[.ca] The Original Marvelettes: Motown's Mystery Girl Group (ISBN 0965232859)

What's wrong with this story?:
The Marvelettes were Motown Records' first successful girl's group. They gave the label its first No. 1 single, "Please Mr. Postman," which helped to successfully launch the record company founded by black entrepreneur Berry Gordy Jr. in Detroit, Mich. A book on the group is long overdue and Taylor's does document the group's history, from its humble beginnings in Inkster, Mich to its demise in the early 1970s - but it does so in an often dry or elementary style that's a bit dull and predictable. For example, Taylor has this annoying habit of documenting what tunes the Marvelettes released as singles, but he doesn't give a critical analysis of these songs, (i.e. what made them good or memorable). Instead he consistently tells the reader what these songs were about. Any true Marvelettes fan already knows what the lyrical narrative of such popular Marvelettes tunes as "Don't Mess With Bill," "The Hunter Gets Captured by the Game" and "My Baby Must Be a Magician, was, and so, the lyrical descriptions aren't needed. Personally, I would have much rather read how these tunes were put together in the studio, including memorable accounts from some of the musicians or the original Marvelettes themselves, Katherine Schaffner or Gladys Horton. In telling the Marvelettes' story, the author repeats a lot of Motown history and trivia that has been covered in numerous other books on the Motown Sound, thereby he also repeats some of the same mistakes. For example, Motown session singers, the Andantes were used to smooth out the Marvelettes sometimes shakey harmonies, but not as much as this and other books often claim. And what's up with the spelling of founding group member Wyanetta Cowart's name? In numerous other books and articles written about the group over the years, the name is usually given as "Juanita Cowart." Was this wrong all these years? Was it a bit of Motown altering Cowart's name to make it more glamourous or easily memorable to the public? The author never explains. Taylor also lacks an investigative instinct. He does not challenge, some of the accusations made by Schaffner and Horton (the latter's. participation was somewhat limited), regarding royalties owed to them by Motown, or its promotion and marketing of the group. Schaffner asserts that the Marvelettes never received gold records for any of their recorded efforts and that they were pushed aside by the Motown marketing and promotional machine for concentration on its other acts. This is probably true. and Schaffner should know and is often very candid and direct throughout the book (which is an admirable trait on her part). But why did these things happen and what was the reasoning for them? The author never delves deep enough. Personally, I admit that I had a small problem with the viewpoint of the book, which is told from Schaffner's vantage point. It's her account of what happened and it's just not enough information. For example, the book does discuss the personal problems of Marvelettes' member Wanda Young Rogers. But rather than interview talking Rogers herself, the author talked to her sister and one-time caretaker, Bebe. Apparently, the author didn't spend any time with Wanda Rogers to get a firsthand account of her life today and made no attempt to get her side of the story--either personally or from someone who could defend some of the charges made against her (Rogers) in regard to her reported unhealthy "ego" and difficult attitude due to her alleged drug use. Taylor also made no attempt to interview Ann Bogan, who joined the Marvelettes in the latter Sixties. Bogan is not deceased and some effort should have been made to include her memories of the group's story. As a result, I didn't get as complete a picture of the other women who were a part of the Marvelettes story. But, overall, the book does finally celebrate one of Motown's most beloved girl's groups and is worth a read by any Motown sound or Marvelettes fan. Taylor should also be commended for attempting to tell the Marvelettes' complex story, even if it is somewhat stiff and leaves a reader with more questions than answers.

The pull-no-punches true story:
The Original Marvelettes: Motown's Mystery Girl Group by Marc Taylor is the pull-no-punches true story of the immensely popular all-girl group who called themselves the Marvelettes, and how their music became part of the Motown legend. Covering the secrets behind closed doors, as well as the glamour of open performances, The Original Marvelettes is an enthralling and informative narrative which was extensively researched and then revealed with uncompromising honesty. The Original Marvelettes is "must" reading for all Motown music fans and students of American popular music.

Inkster, Michigan's Mighty Marvelettes Make Motown Marvelous:
What a thrill! I know you've heard this before, but you really won't be able to put this book down once you start reading it. Marc Taylor writes with a real passion for his subject. His writing is not only vivid and descriptive, but it is also balanced and fair when it comes to some of the touchier subjects. Another writer in possesion of his rare and obvious writing talent might use such a worthy subject as a vehicle for their skillful and eloquent prose, but Mr. Taylor's talents are always in service to the story throughout this great book. Read it and tell a friend! You might think I'm prejudiced if I mention that I'm actually from Inkster, Michigan and went through the same music program many years after the Marvelettes at Inkster High School. I am very proud to be from this very musical community. Everyone either sang, or played an instrument, or simply had a love for and interest in music that I have never seen anywhere else in all of my travels. I have had the good fortune of traveling to every continent, performing all over the world (www.outsiderecords.com), and I now own a recording studio here in Midtown Manhattan (www.insidestudios.com). I only mention this to say that after all my experiences, I still feel that there could not have been a better place for me to grow up as a musician than Inkster, Michigan. So with all of that civic pride, if I did approach this book with any prejudices, I can assure you that they would be tough and expectant prejudices that would not be beneficial to the wrtiter. Mr. Taylor more than overcame any sub-conscious prejudices I may have had and exceeded my expectations! I'm looking forward to reading more of his work.

Engrossing story of Motown's first successful girl group:
The Marvelettes were Motown's first successful girl group as well as their most under-appreciated (along with the Velvelettes). While the Supremes and the Vandellas booked entry into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame years ago, the Marvelettes don't even make it onto the ballot (they were, however, recently voted into the Vocal Group Hall Of Fame). They also never had an entire book devoted to them... until now. The Original Marvelettes chronicles the unlikely story of five girls from the small Detroit suburb of Inkster, Michigan who went from also-rans in their local high school talent show to an audition at Motown Records that brought them a contract and almost immediate stardom. The catalyst for this success was the composition "Please Mr. Postman," which became Motown's first record to hit number one on the pop charts in 1961. Early on, we learn that "Postman's" author, Georgia Dobbins left the group before the song was even recorded, her parents declining to sign their underage daughter's contract with Motown. It's also revealed that her replacement, Wanda Young, was pregnant at the time of her signing (unbeknownst to the other group members) and would soon be unable to tour in support of their hit, her temporary fill-in none other than Florence Ballard of the then-"No Hit" Supremes. In light of the constant touring on those early Motortown Revues, all of the girls would end up dropping out of high school. Bad nerves (Wyanetta Cowart) and sickle cell anemia (Georgeanna Tillman) would reduce the Marvelettes to a trio by early 1965. A change in musical direction also emerged around this time, as girl group ditties like "Beechwood 4-5789" and "Too Many Fish In The Sea" that featured Gladys Horton's sandpapery vocals would give way to more sophisticated soulful fare such as "Don't Mess With Bill" and "The Hunter Gets Captured By The Game" which highlighted the honey-laced leads of Wanda Young. The change in lead vocalists inevitably led to tensions within the group, heightened further by Young's increasingly erratic behavior (which by all accounts began from a spiked drink while on tour in Europe in 1965). Marc Taylor interviewed Horton and Katherine Anderson Schaffner for the book, Schaffner in such depth that this is essentially her story. This is quite appropriate, since she was the only member of the group that lasted from its talent show incarnation until they disbanded in the late '60s. Taylor admirably limits discussion of Young's mental illness over the past 30 years to a few anecdotes that involved Schaffner, choosing instead to focus on the years that the Marvelettes were making music. While Taylor bungles the names of Berry Gordy's kids that make up the acronym Jobete (Motown's music publishing wing) and repeats himself a few times in the book, he is to be applauded for finally fleshing out the story of Motown's pioneering heroines - an enthralling saga, filled with heaps of real drama. For fans of girls groups and/or Motown music, The Original Marvelettes is a must-read.

An interesting read that left me yearning for more.:
After having read Marc Taylor's two other books about Seventies Soul Artists, I eagerly awaited the arrival of his latest tome, The Original Marvelettes. Afterall, I grew up listening to them and other girl groups, and singing along with "Too Many Fish In The Sea." Their beautiful ballad "Forever" is one of my all time favorite female lead songs, tying with the ethereal "Strange I Know." This was before The Supremes asked, "Where Did Our Love Go?" It was a quick read that left me longing for more. There were some revelations that were unknown to me, and I was left with a feeling of sadness for these women. It angers me that there is a group of young women billing themselves as Marvelettes, with no ties whatsoever with the original group. This was one of the most surprising revelations to come out of Marc's book. Another was that they weren't even invited to Motown's twenty fifth anniversary celebration nearly twenty years ago! I hope the surviving members of the group realize that for some of their fans, they were the hottest girl group to come out of Motown! Marc, how about a book about the "bad boys of Motown?"