northern soul | Musicosity

northern soul

Gloria Jones

Gloria Jones (born 19 October 1945, in Cincinnati, Ohio) is an American singer. She first recorded the 1964 northern soul classic Tainted Love, later a hit for the British synth-pop duo Soft Cell in 1981. Gloria Jones was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, and moved to Los Angeles at the age of 7, where she first started singing. Gloria's first taste of fame came at the age of 14, when, while still at school, she formed with Frankie Kahrl and Billy Preston the successful gospel group the Cogic Singers.

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The Valentines

There are at least two groups who call themselves "The Valentines". 1) One of the most highly regarded American Doo Wop groups from the mid 1950s. Their records are highly sought by collectors. Although they never had a record on the national hit parades, they were extremely popular in New York and the East Coast in general and had many regional big sellers. The stage performances of the group were sellouts and their harmonizing and choreography in sequence were amongst the most accomplished of their time.

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Jesse Davis

There are two known artists of the name Jesse Davis. Jesse Edwin Davis was an American guitarist. He was well regarded as a session artist. Born in Norman, Oklahoma, Davis began his musical career in Oklahoma City. His father, Jesse Ed Davis II, was Kiowa and Cherokee while his mother's side was Kiowa. He graduated from Northeast High School in 1962. Davis began his musical career in the late 1950s playing in Oklahoma City and surrounding cities with John Ware, John Selk, Jerry Fisher (later Blood, Sweat & Tears vocalist) Mike Boyle, Chris Frederickson, drummer Bill Maxwell and others.

Read more about Jesse Davis on Last.fm.

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Edwin Starr

Edwin Starr (January 21, 1942 – April 2, 2003) was an American soul music singer. Born Charles Edwin Hatcher in Nashville, Tennessee, Starr is most famous for his Norman Whitfield produced Motown singles of the 1970s, most notably the number one hit War. Edwin Starr was born in Nashville, Tennessee in 1942. He and his cousins (soul singers Roger and Willie Hatcher) moved to Cleveland, Ohio where they were raised.

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The Velvelettes

The Velvelettes were a 60's femal vocal group founded in 1961 by sisters Carolyn and Millie Gill with cousins Bertha Barbee-McNeal and Norma Barbee (both from Flint, Michigan) on the Western Michigan University campus, where they were students. The group signed to Motown Records, but weren't given top priority, as other female vocal groups were attracting audiences and recording hits. While the group awaited their chance at stardom, they recorded backing vocals for more established Motown girl groups, including The Marvelettes, Martha & The Vandellas, and The Supremes.

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R Dean Taylor

Taylor began his career in 1961, as a pianist and singer with several groups in Toronto. He also made his first recordings in 1961, for the Audiomaster label. The following year, Taylor's "At The High School Dance", a single for Amy-Mala Records, was a minor success, and the singer decided to move to Detroit for better opportunities. In Detroit, Taylor was hired by Motown Records in 1964 as a songwriter.

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Falcons

Falcons is music project started by Mikkel Ramlov and Andreas Bevan . They met in Australia and have since been making music together. They were later joined up by bassist Jonas Bock in September and spent the next few months practicing and working in the studio. In January the trio became a quartet when they were joined by the great guitarist Morten Fink

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Frank Wilson

Frank Wilson is an African American former songwriter and record producer for Motown Records. He joined the company in 1965, working with Brenda Holloway. He went on to write and produce hit records for Brenda Holloway, The Supremes, The Four Tops, Eddie Kendricks, and more. Wilson also tried his hand at being a recording artist himself, recording the single “Do I Love You (Indeed I Do)" for release on the Motown subsidiary label 'Soul.' Supposedly 250 demo 45s were pressed, but by that time Frank Wilson decided he would rather focus on producing and had the demos trashed.

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