Brenda Holloway: Motown's Forgotten Princess
Mary Wells, Diana Ross, Tammi
Terrell, Martha Reeves. Those were some of the leading ladies of Motown Records
during their prime. The all accumulate timeless records that hold true. But also,
during the 60s, there was another female vocalist from the label but never
reached the heights of those mentioned and that lady was Brenda Holloway. I was
watching a YouTube video month back, and this person mentioned her name in one
of her videos when discussing female R&B when she discussed Motown female
vocalist, I was shocked when she mentioned Brenda Holloway. Always felt like
she got lost in the shuffle, part of it has to do with her being California
based, but she is an artist who deserves her flowers. Today we are going to do
just that by going through her musical journey. So, without further ado, this
is the story of Brenda Holloway, Motown’s Forgotten Princess.
Brenda
Holloway (Motown’s Forgotten Star)
Brenda Holloway was born on June
21, 1946 in Atascadero, CA. By the age of two her family move to Los Angeles in
the Watts neighborhood. At an early age, music became a part of her life as she
took up violin and flute lessons. Like most musicians from those times, she got
her vocal ability from the church. When Brenda was an early teen, she and her
sister starting picking up gigs as background singers. One of them being an
early rendition of The Whispers. At the age of 16, she recorded her first
single “Hey Fool”. She joined California label Del-Fi Records, the same label
that housed Ritchie Valens. Brenda would team up with producer Hal Davis and
with Ed Cobb on songwriting, she recorded the song “Every Little Bit Hurts”.
In 1963, Brenda would often work closely with Hal Davis. But one day Hal Davis was hosting a DJ Convention in LA Coconut Grove. One of the attendees was Berry Gordy, the owner of Motown Records. Brenda was lip-syncing a Mary Wells tune “You Beat Me to the Punch” at the party and Berry Gordy noticed her instant beauty. Then she actually sang to Mr. Gordy and he offered her a recording contract for Motown. However, he told her not to sign until she finished high school. Once she finished, Brenda Holloway officially signed to Motown Records and with this she became Motown’s first West Coast signing. She was asked to move to Detroit so she could be closer to the label, but with Brenda still being a teenager at the time, she opted to stay in LA. So, Berry Gordy started to build the first few offices in LA.
With the Motown machine now behind
her, they wanted her to re-record her song “Every Little Bit Hurts”. She was
against it but reluctantly opted to do it. The original Del-Fi version,
emphasized her raw vocals while Motown wanted her to sound sexy and they also
had a budget, which enhanced the production.
In March 1964, “Every Little Bit Hurts” (the Motown version) was
released nationwide. The song was a crossover success, as it reached #13 on the
Hot 100. Then she got an opportunity. Mary Wells was Motown’s original featured
leading lady as she been racking up hits between 1961-1964. But after her smash
hit “My Guy”, Wells was having major label issues with Motown that lead to her
departure. This move forced Berry Gordy to name Brenda Holloway as the next
leading lady.
This move was emphasized when she
started to work with Smokey Robinson, of the Miracles and Mary Wells main
songwriter. Smokey had a ton of songs intended for Mary Wells but since she
left, those songs were given to Brenda Holloway. One of those songs where “When
I’m Gone”. That song reached #25 on the Hot 100. With two hits under her belt,
she was booked to perform at the Motortown Revue. She even opened up for The
Beatles in their acclaimed Shea Stadium concert. Her next notable single
“Operator”. That song was originally recorded by Mary Wells and of course was
written by Smokey Robinson. While it showed minor success on the charts going
#70, it was another vocal masterclass by Brenda Holloway.
Then she started to have problems
with Motown, and vice versa. Brenda felt like the label wasn’t given her the
best material, since she was an out-of-town artist. The best material for the
female acts was given to Martha and the Vandellas and the staple act The
Supremes. She had an album called Hurtin’ and Cryin’, but that was scrapped by
Motown and that’s where some of her resentment came from. Some insides sources
from Motown said, to put it bluntly, had a California ego. Like Marvin Gaye,
she did not partake in Motown’s grooming process. They said that Holloway was
“difficult to work with”, and while female acts wore long dresses. Brenda wore
dresses too, but in the style of Tina Turner. Remember Motown was a class act
and her wardrobe wasn’t to label standards, at the time.
Back with the music, in 1967 she
released the single “Just Look What You Done”, but it was a minor success but
was a success nonetheless. Then she releases "You've Made Me So Very
Happy". This song was written by her and her sister Patrice. Berry decided
to change a few words and notes to the composition, thus giving him a
songwriting credit. The song reached #39 on the Hot 100. Should be noted that
her and Patrice wrote a song for the Supremes “Bah 3x” and that was featured on
their Reflection album.
But her issues with Motown
persisted. During the late 60s, The Supremes start to do regular performances
at Las Vegas and they wanted Brenda to do the same. But it spooked her as Vegas
had a different and somewhat dangerous lifestyle. Speaking of that, Brenda was
starting to notice a shift in lifestyle of the rich and famous, one where
drugs, alcohol, violence was present. She was growing fearful that she was
going to fall into those elements. And adding on to her constant issues with
Motown, Brenda Holloway left the label and at 22, all but retired from the
music industry. She retreated and married a pastor named Albert Davis and have
four children. Her issues with Motown
still continued, even after she left. Her song “You’ve Made Me So Very Happy”
was covered by the band Blood, Sweat & Tears and that version reached #2 on
the Hot 100. Since Gordy himself had a songwriting credit, he kept most of the
financial reward that song gave him giving little to Brenda, and in this case
Patrice too. Brenda Holloway sued Berry Gordy for monetary reasons. She would
win the suit and was paid her royalties from the song.
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I did say she retired from the
music industry by the late 60s, but that wasn’t entirely true. She found work
as a background vocalist for Joe Cocker and Barry White. Also, she joined
forces with former Motown producers Holland-Dozier-Holland on their label
Inviticus. Should be noted for Patrice, she gained worked providing the singing
voice for Valerie on the Hanna-Barbera cartoon show Josie and the Pussycats,
become one of the first African American voice actresses in television. In
1980, she returned to music, this time as a gospel artist. She released the
album, Brand New! She had this to say, “I
was just religious, but I wasn’t really knowing about God. Had I really known
God, I would have never stopped singing. I would have pursued my gift. There’s
a passage in the Bible that says that when God gives you something, you’re to
invest in that and make that bring more. For 18 years, I sat in a church. I did
everything that they told me to do. And I was miserable. Now I understand that
as a Christian you’ve got to be using what you have. You can’t be afraid. I was
afraid to use my talent. I was so afraid I was going to sin that I didn’t do
anything.”
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During the 80s, when the industry
was shifting from vinyl to compact discs, some of her early works was being
rediscovered by new audiences in the UK. Thus, her popularity increased. She
joined a UK label Motorcity Records. Yet she never performed but that changed
in 1991. Her former labelmate Mary Wells, passed away from throat cancer, and
that motivate her to return to the stage. She found more popularity with the
Latino low rider audience. They too were fond of the older Motown sounds and
like Mary Wells became popular with that audience. Her name was resurfaced in
2005, when her song “Every Little Bit Hurts” was covered by Alicia Keys on her
Unplugged album. Brenda Holloway had one of the purest voices in Motown. Yet
she frequently got overshadowed by other Motown legends. So, I recommend you
check out her catalog, it’s worth hearing. That concludes Brenda Holloway,
Motown’s Forgotten Princess.
SOURCES
https://www.motownmuseum.org/artist/brenda-holloway/
https://classic.motown.com/artist/brenda-holloway/
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