Mary Wells (May 13, 1943 – July 26, 1992) – Gigolo (1981)
Written and produced by the Mizell Brothers, this early 80s comeback hit from the original Queen of Motown was a roller rink fave and went to #2 on dance charts
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Mary Wells was the original Queen of Motown, the label’s first superstar female singer. She rose to fame in the early 1960s with several hit records mostly written and produced by Smokey Robinson, culminating with her mega-smash “My Guy” in 1964.
Born and raised in Detroit, Wells approached Berry Gordy at a nightclub in 1960 with a song she had written for Jackie Wilson. After Gordy insisted she sing it right there on the spot, he signed her to his new label Motown. Released in September, 1960, “Bye Bye Baby” became a #8 R&B hit.
In 1964, her biggest hit “My Guy” went to #1 R&B, spent seven weeks atop the charts, and crossed over to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100. Written and produced by Smokey Robinson, the song’s intro came together with only a half hour of studio time left on the clock when the Funk Brothers improvised new chord changes. As bandleader Earl Van Dyke later recalled, “We were doing anything to get the hell out of that studio. We figured the song would wind up in the trash can anyway.”
Unfortunately, the single’s success exacerbated the difficulties Wells had with her existing Motown contract, which she had signed when she was only 17 and felt was shortchanging her on royalties from her hits. After suing to be released from the label, she officially left Motown in early 1965 and signed with 20th Century Fox.
Wells married Bobby Womack’s brother Cecil in 1966, who went on to co-write and produce much of her material over the next several years. Then her recording output slowed. One of the only singles she released during the seventies was the superb jam “If You Can't Give Her Love (Give Her Up)” (1974), co-written by Prince Phillip Mitchell and Clayton Ivey and produced by Bobby Womack.
After taking time off to have children in the mid-70s, Wells divorced Cecil Womack in 1977 and resumed her musical career. She was signed to CBS subsidiary Epic Records and in 1979 recorded a new album, In And Out Of Love.
Produced by Greg Perry along with Fonce and Larry Mizell, the album was not released until the fall of 1981. Its funky lead single “Gigolo” became a huge club hit, reaching #2 on disco charts although it only peaked at #69 R&B.
“Gigolo” was the only cut on the LP that was both co-written and produced by the legendary Mizell Brothers, and it showed. The track’s other co-writer was their younger brother Rodney Mizell.
#soul #funk #disco #Motown #MaryWells