September/October 2011

Where Did Our Love Go – Martha and the Vendellas turned the song down, we weren’t in a position to turn down anything so we took it. To us, it did not sound like a hit, it wasn’t Dancing in The Streets. I was like the spokesperson so I told the guys if we don’t make a hit, our parents will send us to college. We hated the song, the guys kept telling us it was going to be a hit. We recorded it not liking it, Florence and I didn’t like it because we didn’t have anything to say on the record. We prided ourselves on harmony and all we sung was baby, baby. The record became a hit and of course the guys were saying they told us so and every time I see Eddie Holland he says he told me so.

Being a part of Motown history and what is was like for the artist in that era – It was a strange world to live in back in the 60s because of the civil rights issues taking place. It was totally different when we were down south. We knew to only drink from the colored water fountains and we knew there were rules to follow. That’s why I say it was an impossible dream because of the laws, kids today don’t really know how much the pioneer people did. There were a lot of doors opened because of Motown and what we did so the artist today can make millions of dollars. It may be hard for the younger generation to understand why the older generation has the attitude we have because of what we had to live through. Some of the people of the older generation are still fearful because of what they know and how things work.

The first time she heard herself on the radio – We were still living in the projects, rock and roll was new and exciting. The song was called I Want A Guy written by Berry Gordy and Frank Gorman. We were walking down the street and heard it playing from someone’s window and it was a dream come true. Its hard to put that excitement into words, people were yelling and screaming and it was very exciting. We were local celebrities at that time and we were still in high school – it was a wonderful time. 18 Working at Motown with the other talented artists – We were the youngest act until Stevie came and then he was the youngest. We were there the day he auditioned, Mr. Gordy told us a genius was visiting the office. Stevie came in every bit of nine years old and he started playing the drums, then the organ and every instrument in there. It was wonderful at Motown, everyday something would happen like that. I remember when Marvin came to Motown and he was cute as he could be playing love songs and we would sit and swoon. Eddie and Paul was apart of The Primes and they linked up with Otis of The Distants and became The Temptations. They were all fine because they were all tall and handsome as can be. Mary Wells was the big star of the label and it was all very exciting. A lot of the artists would take part time jobs at Motown like receptionist, driver for the other artists and other jobs. It was a real exciting place to be around, very creative and it was great.

The famous finishing/etiquette school – Mr. Gordy’s family was real supportive of him and progressive, his sisters had their own individual record companies and migrated into his company. Mr. Gordy’s sisters knew of Mrs. Powell who was a motivator and she was brought in to motivate us. Mrs. Powell will tell you she did not teach us how to use spoons and forks, we had to learn that at home. The program was called Artist Development, Mrs. Powell motivated us, Charlie Atkins was our choreographer and Maurice King who was a great band leader and he was the musical director. I just had Mrs. Powell with me for the gown exhibit, there are 50 gowns in the exhibit and it is a worldwide tour. She was with me in Philadelphia for the exhibit and people just ate her up, everyone wanted to know how she kept us motivated. She was telling everyone she used to tell us we would sing before kings and queens one day, at the time we laughed but it ended up coming true. She would teach us how to get in and out of limousines and everything, she told us we were diamonds in the rough and they were there to polish us. It was very uplifting and even though you have talent, you need people to tell you and encourage you. I would like to follow in her footsteps and maybe start my own artist development agency. I have eight grandchildren and I tour all the time and I have a new single out now. My life is kind of full but it is something I would like to pursue.

First time on Ed Sullivan – It was like one of those moments in your life like getting what you really wanted for Christmas. Every family in America watched The Ed Sullivan show, when we performed it was one of those really great moments. To see three beautiful black ladies on television was groundbreaking and there was a time where you would not see black people on television unless they were maids.