 14.[5] Though a re-issue, Wells promoted the single heavily and appeared on the British TV show Top of the Pops for the first time. Despite this mini-revival, Wells decided to retire from music in 1974 to raise her family.
1980s: Brief comeback
In 1977, Wells divorced Cecil Womack and returned to performing. She was spotted by CBS Urban president Larkin Arnold in 1978 and offered a contract with the CBS subsidiary Epic Records, which released In and Out of Love, in October 1981. The album, which had been recorded in 1979, yielded Wells' biggest hit in years, the funky disco single, "Gigolo".
The song became a smash at dance clubs across the country. A 12-minute mix hit No. 13 on Billboard's Hot Dance/Club Singles chart and No. 2 on the Hot Disco Songs chart. A three-minute radio version released to R&B stations in January 1982 achieved a modest showing at No. 69. It turned out to be Wells' final chart single.
After the parent album failed to chart or produce successful follow-ups, the Motown-styled "These Arms" was released; but it was quickly withdrawn after the album tanked and Wells' Epic contract fizzled. The album's failure may have been due to light promotion, but she had completed it in 1979 and it was withheld for two years; most likely due to financial and business logistics, with contributions in part by Wells' own personal problems. She still had one more album in her CBS contract, and in 1982 released an album of cover songs, Easy Touch, which featured a more adult contemporary flavor.
Leaving CBS in 1983, she continued recording for smaller labels, gaining new success as a touring performer. In 1989, she was celebrated with a Pioneer Award from the Rhythm and Blues Foundation during its inaugural year.
Final years
In 1990, Wells recorded an album for Ian Levine's Motorcity Records, but her voice began to fail, causing the singer to visit a local hospital. Doctors diagnosed Wells with laryngeal cancer. Treatments for the disease ravaged her voice, forcing her to quit her music career. Since she had no health insurance, her illness wiped out her finances, forcing her to sell her home. As she struggled to continue treatment, old Motown friends, including Diana Ross, Mary Wilson, members of The Temptations and Martha Reeves, made donations to support her, along with the help of admirers such as Dionne Warwick, Rod Stewart, Bruce Springsteen, Aretha Franklin and Bonnie Raitt.[6] That same year, a benefit concert was held by fellow fan and Detroit R&B singer Anita Baker. Wells was also given a tribute by friends such as Stevie Wonder and Little Richard on The Joan Rivers Show.
In 1991, Wells brought a multi-million dollar lawsuit against Motown for royalties she felt she had not received upon leaving Motown Records in 1964 and for loss of royalties for not promoting her songs as the company should have. Motown eventually settled the lawsuit by giving her a six-figure sum. That same year, she testified before the United States Congress to encourage government funding for cancer research:
"I'm here today to urge you to keep the faith. I can't cheer you on with all my voice, but I can encourage, and I pray to motivate you with all my heart and soul and whispers."[4]—Mary Wells
Death
In the summer of 1992, Wells' cancer returned and she was rushed to the Kenneth Norris Jr. Cancer Hospital in Los Angeles with pneumonia. With the effects of her unsuccessful treatments and a weakened immune system, Wells died on July 26, 1992 at the age of 49. After her funeral, which included a eulogy given by her old friend and former collaborator Smokey Robinson, Wells was laid to rest in Glendale's Forest Lawn Memorial Park.
Awards and accolades
Though Wells has been eligible for induction to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame - she was nominated twice in 1986 and 1987 - she has yet to achieve it. Wells earned one Grammy Award nomination during her career, and in 1999 the Grammy committee inducted Wells' "My Guy" into the Grammy Hall of Fame, assuring the song's importance. Wells was given one of the first Pioneer Awards by the Rhythm and Blues Foundation in 1989. A year later, the foundation raised more than $50,000 to help with Wells' treatment after her illness had wiped out all of her finances. In 2006, she was inducted into the Michigan Rock & Roll Legends online Hall of Fame.[7] Mary Wells' biggest hit, "My Guy", was voted a Legendary Michigan Song in 2009.[8]
Personal life
Wells married twice: first, in 1960, to Detroit singer Herman Griffin. The marriage of the teenage couple was troubled from the start due to their age and Griffin's unhealthy control of Wells. They divorced in 1963. Despite rumors, she never dated fellow Motown singer Marvin Gaye, who would go on to have successful duet partnerships with Kim Weston, Tammi Terrell and Diana Ross after Wells left Motown. In 1966, Wells married singer-songwriter Cecil Womack, formerly of The Valentinos and the younger brother of musician Bobby Womack. The marriage lasted until 1977 and produced three children. Wells began an affair with another Womack brother, Curtis, during her marriage to Cecil. Her relationship with Curtis Womack was reportedly abusive. Wells was a notorious chain smoker and went through bouts of depression during her marriages. Prior to divorcing Cecil and while dating Curtis, she tried committing suicide after word had leaked of her relationship with Curtis. After the suicide attempt was botched, Wells went to other methods of what she called "meditating", including using cocaine. Over time, she developed a heroin habit.[9] Her drug habit ceased after she became pregnant with Curtis' child. After splitting from Curtis in 1990, Wells focused on raising her youngest daughter until her cancer appeared. Mary had four children: sons Cecil, Jr. and Harry, and daughters Stacy and Sugar.
Discography
Singles
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Top 40 albums
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References
- ^ a b "Mary Wells, 49, the Pop Singer Who Made 'My Guy' a 1960s Hit". The New York Times. July 27, 1992. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E0CE3DD1E3DF934A15754C0A964958260&scp=3&sq=Mary+Wells%2C+Motown+singer&st=nyt. Retrieved 2008-09-10.
- ^ a b "Mary Wells Biography". Musician Biographies. Urbana, Illinois: Net Industries, LLC. February 2009. http://www.musicianguide.com/biographies/1608004331/Mary-Wells.html. Retrieved 2009-02-02.
- ^ a b Murrells, Joseph (1978). The Book of Golden Discs (2nd ed.). London: Barrie and Jenkins Ltd. pp. 168 & 184. ISBN 0-214-20512-6.
- ^ a b "Mary Wells". ClassicBands. July 6, 2008. http://www.classicbands.com/wells.html. Retrieved 2009-02-02.
- ^ http://www.chartstats.com/songinfo.php?id=5891
- ^ "Mary Wells, 49, Recording Star For Motown Records In 1960s". The Seattle Times. July 27, 1992. http://community.seattletimes.nwsource.com/archive/?date=19920727&slug=1504294. Retrieved 2008-08-07.
- ^ [http://www.michiganrockandrolllegends.com/mrrl-hall-of-fame/91-mary-wells
- ^ [http://www.michiganrockandrolllegends.com/legendary-michigan-songs-inductees
- ^ "Death of a Soul Survivor, People". http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20113289,00.html. Retrieved 2009-03-15.
External links
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Book: Mary Wells |
| Wikipedia books are collections of articles that can be downloaded or ordered in print. | |
- Mary Wells at the Internet Movie Database
- CMG Worldwide
- History of Rock page on Mary Wells
- Mary Wells at Allmusic
- Mary Wells at Discogs
- Mary Wells at Find a Grave
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Mentioned in
Billboard Top R&B Hits: 1963
(1989 Album by Various Artists)
Rare Soul: Beach Music Classics, Vol. 2
(1992 Album by Various Artists)
Motown Returns to the Apollo
(1984 Music Film)
Bye Bye Baby/The One Who Really Loves You
(1990 Album by Mary Wells)
Mary Wells
(1965 Album by Mary Wells)
» More