The Raelettes (or occasionally The Raelets or The Raeletts) were an American girl group formed in 1958 to provide

backing vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are ...

for Ray Charles. They were reformed from the group

The Cookies ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

. Between 1966 and 1973, the Raelettes recorded on Tangerine Records as a separate act produced and accompanied by Charles.

History

Reformed by Ray Charles from the all-girl singing group

, Charles first invited The Cookies for a recording session in New York City, in August 1956, where they taped "Lonely Avenue", "I Want To Know" and "Leave My Woman Alone". The Cookies' lineup at the time consisted of Margie Hendrix, Dorothy Jones, and Darlene McCrea. The Raelettes were officially established in 1958. The first lineup consisted of Darlene McCrea, Margie Hendricks, Patricia Lyles, and Gwendolyn Berry. The Raelettes were an integral part of Charles' organization and provided backing vocals on various hits, such as " Night Time Is the Right Time" (1958), "

What'd I Say "What'd I Say" (or "What I Say") is an American rhythm and blues song by Ray Charles, released in 1959. As a single divided into two parts, it was one of the first soul songs. The composition was improvised one evening late in 1958 when Charl ...

" (1959) and " Hit the Road Jack" (1961). In the early years, Margie Hendrix was the Raelette's foremost member. Ray Charles said about her: " Aretha, Gladys, Etta James — these gals are all bad, but on any given night, Margie will scare you to death." Ray and Margie had many affairs, but she started using drugs and alcohol and after a final argument in 1964, she was fired from the Raelettes and later died in 1973. The group always consisted of 4 or 5 singers. The ever-changing lineup included

Minnie Riperton Minnie Julia Riperton Rudolph (November 8, 1947 – July 12, 1979) was an American singer-songwriter best known for her 1975 single " Lovin' You" and her four octave D3 to F7 coloratura soprano range. She is also widely known for her use ...

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, Edna Wright of

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, and latter-day Supreme

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. Charles also produced and played piano on solo singles for various Raelettes. He formed Tangerine Records in 1962, and the Raeletts released three top 40 R&B hits between 1967 and 1971: "One Hurt Deserves Another" (1967), "I'm Gettin' 'Long All Right" (1968), and "Bad Water" (1971). The compilation '' Souled Out'' was released in 1970, featuring songs R&B duo

Ike & Tina Turner Ike & Tina Turner were an American musical duo consisting of husband and wife Ike Turner and Tina Turner. From 1960 to 1976, they performed live as the Ike & Tina Turner Revue, supported by Ike Turner's band the Kings of Rhythm and backing voca ...

had recorded for Tangerine. In the 1970s, Mable John sang lead vocals and the Raelttes toured independent of Charles. After she left the Raelettes returned to the background for good, with various lineups backing Charles until his death in 2004.

Members

*Shalaine Adams *Mabel Armed *Fritz Basket *Dorothy Berry *Gwen "Squatty Roo" Berry *Tangy Biggers *Anita Brooks *Alexandra Brown *Helen Bryant *Dottie Clark *Merry Clayton *Chrylynn Cobb *Trudy Cochran *Kathryn Collier *Sharon Creighton *Pamela Diggs-King *Karen Evans *Verlyn Flenaugh *Lillian Fort *Valerie Geason *Renee Georges *Deborah Gleese *Rita Graham *Susaye Greene *Katrina Harper-Cooke *Avis Harrell * Margie Hendrix *Peggy Hutcherson *Denise Jackson *Doretta James *Mable John *Ann Johnson *

*Beverly Ann Lesure *Pat Lion *Pat (Priscilla) Lyles *Kathy Mackey *Tammy McCann *

Marilyn McCoo Marilyn McCoo (born September 30, 1943) is an American singer, actress, and television presenter, who is best known for being the lead female vocalist in the group the 5th Dimension, as well as hosting the 1980s music countdown series '' Solid Go ...

*Gladezz McCoy *Darlene McCrea *Tonette McKinney *Paula Michelle *Janice Mitchell *Mae Mosely-Lyles *Vernita Moss *Paula More *Kay Nickerson *Pat Peterson *Bobbie Pierce *Madelyn Quebec *Patricia Richards *

*Donna M. Jones *Ruby Rae Roberson *Vermetea Royster *Mae Saunders *Cynthia Scott *Linda Sims *Bettye Smith *Gwendolyn Smith *Joy Styles *Barbara Nell Terrault *Brianna Perry Tucker *Andromeda Turre *Lalomie Washburn *Tracey Whitney *Elaine Woodard *Angela Workman *Edna Wright *Estella Yarbrough

Discography

Albums

* 1970: '' Souled Out'' (Tangerine 1511) – The Raelets with

* 1972: ''(Ray Charles Presents) The Raeletts, Yesterday... Today... Tomorrow'' (Tangerine 1515) * 1993: ''The Raelettes, Hits And Rarities'' (Titanic Records TR-CD 4422)

Singles

References

External links

*
Rita Graham website

Discography at discogs.com

{{DEFAULTSORT:Raelettes, The African-American girl groups Ray Charles Musical backing groups Tangerine Records artists Musical groups established in the 1950s Musical groups disestablished in the 2000s 1950s establishments in the United States 2000s disestablishments in the United States