UNSUNG HEROES OF SOUL

Steve Mancha was a Detroit-based performer whose biggest hits were all with vocal groups.

The Mar-Keys, the first house band at Stax Records in Memphis, had a million-selling instrumental hit in 1961.

Barbara Mason is a Philadelphia native who wrote and sang her biggest hit, "Yes, I'm Ready," while still in high school.

Garnet Mimms produced one of soul music's first big hits, "Cry Baby" (1963). His entry at allmusic.com states, "[His] pleading, gospel-derived intensity made him one of the earliest true soul singers. [And] his legacy remains criminally underappreciated.”

A four-time Grammy nominee, Dorothy Moore recorded the last Southern Soul record to do well on the charts before Disco and Funk took over Black music.

Jackie Moore was a Southern Soul (and later Disco) diva whose 1970 single, "Precious, Precious," was certified gold.

Best known for "Western Movies," the Olympics were one of the few 1950s vocal groups who stayed on the charts well into the ‘60s.

Known as "Motown's best-kept secret," the Originals provided uncredited backing vocals on numerous hits--including "What Becomes of the Broken Hearted," "A Place in the Sun," and "25 Miles"--before they recorded a smash of their own.

Along with being a recording artist, Bobby Patterson was a renowned songwriter, producer, label owner, and record promotion man.

A native of Detroit, Freda Payne is best known for the 1970 smash, "Band of Gold."

Peaches & Herb are best remembered for their 1979 smash, “Reunited,” but their early hits predated it by twelve years.

Ann Peebles sold albums and singles to the soul market throughout the 1970s, but never really broke through to the pop audience. Her biggest crossover hit, "I Can't Stand the Rain," reached a modest #38.