‘Heat Wave’ Album: Martha & Vandellas Set The Soul Temperature At 33RPM

In 1963, the rapid emergence of Martha Reeves & the Vandellas traveled at 45 revolutions per minute, to the tune of three smash hit R&B singles. Two of them also made the pop Top 10. Soon they were motoring at 33rpm too, with their second album release of that year, Heat Wave, released on September 30.

The group fronted by Reeves, the former secretary to Motown songwriter and executive Mickey Stevenson, paid their dues in local clubs and as uncredited voices around Hitsville, notably for Marvin Gaye. But after the release of the Holland-Dozier-Holland song “Come And Get These Memories,” Martha’s typewriter was history.

The song raced to No.6 on the soul chart, went Top 30 pop and started the momentum that catapulted H-D-H’s irresistible “Heat Wave” to the R&B No.1 for a month. It also reached No.4 in the pop market, after which Brian, Lamont and Eddie’s composition “Quicksand” repeated the double Top 10 achievement.

Even as “Come And Get These Memories” was on the charts, Motown had reacted to its success by releasing a set of the same name as the Vandellas’ debut album. It didn’t make the bestsellers, but by the time Heat Wave was issued, such was their popularity that a portion of their audience, at least, was ready to try the group in the LP format.

The chart-topping title track was included, of course, but the simultaneous single “Quicksand” wasn’t. The album was largely a showcase for the group’s interpretative powers on recent hits from outside Motown. Produced by Stevenson and H-D-H, with Reeves taking all the lead vocals backed by Rosalind Ashford and Annette Beard, its line-up was almost a one-stop chart review of 1963.

The Vandellas review 1963

It included versions of Doris Troy’s “Just One Look,” Inez and Charlie Foxx’s “Mockingbird,” the Angels’ “My Boyfriend’s Back,” the Crystals’ “Then He Kissed Me,” Kai Winding’s “More,” Wayne Newton’s “Danke Schoen,” Barbara Lewis’ “Hello Stranger,” and Trini Lopez’s “If I Had A Hammer.” Every one of those songs was a soul or pop hit, most of them both, during 1963.

There was a gap of nearly 18 months before the Vandellas released another album, 1965’s Dance Party. By then, Motown and its publishing arm Jobete were far more sassy about keeping the covers in-house – not to mention that the group had several more major hits under their belt, including the indelible “Dancing In The Street.”

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