Mary Wells - Dear Lover: The Atco Sessions

In his autobiography, Jerry Wexler characterized Mary Wells' tenure with Atlantic from 1965-67 as a failure for all parties concerned, but he's being too harsh. Commercially, it was certainly a fallow period; only the title track of Dear Lover: The Atco Sessions (a Top Ten R&B hit) paid off. But actually, her Atco singles were solid mid-'60s soul, usually recorded in Chicago and bearing the influence of that city's noted soul producer, Carl Davis (who produced some of these tracks). Read More