Kendra Spotswood
Encyclopedia
Kendra Spotswood is an American soul singer
and is considered to be one of the most underrated singers of the girl group
era. She is known best for her collaboration with Van McCoy
, her membership of The Shirelles
and her song "You're Gonna Make Me Love You" a favorite on the UK Northern soul
scene, which she recorded under the name Sandi Sheldon.
label as Kenni Woods her solo debut, "Can't He Take a Hint," followed in the same year. Her next single was "Back With My Baby"; her backing singers were Dee Dee Warwick
, Cissy Houston
and Doris Troy
. Spotswood performed with The Shirelles, touring with the group from 1964-1966 but did not record with them as she was still under contract with Philips. During that time, she and McCoy, her boyfriend at the time, also collaborated and co-wrote several singles using a number of aliases, including the Pacettes' "You Don't Know Baby," Jack & Jill's "Two of a Kind," and the Fantastic Vantastics' "Gee What a Boy".
In 1965, her "Stickin' With My Baby," the only record using her birth name.
; the single making little impact on release. After the same fate met 1968's "Touch My Heart," credited to the Vonettes and released on the Cobblestone label
, she relocated to Atlanta and retired from the music business.
"You're Gonna Make Me Love You" was rediscovered in the 1970s; one theory is that it was amongst a number of singles sold by BBC Radio One DJ
John Peel
to record dealer Graham Stapleton, who in turn sold it to "Froggy" Taylor, then the DJ at the influential Northern soul
nightspot The Twisted Wheel
. An alternative view according to Northern soul DJ, Ian Levine
, is that it was bought by fellow Northern soul DJ Rob Bellars whilst working in California
and brought back to the UK where it became the epitome of a rare, fast Northern soul classic. The song met with wide approval and it remains a Northern soul favorite to this day quoted as one of the crown jewels of the Northern soul club scene. Spotswood's whereabouts and real name remained unknown for decades, until she finally learned of her latter-day fame on the Northern soul circuit and began appearing again to live audiences.
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
and is considered to be one of the most underrated singers of the girl group
Girl group
A girl group is a popular music act featuring several young female singers who generally harmonise together.Girl groups emerged in the late 1950s as groups of young singers teamed up with behind-the-scenes songwriters and music producers to create hit singles, often featuring glossy production...
era. She is known best for her collaboration with Van McCoy
Van McCoy
Van Allen Clinton McCoy was an accomplished musician, music producer, arranger, songwriter, and orchestra conductor. He is known best for his 1975 internationally successful song "The Hustle", which is still played in dance halls and on radio to this day more than thirty years since his death...
, her membership of The Shirelles
The Shirelles
The Shirelles were an African-American girl group that achieved popularity in the early 1960s. They consisted of schoolmates Shirley Owens , Doris Coley , Addie "Micki" Harris , and Beverly Lee...
and her song "You're Gonna Make Me Love You" a favorite on the UK Northern soul
Northern soul
Northern soul is a music and dance movement that emerged from the British mod scene, initially in northern England in the late 1960s. Northern soul mainly consists of a particular style of black American soul music based on the heavy beat and fast tempo of the mid-1960s Tamla Motown sound...
scene, which she recorded under the name Sandi Sheldon.
Career
Aged eighteen in 1963, she made her professional debut singing backup with the Four Buddies' fronted by Van McCoy on their song "Lonely Summer". Recording on the PhilipsPhilips Records
Philips Records is a record label that was founded by Dutch electronics company Philips. It was started by "Philips Phonographische Industrie" in 1950. Recordings were made with popular artists of various nationalities and also with classical artists from Germany, France and Holland. Philips also...
label as Kenni Woods her solo debut, "Can't He Take a Hint," followed in the same year. Her next single was "Back With My Baby"; her backing singers were Dee Dee Warwick
Dee Dee Warwick
Dee Dee Warwick was an American soul singer. Born in Newark, New Jersey as Delia Mae Warrick, she was the sister of Dionne Warwick, niece of Cissy Houston and cousin of Whitney Houston....
, Cissy Houston
Cissy Houston
Emily "Cissy" Houston is a Grammy Award–winning American soul and gospel singer. She led a very successful career as a backup singer for such artists as Elvis Presley, Mahalia Jackson, Wishbone Ash and Aretha Franklin, and is now primarily a solo artist...
and Doris Troy
Doris Troy
Doris Troy was an American R&B singer, known to her many fans as "Mama Soul".She was born as Doris Higginson in The Bronx, the daughter of a Barbadian Pentecostal minister. Her parents disapproved of "subversive" forms of music like rhythm & blues, so she cut her teeth singing in her father's choir...
. Spotswood performed with The Shirelles, touring with the group from 1964-1966 but did not record with them as she was still under contract with Philips. During that time, she and McCoy, her boyfriend at the time, also collaborated and co-wrote several singles using a number of aliases, including the Pacettes' "You Don't Know Baby," Jack & Jill's "Two of a Kind," and the Fantastic Vantastics' "Gee What a Boy".
In 1965, her "Stickin' With My Baby," the only record using her birth name.
Northern soul
Spotswood used the alias "Sandi Sheldon" for 1967's "You're Gonna Make Me Love You" on OkehOkeh Records
Okeh Records began as an independent record label based in the United States of America in 1918. From 1926 on, it was a subsidiary of Columbia Records.-History:...
; the single making little impact on release. After the same fate met 1968's "Touch My Heart," credited to the Vonettes and released on the Cobblestone label
Cobblestone Records
Cobblestone Records was an American jazz record label.Cobblestone had two successive incarnations. The early one was in 1968-69 as a singles label, subsidiary of Buddah Records...
, she relocated to Atlanta and retired from the music business.
"You're Gonna Make Me Love You" was rediscovered in the 1970s; one theory is that it was amongst a number of singles sold by BBC Radio One DJ
Disc jockey
A disc jockey, also known as DJ, is a person who selects and plays recorded music for an audience. Originally, "disc" referred to phonograph records, not the later Compact Discs. Today, the term includes all forms of music playback, no matter the medium.There are several types of disc jockeys...
John Peel
John Peel
John Robert Parker Ravenscroft, OBE , known professionally as John Peel, was an English disc jockey, radio presenter, record producer and journalist. He was the longest-serving of the original BBC Radio 1 DJs, broadcasting regularly from 1967 until his death in 2004...
to record dealer Graham Stapleton, who in turn sold it to "Froggy" Taylor, then the DJ at the influential Northern soul
Northern soul
Northern soul is a music and dance movement that emerged from the British mod scene, initially in northern England in the late 1960s. Northern soul mainly consists of a particular style of black American soul music based on the heavy beat and fast tempo of the mid-1960s Tamla Motown sound...
nightspot The Twisted Wheel
Twisted Wheel Club
The Twisted Wheel was a nightclub in Manchester, England, open from 1963 to 1971. It was one of the first clubs to play the music that became known as Northern Soul....
. An alternative view according to Northern soul DJ, Ian Levine
Ian Levine
Ian Levine is an English songwriter, producer, and DJ. He is also a well-known fan of the long-running television show Doctor Who.Levine attended Arnold School in Blackpool from 1963 to 1970...
, is that it was bought by fellow Northern soul DJ Rob Bellars whilst working in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
and brought back to the UK where it became the epitome of a rare, fast Northern soul classic. The song met with wide approval and it remains a Northern soul favorite to this day quoted as one of the crown jewels of the Northern soul club scene. Spotswood's whereabouts and real name remained unknown for decades, until she finally learned of her latter-day fame on the Northern soul circuit and began appearing again to live audiences.