Martha Reeves, now 84, is releasing a new album titled Searching on 14 August via Fun Day Records. In a reader interview, she reflects on her Motown career, her friendship with Dusty Springfield, and her disdain for cover versions of her songs.
The Motown Magic
Reeves describes her entry into Motown as a dream come true. After winning an amateur contest, producer William Stevenson discovered her and invited her to Hitsville, USA. She showed up unannounced the next day and was immediately given a job as a secretary. “It felt real good that I was at the right place at the right time. It was magical to me and it’s all been just a glorious ride,” she says.
Drawing parallels between Motown and Ford, Reeves notes that her father worked for Ford and Motown founder Berry Gordy was also a Ford employee. “It taught Berry Gordy the way to represent and how to manage and how to give people assignments. He called it Motown or Motortown. So, it’s all combined: Motor City, Detroit, manufacturing, making music as an assembly line,” she explains.
Marvin Gaye and Dancing in the Street
Reeves recalls the origin of Dancing in the Street, which became an anthem during the civil rights movement. She was standing outside the studio window, admiring Marvin Gaye, when he invited her to sing the song. “I sang it in the same key that he was singing it. He played keyboard, drums. He had a melodica that he played like a horn. He was so talented – he could play anything he put his hands on. You can tell that on Dancing in the Street: that piano solo is Marvin’s,” she says.
She describes Gaye as constantly writing, often with his eyes closed, humming and reading the Bible for rhyming words. “He was not here, if I can say that: he always seemed like he was in a trance writing songs.” The song’s impact during the civil rights movement was profound: “It quenched the excitement and the opportunity to riot. People stopped thinking that way; they started rejoicing and dancing as opposed to breaking windows and burning down buildings.”
Working with Holland-Dozier-Holland
Reeves praises the songwriting trio Brian and Eddie Holland and Lamont Dozier as thoughtful writers who always had a spiritual intent. “Heat Wave has meant so much to me – it was about more than the weather or the temperature. When I sang it for Eddie Holland I mimicked him completely. I thrilled him more than anyone else that I’ve ever recorded with. So from then, on any song that they gave us, I could nail it,” she says.
Channeling Emotion in Performances
Reeves credits her mother for teaching her to sing with feeling. “Mama said when I first started singing at the age of four in my grandfather’s church, she said, ‘Baby, don’t sing a song unless you know what you’re singing, and that you feel something.’ Every time someone gave me a song: can I relate to these lyrics? Have I been there before? I’ve been in my lonely room. I’ve asked people to come and get these memories. I have danced in the street – so, yes, I have put myself in the songs, only because Mama told me.”
Friendship with Dusty Springfield
Reeves met Dusty Springfield at the Brooklyn Fox in New York in the early 1960s. Springfield was alone and upset, so she bought pottery and began smashing it against the wall. “She explained to me that in England, when you were confused or disappointed or you just didn’t get what you expected, you could release your anxiety and anger by throwing pottery. I picked up something and started throwing things with her. I said, hey, this looks like fun! And from then on, we were friends. We travelled to Brazil together. We spent a lot of time in London. We had a very good, close relationship and I miss her dearly,” Reeves recalls.
Memories of the Jim Crow South
Touring the segregated South with the Motown Revue in 1962, Reeves remembers having to find creative solutions for basic needs. “We learned how to pee-pee without getting it on our shoes because there were signs saying ‘white only’ or ‘no blacks allowed’ or whatever. We’d go somewhere in some bushes or some cornstalks. But we saw the signs come down. We saw the people change their mind about being segregated and we helped with our music,” she says.
On Cover Versions
Reeves is not a fan of covers of her songs. “No. I don’t really want nobody else to sing my songs. I’m selfish. They might not treat Heat Wave nicely,” she says. Regarding David Bowie and Mick Jagger’s cover of Dancing in the Street, she admits, “I was jealous. I had a tropical dress I could have put on and done the video with them. I can out-dance both of them, and to see Mick Jagger and David Bowie dancing, honey, I wanted to be in that video. I told Mick Jagger when he came to Detroit – he smiled and gave me a big kiss.”
Local Politics and the Roundabout
Reeves served as a Detroit city councillor between 2005 and 2009. She says she got involved to understand property taxes and benefit from her properties. “I did wonderful. I didn’t go to jail! I had a few of my little laws that I introduced. I even introduced America to the roundabout. We’ve got several roundabouts here in Michigan now,” she says.
Favorite Performance
Reeves’s most cherished performance was at her grandfather’s church when she was about 11 years old, teaching Sunday school and singing. “Singing the songs and teaching people to sing. That’s my song,” she says.
Martha Reeves’ new album, Searching, is released 14 August via Fun Day Records. The single To Know You Is to Love You is out now.
