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Artist
Mary Wells
12+ albums
soulmotownfemale vocalists60soldies
about
Mary Esther Wells (May 13, 1943 – July 26, 1992) was an American singer who defined the early sound of Motown Records in the early sixties. Along with The Miracles, The Temptations, The Supremes, and The Four Tops, Wells was said to have been part of the charge in black music onto radio stations and record shelves of mainstream America "bridging the color lines in music at the time." With a string of hit singles mainly composed by Smokey Robinson including "Two Lovers" (1962), the Grammy-nominated "You Beat Me to the Punch" (1962) and her signature hit, "My Guy" (1964), she became recognized as "The Queen of Motown" until her departure from the company in 1964, at the height of her popularity. In other circles, she's referred to as the "The First Lady of Motown" and was one of Motown's first singing superstars. Mary Esther Wells was born near Detroit's Wayne State University on May 13, 1943 to a domestic mother and an absentee father. One of three children, she caught spinal meningitis at the age of two and struggled with partial blindness, deafness in one ear and temporary paralysis. During her early years, Wells' family grew up in a poor residential Detroit district. By age 12, Wells was helping her mother with housecleaning work. She described the ordeal years later: "Daywork they called it, and it was damn cold on hallway linoleum. Misery is Detroit linoleum in January--with a half-froze bucket of Spic-and-Span." Wells used singing as her comfort from her pain and by
top songs
1
My Guy
343,2962You Beat Me To The Punch
94,1243Two Lovers
66,8714My Guy - Single Version
51,2235The One Who Really Loves You
41,0496Bye Bye Baby
29,6477The One Who Really Loves You - Single Version
16,8018You Beat Me To The Punch - Stereo Version
15,1799Laughing Boy
11,49510You Beat Me To The Punch - Single Version / Mono
8,445
