Soul singer O.V. Wright (Hi, MCA, Backbeat Records) died on this - TopicsExpress

Soul singer O.V. Wright (Hi, MCA, Backbeat Records) died on this day1980 in Mobile, AL at age 41. Overton Vertis O. V. Wright (October 9, 1939 – November 16, 1980)[1] was an American singer who is generally regarded as a blues artist by African American fans in the Deep South; he is also regarded as one of Southern souls most authoritative and individual artists.[2] His best known songs include Thats How Strong My Love Is (1964), Youre Gonna Make Me Cry (1965), Nucleus of Soul (1968), A Nickel and a Nail (1971), I Cant Take It (1971) and Ace of Spades (1971). Born in Lenow, Tennessee, Wright, as a youngster, began singing in the church. In 1956, while still in high school, he joined The Sunset Travelers as one of the lead singers for the gospel group.[3] He later fronted a gospel music group, the Harmony Echoes. It was during this time that he was discovered (along with James Carr) by Roosevelt Jamison a songwriter and manager. Their first pop recording in 1964 was Thats How Strong My Love Is, a ballad later covered by Otis Redding and the Rolling Stones. It was issued on Goldwax, the label Wright signed to after leaving his gospel career. It was later determined that Don Robey still had him under a recording contract, due to his gospel group having recorded for Peacock. After his contract was shifted to Don Robeys Back Beat label, further R&B hits followed. Working with record producer Willie Mitchell, success continued on songs including Ace of Spades and A Nickel and a Nail. Wrights hits were much more popular in the deep South. His biggest hits were Youre Gonna Make Me Cry (R&B #6, 1965), Eight Men, Four Women (R&B #4, 1967) Ace of Spades (R&B #11, 1970), A Nickel and a Nail (R&B #19, 1971). The remainder of his 17 hits charted no higher than #20 on the R&B charts. However, Wright was imprisoned for narcotics offenses during the mid-1970s, and, despite signing for Hi Records and releasing a series of recordings, his commercial success failed to recover after his release. A continuing drug problem weakened his health and he died from a heart attack, in Mobile, Alabama at age 41. Wright is among the most remembered voices of soul music, perhaps mostly for being sampled frequently in hip hop music. In 1996, his song, Motherless Child was sampled on the Ghostface Killah album Ironman on a song also called Motherless Child. It and another Wright recording, Lets Straighten It Out have been published on Shaolin Soul, a compilation of tracks that have been sampled by the Wu Tang Clan and its members. Lets Straighten It Out was sampled in a Wu-Tang Clan song called America from the charity compilation album America Is Dying Slowly. Ace of Spades was sampled by Slim Thug and the Boss Hogg Outlawz on a song named Recognize A Playa. Wright has been a big influence on many Soul and Blues singers including Robert Cray,[4] Otis Clay,[5] Taj Mahal[6] as well as young Soul singer Reggie Sears[7] among many others. Johnny Rawls joined Wrights backing band in the mid-1970s, and played together with Wright until the latters death in 1980. The band then continued billed as the O.V. Wright Band for another 13 years, and toured and performed with other musicians over this time span. These included B.B. King, Little Milton, Bobby Bland, Little Johnny Taylor, and Blues Boy Willie.[8]youtu.be/w9U3XHaSw-Y