The Velvelettes seemed poised to be as big as their contemporaries, The Supremes, but the changing musical landscape of the mid-60s is probably what prevented them from doing so. The Velvelettes could be considered a family group of sorts as two members were sisters and two were cousins. The fifth member, Betty Kelley, left in 1964 to join Martha & The Vandellas. They almost hit the Top 40 with "Needle In A Haystack," but it was stopped cold at #45 in 1964. The group would enjoy one more Top 100 appearance before fading into underserved obscurity: "He Was Really Sayin' Somethin'" stalled at #64 in 1965. "These Things Will Keep Me Loving You" is another cut that should have taken this group to the upper echelons of the charts, but it bubbled under in 1966.
Few groups got off to such a successful start as Martha & The Vandellas. The Vandellas, fronted by the great Martha Reeves, sang backup on several tunes by Marvin Gaye. When they teamed up with the songwriting powerhouse Eddie Holland, magic happened and they became the 50th most successful act of the 60s. In 1963, they scored their first hit with "Come And Get These Memories," which went to #29. The rest is history with a string of impressive hits like "Heat Wave" (#4), "Quicksand" (#8), "Dancing In The Street" (#2), "Nowhere To Run" (#8), "I'm Ready For Love" (#9), "Jimmy Mack" (#10), and "Honey Chile" (#11). As the 60s turned into the 70s, the music scene was a-changing, and their malt shop style was losing fashion. Released in 1970, "I Gotta Let You Go" only reached #93 - it probably would have gone top 10 if released a decade earlier. The group scored one final chart hit when "Bless You" reached #53 in 1971. Martha Reeves then left to pursue a solo career, which didn't pan out.
Sheena Easton woke up the 80s with her housewife anthem, "Morning Train (Nine To Five)". The song chugged right to #1 in early 1981. Her charting career lasted a solid decade, ending in 1991 with "What Comes Naturally" hitting #19. Easton nearly hit the top twice more in 1987 and 1988. She had two consecutive #2 hits, her duet with Prince ("U Got The Look") and the Babyface penned "The Lover In Me". Two songs that I think should have been bigger hits for Easton include her take on the Martha Reeves & the Vandellas song "Jimmy Mack" and this one, "So Far So Good". "So Far So Good" is a quintessential 80s tune that Easton contributed to the soundtrack of the 1986 film About Last Night.
