Betty Wright’s 1976 album ‘Explosion’ is considered by many to be her career best. The string laden 2 stepper ‘Smother Me With Your Love’ has been a very popular Rare Groove track for years. ‘Keep Feelin’ is a great Modern Soul mid tempo dancer. The Ballads ‘If I Ever Do Wrong’, ‘I Think You Better Think About it’ and the jazzier ‘Life’ are also highlights. Four non album 45 sides include the funky ‘Slip and Do It’ and ‘If Was A Kid’ a future Modern Soul classic awaiting discovery that ends this album on a high.
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Listen to tracks
Open The Door To Your Heart
Do Right Go
I Think I’D Better Think About It
Smother Me With Your Love
Don’T Forget To Say I Love You Today
Keep Feelin’
Rock On Baby, Rock On by
If I Ever Do Wrong
Bluesville
Life
To Love And Be Loved
Oooh La
Slip And Do It
If I Was A Kid
BETTY WRIGHT – A SOUL LEGEND RIP
‘Born to sing’, it is an old cliché, but in Betty Wright’s case the literal truth. Betty Wright (nee Bessie Regina Norris in Miami on 21st December 1953) was the youngest of seven children in a musical family. She was a member of her siblings Gospel group, Echoes Of Joy almost from the day she was born. Betty contributed backing vocals to the group’s debut album at the age of two. She continued to sing with them until 1965.
Her first solo recording ‘Good Lovin’ for Miami’s Deep City Records was released in 1967. She was 13. Her second single ‘Mr Lucky’ followed in the same year on Solid Soul. These two records began her collaboration with producers Clarence Reid and Willie Clarke that would prove crucial to her future success at Alston Records. She also discovered local Miami musical talent such as George and Gwen McCrae helping them to sign for Henry Stone’s TK Records label.
Betty Wright, whilst still only 14, recorded her debut album ‘First Time Around’ on Atco, through the tie up with Alston Records, another Henry Stone imprint. It spawned a minor hit in ‘Girls Can’t Do What The Guys Do’. Her breakthrough came with ‘Clean Up Woman’ in 1971, a song that became her signature tune. It was certified gold in December of that year. Her second album ‘I Love The Way You Love’ followed.
Throughout the seventies she continued to record for Alston. A succession of fine if not overtly commercial albums ensued such as ‘Danger High Voltage’ and ‘Explosion’. She had Soul hits like ‘Where Is The Love’, ‘Secretary’, ‘Let Me Be Your Lovemaker’, ‘Tonight’s The Night’ and the UK crossover ‘Shoorah Shoorah’. She was a major force in the golden age of Soul.
Her voice amongst the most distinctive in Soul music with its huge range and powerful high register was her main strength. It was perfectly suited to the Southern Soul in which her musical style was grounded. Her song writing abilities should not be overlooked either. She won a Grammy for best R&B song for her co-composition ‘Where Is The Love’. Her lyrics and songs reflected her vocal maturity. For example, ‘Clean Up Woman’ was recorded while she was still 17, yet its subject matter belied her age.
By the early eighties Henry Stone’s empire and its Miami sound had passed its peak, the Disco sound upon which it was based becoming yesterday’s news. Though not a Disco artist per se, it was time for her to move on. Betty signed for Epic Records and released two albums, ‘Betty Wright’ and ‘Wright At You’ in 1981 and 1983, respectively. Though solid releases, they could not re-ignite her career. In 1985, Wright started her own label Miss B Records and released a string of very good albums. Indeed, 1987’s ‘Mother Wit’ was the first Black female album released on the artist’s own label to be certified gold. The album produced the anthem ‘No Pain No Gain’ which led to ‘From Pain To Joy’ and ‘After The Pain’.
A resurgence in interest in her recordings came courtesy of the London based Rare Groove scene. 2 steppers like ‘Smoother Me With Your Love’, ‘Make Me Love The Rain’ and the beautiful ‘Thank You For The Many Things You’ve Done’ are just a few of the tunes that gained her new fans.
Betty was not only a legendary Soul singer but also a capable producer and writer. She was instrumental in the development of many talented singers such as the UK’s own Joss Stone. Ms Wright co-produced Joss’ first two albums: the brilliant ‘Soul Sessions’ and ‘Mind Body And Soul’. She had the passion, drive, and spirit and the desire to pass on her considerable knowledge to a new generation of singers and artists.
In perhaps, one of the most unlikely hook-ups in the modern era she linked up with Hip Hop band The Roots in 2011. The resulting ‘Betty Wright The Movie’ was one of her finest albums and one of the strongest comebacks by a Soul legend this century.
Betty’s appearance on Jools Holland’s New Year’s show back in 2013 is a personal highlight. She blew the studio audience away leaving fellow performers struggling in her wake and the viewers drooling for more. She still had it…and knew how to use it.
We at Soul Brothers had the privilege to re-release some of her records and will be forever thankful for the music that enlightened our lives. We never had the pleasure of meeting Betty though we felt we knew her. From all accounts as well as being a legend, she was also one of the sweetest ladies. Sadly, she passed away at 66 on 10th May. Betty thank you for the music – a legacy that will last for eternity.
