Part 1–Martha & The Vandellas: Destiny in a Day
Imagine the vibrant streets of 1957 Detroit, where the rhythm of Motown is still years away. In the heart of it all, there’s a tenacious mother, her eyes filled with dreams for her talented daughter, came across a mention in the newspaper about an audition nearby. As the daughter auditioned at the local YMCA, a man named Edward Larkins with an uncanny ability to spot talent and assemble groups was watching very closely. On this fateful day, destiny orchestrates an unexpected twist. While the daughter possessed immense talent and would indeed achieve greatness with her voice, the spotlight of stardom wouldn’t be hers ultimately to claim.
Rosalind Ashford and Annette Beard. Illustration by J.D. Humphreys
The other daughter, Rosalind Ashford, found sanctuary in the world of glee clubs and mixed choirs during her school days at Wilbur Wright High School. However, it was her sister and two male friends who had created their own group.
“My mother sent my sister and her two friends to go down to audition,” Ashford recalled. “While there, he [Larkins] had mentioned that he was putting a girl group together. There was already one girl with him named Gloria and wanted to put more girls with her to form a group.”
“She kind of made me go down there and audition.”
- Rosalind Ashford
Suddenly, Ashford’s mother walked into the house and excitedly revealed that she had arranged an audition for her too. “I said, ‘Nah, not me, I’m not a singer,’” Ashford said. “She kind of made me go down there and audition.” So, she did.
Fourteen-year-old Annette Beard had honed her singing skills as part of her church’s junior choir, where the charismatic leader happened to be her friend’s brother—a figure described as “handsome as all get out.” Beard said, “I joined the choir so I could look at him on Sundays. It wasn’t so much that I was into singing.” That would soon change the day she accompanied her friend, Beatrice, down to the local YMCA where Larkins was holding the auditions.
Beard recalls, “During the audition of all these young ladies running around the Y, Edward Larkins calling these ladies up to his beat up piano to sing the ‘ah.’ They’d sing an ‘ah’ and then another ‘ah’ and he’d say, ‘Okay, go sit down.’ So I was sitting there watching not paying much attention. Then suddenly he turned around and looked at me and said, ‘You, come here and sing me an ah.’” She explained that she was not there to audition but Larkins insisted. "And I was like, ‘Oh my Lord.’ I was like 14 years old, shy as all get out, and he wanted me to get up there and sing an ‘ah’ in front of all these girls. I went up there and he plunked out a note on the piano and he said, ‘Sing me an ah,’ and I went ‘Ahhh’ and then he hit another one and I went ‘Ahhhhh,’ and then he hit another one and I went ‘Ahhhhhhhh’ and then he said, ‘Okay, go sit down.’ And I was like ‘Whew. Thank you, Lord.’”
Minutes later, Larkins announced he had his group who would join Gloria Williams: Beatrice, another young lady named Trudy, then he picked Ashford, and then Beard. “And when he picked me, I went ‘Oh, no no no no no! I can't’ do that. I have to ask my mother first. Can’t do that. Nope,’” Beard recalled. “He said, ‘Don’t worry about it, your mom will be fine. I will talk to her about it.’ And I’m thinking to myself that he doesn’t know my little mother. So that is where Rosalind and I met at this audition.”
• THE DEL-PHIS •
The Del-Phis initially found their footing as background vocalists, lending their harmonies to enrich the soundscape for Detroit artists like Mike Hanks, Leon Peterson, and J.J. Barnes. The group, consisting of five girls, went through some changes, even acquiring a male singer at one point when one of the girls left. Eventually, it was just Beard, Ashford, and Williams.
LISTEN TO “WON’T YOU LET ME KNOW” BY J.J. BARNES AND THE DEL-PHIS
Gloria Williams (originally Williamson), starting with a fresh group, had the talent and experience of singing and openly shared the techniques with Ashford and Beard.
“She was just as sweet as she could be and she knew music,” said Beard. “She taught us things that I didn’t think in terms of. I remember the first bar that we worked in was in Flint, Michigan, and we would go up there and have us entertain because as the lead singer, this girl could sing her behind off. She had the heart and soul and everything. Gloria taught Rosalind and I, literally, how to sing from our diaphragm. Rosalind and I would look at each other and think ‘Where the heck is our diaphragm?’ She had us lean over the back of a kitchen chair and she’d say, ‘Now sing.’ We’d say ‘That hurts!’ and she said ‘That’s your diaphragm.’”
LISTEN TO “IT TAKES TWO” BY THE DEL-PHIS
Williams enlisted Martha Reeves from the rival group, the Fascinations, and welcomed her into the Del-Phis, a group she held in high regard. Reeves, born into a church music family in Alabama, had relocated to the Detroit area. There, she received vocal training from the same coach who later worked with upcoming Motown stars. Reeves also contributed as a background singer. According to Ashford, Williams was already acquainted with Reeves and personally invited her to join the group. Reeves accepted the invitation, becoming the fourth member.
• THEN THEY WERE THE VELS •
Once Reeves joined the group, they rebranded as the Vels and secured recording contracts with Check-Mate Records, a subsidiary of Chess, and Checker Records. However, those opportunities slipped away when their songs failed to make an impact on the charts, leading to the disbandment of the group. Inspired by her admiration for Della Reese and equipped with a gospel repertoire, Reeves viewed these setbacks as fuel for her ambition. She subsequently embarked on a solo career under the name “Martha LaVaille.”
“I started working for City Wide Cleaners in 1960 and moved to six different locations during the week, filling in during each of the regular clerks’ days off.”
- Martha Reeves
“Now we knew what it felt like to hear ourselves on the radio, but in the end it received very little airplay and no one could seem to find it in the record stores,” Reeves recalls in her biography Dancing in the Street: Confessions of a Motown Diva. “This did not discourage me as we all went our separate ways to seek income. I started working for City Wide Cleaners in 1960 and moved to six different locations during the week, filling in during each of the regular clerks’ days off.”
Even during the group’s existence, it experienced periods of instability. Reeves reminisced about taking gigs in Canada, sharing bills with Yvonne Thomas, a snake dancer who insisted keeping her prized boa constrictor in the hotel room with her. The group performed at Holiday Inns, and Reeves, underage at the time, resorted to using a fake ID. They confronted the less glamorous aspects of showbiz, including instances when she wasn’t paid due to her inexperience in demanding upfront payment. Despite these challenges, Reeves would then show up for work the next day, handling tasks like pouring detergent and folding endless stacks of clothing at the cleaners.
• MARTHA REEVES LANDS A JOB AT MOTOWN •
William “Mickey” Stevenson, a Motown executive leading the Artists and Repertoire department, happened to catch Reeves perform at Detroit’s 20 Grand club. Impressed, he invited her to audition. While she was unfamiliar with Motown, she recognized the artists associated with the label and figured this could be the opportunity she had been eagerly awaiting. Armed with Stevenson’s business card, she arrived at Hitsville the next day for her audition, disregarding the instruction to schedule in advance. Stevenson wasn’t happy that she just showed up unexpectedly and Reeves knew that if she exited that building her return was unlikely. On that very day, she secured the position of the new A&R secretary. Observing Stevenson’s busy schedule, Reeves capitalized on the opportunity by taking charge of his phone messages and later organizing auditions for other acts. She handled calls and drop-in visitors with the claim that “Mr. Stevenson stepped out and will be right back.”
Once firmly established and proving her worth, Reeves made her strategic move. According to Stevenson in his book, The A&R Man, Reeves discreetly slipped her contract among others that Stevenson was ready to sign. Aware of her persistence and the potential demand for overtime pay if she didn’t get her way, he ultimately signed her contract.
“I had no intention of doing any recording with her any time soon,” Stevenson recalls in his book. “Martha was a damn good secretary (Oh! I’m sorry; I mean assistant) and I didn’t want to lose her. I’m selfish? Maybe, but that’s the way it was.”
“Martha was a damn good secretary (Oh! I’m sorry; I mean assistant) and I didn’t want to lose her. I’m selfish? Maybe, but that’s the way it was.”
- Mickey Stevenson, Motown Executive
In her autobiography, Reeves contradicts Stevenson’s version, asserting that her role as his secretary at Motown initially came without pay. Nevertheless, the true value lay in being part of Motown, holding the promise of future recording opportunities. Her parents encouraged her to negotiate for a salary, which eventually amounted to $35 per week. Impressed by their daughter’s assertiveness, Reeves’ parents rewarded her with a ‘57 Chevrolet.
In her role as the new A&R secretary, Reeves witness the groups strategically hustle their way into Motown’s ranks. She saw Diane Ross, Mary Wilson, and Florence Ballard of the Supremes mingling in the hallways, making their presence felt, and always ready to record on short notice. Despite recording “Buttered Popcorn,” the Supremes remained relatively obscure in 1962. Reeves also recalled the Marvelettes, who had recently returned from a tour in Holland where they were photographed in Dutch attire and wooden shoes, attracting envy and attention from all quarters.
• MARTHA GETS THE GIRLS INTO MOTOWN •
In July 1962, Reeves took on the responsibility of coordinating the session for Marvin Gaye’s inaugural R&B album. This involved not only assembling the backing vocals, the Andantes, but also dealing with a challenge—the Andantes were unavailable as they were moonlighting in Chicago. Faced with the dilemma of not wanting to let down her boss, had to formulate another plan. She reached out to Rosalind Ashford and persuaded her to rally the other girls to join the session, even though the compensation was a mere five dollars for each side of the record.
Marvin Gaye. Illustration by J.D. Humphreys
In Studio A, positioned behind the handsome Marvin Gaye, the group sensed the beginning of a promising collaboration as they enhanced “Stubborn Kind of Fellow.” Despite Gaye’s somewhat enigmatic persona, often seen with a corncob pipe, he exuded an irresistible charm at Motown, captivating women’s attention. However, his focus was largely on his courtship with Anna Gordy, whom he would marry the following year.
LISTEN TO “STUBBORN KIND OF FELLOW” BY MARVIN GAYE
“When this man pulled that hat off of his head, those glasses off his eyes, and that pipe out of his mouth, we looked at somebody who was as fine to me as any movie star could ever be,” Reeves recalled. “He even reminded me a little bit of Sam Cooke. And he could really sing. I didn’t know he was a singer. I just thought he was a session drummer. And then Marvin Gaye was discovered.”
“We looked at somebody who was as fine to me as any movie star could ever be.”
- Martha Reeves
Mary Wells. Illustration by J.D. Humphreys
In September 1962, there was a sudden disruption at Motown when Mary Wells, a prominent solo artist, unexpectedly called in sick, leaving her scheduled recording session in limbo. According to Reeves, panic ensued when a union representative made an unanticipated visit to Motown. At that moment, she was instructed to leave her desk and head down the hall to Studio A to record “I’ll Have to Let Him Go.” The reason behind this urgency was Gordy’s adherence to a rule that dictated no music could be recorded unless there was an artist on the microphone. Despite the impromptu nature of the session, Reeves performed exceptionally well. Gordy was so impressed that he decided to release the recording, stating, “She sounds good on it.”
LISTEN TO “I’LL HAVE TO LET HIM GO” BY MARTHA AND THE VANDELLAS