Rosalind Ashford-Holmes, one of the original voices behind Motown powerhouse Martha and the Vandellas, has died at 83.
The Detroit native died Tuesday, Sept. 15, of natural causes in Redford Township, Michigan, according to the Detroit Free Press. Her death was later confirmed in reports by several outlets.
Ashford helped create some of the most recognizable sounds of Motown’s golden era, lending her high soprano to classics including “(Love Is Like a) Heat Wave,” “Nowhere to Run,” “Jimmy Mack” and “Dancing in the Street.”
Martha Reeves, the group’s legendary lead singer, said she was “deeply saddened” by the loss of her longtime bandmate.
“Her voice will forever be with us through our great recordings together, and she will be missed, but never forgotten,” Reeves said in a statement reported by the Detroit Free Press.
“Our Motown family has just gotten a little smaller. My heart is heavy.”
Ashford’s connection to the Vandellas stretched back to the group’s earliest days.
She began singing with Annette Beard in the Del-Phis in the late 1950s. After Martha Reeves joined them, the women eventually became the Vandellas and found their way into Detroit’s rapidly growing Motown operation.
Before becoming stars in their own right, the women sang backup for other Motown artists, including Marvin Gaye.
Their breakout years followed quickly.
“Heat Wave” became a No. 1 R&B hit, while “Dancing in the Street” climbed to No. 2 on the Billboard pop chart in 1964 and ultimately became one of Motown’s signature recordings.
The song became so culturally significant that the Library of Congress selected “Dancing in the Street” for preservation in the National Recording Registry in 2005, calling it an important example of the emerging Motown sound.
Ashford remained with Martha and the Vandellas through most of the group’s biggest years before leaving near the end of the 1960s.
She later reunited with original Vandella Annette Beard and performed as part of the Original Vandellas, while occasionally appearing again alongside Reeves.
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inducted Martha and the Vandellas in 1995, recognizing Ashford alongside Reeves, Beard and the group’s other key members.
The Hall of Fame remembered Ashford this week as part of the group that went from singing backup sessions for Marvin Gaye to becoming “Motown royalty.”
Ashford and Reeves had reportedly experienced tension during the decades following their Motown heyday, but people familiar with the women told the Detroit Free Press that the two had recently reconciled before Ashford’s death.
Away from the spotlight, Ashford enjoyed traveling and spending time with friends and family, her son Damon Holmes told the newspaper.
She is survived by Holmes, four grandchildren and a daughter-in-law.