statement<\/a>. \u201cRosalind played an important part in the early days of Martha and the Vandellas. Her voice will forever be with us through our great recordings together, and she will be missed, but never forgotten. Our Motown Family has just gotten a little smaller. My heart is heavy.\u201d <\/p>\nIn 1995, Martha and the Vandellas were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, becoming the second all-female group to land the acclaim. <\/p>\n
Born on Sept. 2, 1943, to John and Mary Ashford, the budding soprano developed her chops singing in the church choir and then in the glee club at Wilbur Wright High School in Detroit. In 1957, the musically inclined teen landed an audition at the Detroit YMCA, and it was there that she, Annette Beard and Gloria Williams linked up with local music manager Edward \u201cPops\u201d Larkins, and formed the girl group the Del-Phis. <\/p>\n
According to the Motown Museum, the Del-Phis invited Reeves \u2014 then a secretary to William \u201cMickey\u201d Stevenson, Motown\u2019s Artists and Repertoire director \u2014 to join their girl group. Together, they took on gigs as backup singers, including on Marvin Gaye\u2019s early songs \u201cHitch Hike\u201d and \u201cPride and Joy.\u201d <\/p>\n
The Del-Phis became Martha and the Vandellas when \u201cMy Guy\u201d singer Mary Wells missed a fortuitous recording session. Reeves, with the Del-Phis singing backup, filled in for Wells, and Motown was so impressed, the label signed the group to the Gordy label in 1962, sans Williams, who left the group around this time. <\/p>\n
The trio\u2019s breakout hit, \u201cCome and Get These Memories,\u201d was released in 1963 and performed well on the Billboard charts, reaching No. 6 on the R&B singles chart. \u201c(Love Is Like a) \u201cHeat Wave\u201d dropped the same year and topped the charts, followed by \u201cQuicksand,\u201d which also became a top-10 hit. The 1967 song \u201cJimmy Mack\u201d went to No. 1 on the Billboard R&B singles chart and was the final top-10 hit in the U.S. for the group.<\/p>\n
\u201cHeat Wave\u201d scored the group a Grammy nomination for best R&B recording for 1964 and made the trio the first Grammy-nominated Motown group.<\/p>\n
Ashford left the group and the music business behind in 1969, and worked at the Michigan Bell Telephone Co., though she would occasionally reunite with former Vandellas members for reunion performances. <\/p>\n
Classic Motown posted a tribute<\/a> to the singer on Thursday, writing that her harmonies served as the soundtrack to a generation. \u201cThe Motown family mourns the passing of a true icon, Rosalind Ashford,\u201d read the statement. \u201cAs an original founding member of Martha and the Vandellas, Rosalind\u2019s vocal talent helped define the golden era of the Motown sound.<\/p>\n\u201cRosalind\u2019s contribution to American music and Motown history will never be forgotten. Rest in power, Rosalind. Thank you for the music.\u201d<\/p>\n