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RELEASE DATE: November 18th 2005
CD Edition limited to 5000 non-numbered limitied edition copies.
Venice, California, was Teena Marie’s launching pad, about as far away form the Motor City as one can be and still be in the lower 48. Born Mary Christine Brockert, “Tee” as a child showed promise as both an actress and singer; she performed in commercials and in one episode of the classic sitcom, The Beverly Hillbillies. While studying English Lit at Santa Monica City College, she landed a Motown-produced TV pilot called Orphanage Children. While the pilot never aired, Motown signed 20-year-old Teena Marie in 1975.
Four years passed, during which the white soul singer worked on demos with a variety of producers. Then, while practicing in a Motown office, she was discovered by Rick James. It was magic. Not since Stevie Wonder introduced Syreeta had Motown produced such synergy between superstar and apprentice. James co-produced with longtime engineer Art Stewart her 1979 debut, Wild and Peaceful, which featured Teena Marie’s first Top 10 single “I’m A Sucker For Your Love.”
What the album didn’t feature, at least in its U.S. incarnation, was a picture of Ms. Marie. Nervous that a white singer might not be embraced by urban radio, Lady T’s picture was left off the album cover, and her ethnicity wasn’t broached in any of the publicity material. And she sure didn’t sound white. The album climbed to #18 on the Soul LPs chart. Our reissue’s expanded packaging incorporates artwork from the LP’s European release, which did feature a pic of Teena. Also included is an essay by A. Scott Galloway and lots of quotes from Teena.
Wild And Peaceful: Expanded Edition was supervised by Teena Marie and is the first of three of her original Motown albums to get the Select remastered and expanded treatment. We’ve added three bonus tracks to the album’s original classic six: the 12” instrumental flipside of “I’m A Sucker For Your Love”; “You Got The Love,” a session outtake; and a stunning closer, “Every Little Bit Hurts.” Though another version of the latter, a cover of Brenda Holloway’s first Motown hit, was released on a 1994 Teena Marie hits collection, the artist pointedly told us… “wait, there’s a version with me and Rick. Find that.” One listen you’ll know why she remembered it more than 25 years after it was recorded.
Lady T’s tenure at Motown lasted four albums. She made a lasting mark, and her career continues to thrive more than two decades later.
Teena Marie appeared with Missy Elliott as a judge on the hip-hop reality series The Road to Stardom.
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