Fayette Regina Pinkney (January 10, 1948 – June 27, 2009) was an American singer and one of the original members of musical group

The Three Degrees The Three Degrees are an American female vocal group formed circa 1963 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Although 12 women have been members over the years, the group has always been a trio. The current line-up consists of Helen Scott, Valerie Ho ...

Early life and education

Born in

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

, Pinkney was one of three young teenagers brought together by manager Richard Barrett to form

in 1963. Fayette subsequently earned a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ...

in psychology from

Temple University Temple University (Temple or TU) is a public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related research university in Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. It was founded in 1884 by the Baptist ministe ...

and a

Master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

in human services from Lincoln University in 1984.

Career

She was a part of The Three Degrees through their most prominent years with Roulette and

Philadelphia International Records Philadelphia International Records was an American record label based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1971 by songwriting and production duo Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff, along with their longtime collaborator Thom Bell. The ...

and sang on many of their greatest hits, including "

When Will I See You Again "When Will I See You Again" is a song released in 1974 by American soul group the Three Degrees from their third album, '' The Three Degrees''. The song was written and produced by Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff. Sheila Ferguson sang the lead, ...

" and "Take Good Care of Yourself", as well as reaching the top of the ''Billboard'' US Hot 100 when the group were the featured vocalists on the

MFSB MFSB, officially standing for "Mother Father Sister Brother", was a pool of more than 30 studio musicians based at Philadelphia's Sigma Sound Studios. They worked closely with the production team of Gamble and Huff and producer/arranger Thom ...

single "

TSOP (The Sound of Philadelphia) "TSOP (The Sound of Philadelphia)" is a 1974 recording by MFSB featuring vocals by The Three Degrees. It was written by Gamble and Huff as the theme for the American musical television program ''Soul Train'', which specialized in African American ...

" in 1974. She left the group in 1976. She traveled to London in January 1979 to record her only solo album, ''One Degree'', which she completed in just two weeks; it was met with critical and fan acclaim upon its release. She later worked as a counselor and vocal coach and, in addition to singing with her church's Inspirational Choir of the Salem Baptist Church,

Jenkintown, PA Jenkintown is a borough in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is approximately north of Center City Philadelphia. History The community was named for William Jenkins, a Welsh pioneer settler. The borough was settled in about ...

. She traveled with a group called the Intermezzo Choir Ministry, under the leadership of Ms. Verolga Nix.

Personal life

In 1994, Pinkney gave birth to a daughter, Ayana Alexandria Medeiros, who died two days later due to

sudden infant death syndrome Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), sometimes known as cot death or crib death, is the sudden unexplained death of a child of less than one year of age. Diagnosis requires that the death remain unexplained even after a thorough autopsy and ...

Death

On June 27, 2009, Pinkney died of acute

respiratory failure Respiratory failure results from inadequate gas exchange by the respiratory system, meaning that the arterial oxygen, carbon dioxide, or both cannot be kept at normal levels. A drop in the oxygen carried in the blood is known as hypoxemia; a r ...

following a short and sudden illness at the age of 61.

Discography

*''One Degree'' (Chopper Records, 1979)

References

External links

* * 1948 births 2009 deaths 20th-century African-American women singers 20th-century American women singers 20th-century American singers 21st-century African-American women American rhythm and blues singers American soul musicians Burials at Ivy Hill Cemetery (Philadelphia) Deaths from respiratory failure Lincoln University (Pennsylvania) alumni Singers from Philadelphia Temple University alumni {{US-RnB-singer-stub