MOTOWN GIRL GROUPS: THE GRIT, THE GLAMOUR, THE GLORY

 The Marvelettes

 Well the Rock Hall of Fame missed the boat again...Our fabulous Marvelettes didn't make it...but our beloved Motown Girl Groups will be honored January 31, 2013...Susan Whithall tells the story..

Motown Historical Museum to feature girl groups exhibit

By Susan Whitall

 The Marvelettes

From The Detroit News:

Motown's girl groups — the Supremes, The Vandellas, the Marvelettes, the Velvelettes and the Andantes — will be the focus of a new exhibit opening Jan. 31 at the Motown Historical Museum.

The exhibit "Girl Groups: The Grit, the Glamour, the Glory" will include girl group costumes and photos, many items from the singers themselves.

It was the Marvelettes who scored the fledgling record company's first No. 1 hit in 1961 with "Please, Mr. Postman," pushing Motown into the national spotlight and bringing much-needed cash into its coffers. The teenaged group was on the cusp of the girl group movement that dominated pop music in the early '60s. READ MORE

Like the Funk Brothers the Andantes were kind of under the radar fame wise.. They were a group of women vocalists who can be heard on virtually thousands of Motown Hits...Though somewhat obscure to the public, the Andantes had a mighty influence on Motown music....

The Andantes were Motown's famous backing girls. From the beginning of the sixties, right up to the early seventies, across about thirteen years, they managed to sing backing vocals on a staggering estimated twenty thousand songs. There were five members throughout the years, Jackie Hicks, Marlene Barrow, Louvain Demps, Pat Lewis, and Ann Bogan. Their one single on the V.I.P. label, "Like A Nightmare", is one of the rarest and most sought after Motown singles of all time.

The Velvelettes got their break chart wise in the spring of 1964 thanks to young producer Norman Whitfield, who produced "Needle In A Haystack" as a single for the group, on Motown's VIP Records imprint. "Needle In A Haystack" peaked at number 45 on the Billboard Hot 100 in mid 1964.

The group recorded its follow-up, "He Was Really Sayin' Somethin'", with Whitfield again producing, and spent time on various Motown-sponsored tours as a support act. In September 1964, after recording "Dancing In The Street" earlier in June, Betty Kelly officially left the group to join Martha and the Vandellas, and the quintet became a quartet.

The Vandellas

Martha and the Vandellas (known from 1967 to 1972 as Martha Reeves and the Vandellas) were among the most successful groups of the Motown roster during the period 1963-1967. In contrast to other Motown groups such as The Supremes and The Marvelettes, Martha and the Vandellas were known for a harder, R&B sound, typified by "(Love Is Like a) Heat Wave", "Nowhere to Run", "Jimmy Mack" and, their signature song, "Dancing in the Street".

The Motown Historical Museum 

 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. 

Tuesdays through Saturdays. 

Admission is $10 for adults, $8 for seniors and children.