Hattie Littles

Background

She was born in Shelby, Mississippi, and began her singing career in gospel music shows and competitions.

Career

She was signed to Motown for four years, resulting in her recording ten singles, but only one - "Your Love Is Wonderful" / "Here You Come", both sides written and produced by Berry Gordy Junior. - was released at the time. She preferred performing blues material, and in 1963 was the opening act on Marvin Gaye"s tour.

After her contract expired, Littles left the music business and experienced stints of alcoholism and drug abuse.

She was rediscovered by Levine, with the help of former Motown guitarist Dave Hamilton, singing gospel in Detroit in the 1980s. Levine started Motorcity Records, which represented more than one hundred artists who previously recorded with Motown.

She then released several singles in the United Kingdom, including "Running a Fever" (1989), "You"re the First, the Last, My Everything" (1990), and "Waiting for the Day" (1991), and the albums The Right Direction (1991), Borderline (1992), and The Very Best of Hattie Littles (1996), which included re-recordings of some of her earlier tracks. Littles had a full, soulful, gospel-tinged voice with a deep vibrato.

Tracks on The Very Best of Hattie Littles feature short monologues or "raps", in the classical and bluesy style of Lou Rawls, James Brown, Bobby Blue Bland, and BlackBerry King.

She died of a heart attack in Detroit in June 2000.

Achievements

• She was discovered by Motown producer Clarence Paul, who recruited her in 1962 after she had won three talent shows at "Lee"s Sensation Lounge" in Detroit.