Background: Martha and the Vandellas (known from 1967 to 1972 as Martha Reeves and the Vandellas) were an American all-female vocal group formed in 1957. The group achieved fame in the 1960s with Motown. Selected Members of the group were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995. Formed in 1957 by friends Annette Beard, Rosalind Ashford and Gloria Williams, the group eventually included Martha Reeves, who moved up in ranks as lead vocalist of the group after Williams' departure in 1962.
Context: Teenagers Rosalind Ashford and Annette Beard first became acquainted after a local music manager hired them to be members of a girl group he named The Del-Phis. Ashford & Beard, along with then-lead vocalist Gloria Williams, performed at local clubs, private events, church benefits, YMCA events and school functions. They were also being coached by Maxine Powell at Detroit's Ferris Center. One of the group's first professional engagements was singing background for singer Mike Hanks.  The group originally had up to six members, shortened to four. After another member left the group, she was replaced by Alabama-born vocalist Martha Reeves, who had been a member of a rival group, the Fascinations and had also been a member of another group, the Sabre-Ettes. In 1960, the group signed their first recording contract with Checker Records, releasing the Reeves-led "I'll Let You Know". The record flopped. The group then recorded for Checkmate Records, a subsidiary of Chess Records, recording their first take of "There He Is (At My Door)". That record, featuring Williams on lead vocals, also flopped.  Briefly separated, Reeves returned to a solo career performing under the name Martha LaVaille, in hopes of getting a contract with emerging Detroit label Motown. After Motown staffer Mickey Stevenson noticed Reeves singing at a prominent Detroit club, he offered her his business card for an audition. Reeves showed up at Motown on a wrong date (Motown auditions were held at Thursdays, while Reeves showed up to Motown's Hitsville USA studios on a Tuesday). Stevenson, initially upset, told Reeves to look out for clients and other matters. Soon Reeves became Stevenson's secretary and later was responsible for helping acts audition for the label. By 1961, the group, now known as The Vels, were recording background vocals for Motown acts. Prior to her success as lead singer of The Elgins, Sandra Edwards (then going by her surname Maulett) recorded the song "Camel Walk", in 1962, which featured the Vels in background vocals. That year, the quartet began applying background vocals for emerging Motown star Marvin Gaye, singing on Gaye's first hit single, "Stubborn Kind of Fellow" After Mary Wells failed to make a scheduled recording session feigning a short illness, the Vels recorded what was initially a demo recording of "I'll Have to Let Him Go". Motown was so impressed by the group's vocals - and Martha's lead vocals in the song - that the label CEO Berry Gordy offered to give the group a contract. Figuring that being in show business was too rigorous, Williams opted out of the group. With Williams out, the remaining trio of Ashford, Beard and Reeves renamed themselves The Vandellas, after Detroit's Van Dyke Street and Reeves' favorite singer, Della Reese. CANNOTANSWER
Question: Did they stay with The Del-Phis?

Answer:
The group originally had up to six members, shortened to four. After another member left the group, she was replaced by Alabama-born vocalist Martha Reeves,
Bakgrund: Martha and the Vandellas (känd från 1967 till 1972 som Martha Reeves and the Vandellas) var en amerikansk allkvinnlig sånggrupp bildad 1957. Gruppen uppnådde berömmelse under 1960-talet med Motown. Valda medlemmar i gruppen inleddes i Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 1995. Gruppen bildades 1957 av vännerna Annette Beard, Rosalind Ashford och Gloria Williams och omfattade så småningom Martha Reeves, som flyttade upp i led som ledande vokalist av gruppen efter Williams avgång 1962. Sammanhang: Teenagers Rosalind Ashford och Annette Beard blev först bekanta efter att en lokal musikchef anlitat dem för att vara medlemmar i en tjejgrupp han döpte till The Del-Phis. Ashford & Beard, tillsammans med den dåvarande vokalisten Gloria Williams, uppträdde på lokala klubbar, privata evenemang, kyrkliga förmåner, YMCA-evenemang och skolfunktioner. De blev också coachade av Maxine Powell på Detroit's Ferris Center. Ett av gruppens första professionella engagemang var sjungande bakgrund för sångerskan Mike Hanks. Gruppen hade ursprungligen upp till sex medlemmar, förkortade till fyra. Efter att en annan medlem lämnat gruppen ersattes hon av Alabama-födde vokalisten Martha Reeves, som hade varit medlem i en rivaliserande grupp, Fascinationerna och även hade varit medlem i en annan grupp, Sabre-Ettes. 1960 skrev gruppen på sitt första inspelningskontrakt med Checker Records, och släppte den Reeves-ledda "I'll Let You Know". Skivan floppade. Gruppen spelade sedan in för Checkmate Records, ett dotterbolag till Chess Records, och spelade in sin första tagning av "There He Is (At My Door)". Den skivan, med Williams på sång, floppade också. Kort separerade återvände Reeves till en solokarriär som uppträdde under namnet Martha LaVaille, i hopp om att få ett kontrakt med framväxande Detroit-etiketten Motown. Efter att Motowns stabschef Mickey Stevenson lagt märke till att Reeves sjöng på en framstående Detroitklubb erbjöd han henne sitt visitkort för en audition. Reeves dök upp på Motown på fel datum (Motown auditions hölls på torsdagar, medan Reeves dök upp till Motowns Hitsville USA studios på en tisdag). Stevenson, som till en början var upprörd, sade åt Reeves att se upp för klienter och andra saker. Snart blev Reeves Stevensons sekreterare och ansvarade senare för att hjälpa till med akter audition för bolaget. År 1961 spelade gruppen, som nu kallas The Vels, in bakgrundssång för Motown-akter. Inför hennes framgångar som ledsångerska i The Elgins spelade Sandra Edwards (som då gick under sitt efternamn Maulett) in låten "Camel Walk", 1962, som innehöll Vels i bakgrundssång. Det året började kvartetten tillämpa bakgrundssång för den framväxande Motown-stjärnan Marvin Gaye, som sjöng på Gayes första hitsingel, "Stubborn Kind of Fellow" Efter att Mary Wells misslyckats med att göra en schemalagd inspelningssession som låtsades vara en kort sjukdom spelade Vels in vad som till en början var en demoinspelning av "I'll Have to Let Him Go". Motown blev så imponerad av gruppens sång - och Marthas ledsång i låten - att skivbolagets VD Berry Gordy erbjöd sig att ge gruppen ett kontrakt. Williams föreställde sig att det var för rigoröst att vara med i showbusiness och valde att inte vara med i gruppen. Med Williams ute döpte den kvarvarande trion av Ashford, Beard och Reeves om sig till The Vandellas, efter Detroits Van Dyke Street och Reeves favoritsångerska, Della Reese. Cannotanswer Fråga: Stannade de hos Del-Phis? Svar:
Background: Martha and the Vandellas (known from 1967 to 1972 as Martha Reeves and the Vandalas) was an American all-female vocal group formed in 1957. The group achieved fame in the 1960s with Motown. Selected members of the group were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995. The group was formed in 1957 by friends Annette Beard, Rosalind Ashford and Gloria Williams and eventually included Martha Reeves, who moved up in ranks as leading vocalist of the group after Williams's departure in 1962. Context: Teenagers Rosalind Ashford and Annette Beard first became acquainted after a local music manager hired them to be members of a girl group he named The Del-Phis. Ashford & Beard, along with then vocalist Gloria Williams, performed at local clubs, private events, church benefits, YMCA events and school functions. They were also coached by Maxine Powell at Detroit's Ferris Center. One of the group's first professional engagements was singing background for singer Mike Hanks. The group originally had up to six members, abbreviated to four. After another member left the group, she was replaced by Alabama-born vocalist Martha Reeves, who had been a member of a rival group, the Fascinations and had also been a member of another group, Sabre-Ettes. In 1960, the group signed their first recording contract with Checker Records, releasing the Reeves-led "I'll Let You Know". The record flopped. The group then recorded for Checkmate Records, a subsidiary of Chess Records, recording their first take of "There He Is (At My Door)". That record, with Williams on vocals, also flopped. Briefly separated, Reeves returned to a solo career performing under the name Martha LaVaille, hoping to get a contract with emerging Detroit label Motown. After Motown chief of staff Mickey Stevenson noticed that Reeves sang at a prominent Detroit club, he offered her his business card for an audition. Reeves appeared at Motown on the wrong date (Motown auditions were held on Thursdays, while Reeves appeared to Motown's Hitsville USA studios on a Tuesday). Stevenson, initially upset, told Reeves to watch out for clients and other things. Soon Reeves became Stevenson's secretary and was later in charge of helping with the acts audition for the company. In 1961, the group, now called The Vels, recorded backing vocals for Motown acts. Prior to her success as lead singer in The Elgins, Sandra Edwards (who then went by her surname Maulett) recorded the song "Camel Walk", in 1962, which featured Vels in backing vocals. That year, the quartet began applying backing vocals for emerging Motown star Marvin Gaye, who sang on Gaye's first hit single, "Stubborn Kind of Fellow" After Mary Wells failed to make a scheduled recording session pretending to be a short illness, Vels recorded what was initially a demo recording of "I'll Have to Let Him Go". Motown was so impressed by the group's vocals - and Martha's lead vocals in the song - that record label CEO Berry Gordy offered to give the group a contract. Williams envisioned it was too rigorous to be in show business and chose not to be in the group. With Williams out, the remaining trio of Ashford, Beard and Reeves renamed themselves The Vandellas, after Detroit's Van Dyke Street and Reeve's favorite singer, Della Reese. Cannotanswer Question: Did they stay with Del-Phis? Answer:
Gruppen hade ursprungligen upp till sex medlemmar, förkortade till fyra. Efter att ytterligare en medlem lämnat gruppen ersattes hon av Alabama-födde vokalisten Martha Reeves,
The group originally had up to six members, abbreviated to four. After another member left the group, she was replaced by Alabama-born vocalist Martha Reeves,