Tribute weekend gives soul singer O.V. Wright overdue recognition
Somehow, someway, O.V. Wright continues to be a mystery. Though he spent his entire life in Memphis, recorded with Willie Mitchell and was a contemporary of everyone from Otis Redding to Al Green, Wright remains a largely unheralded figure.
Hardcore soul enthusiasts and R&B historians have consistently ranked him among the most evocative and powerful singers of all time, yet his troubled life and tragically early death at the age of 41 in 1980 have consigned him to the margins of music history.
A concert tribute to soul singer O.V. Wright is set for Saturday.Richard Simpson
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"I remember Willie Mitchell saying, after we lost O.V. -- and I never will forget this -- Willie said he was the greatest singer that was ever on the planet," recalls drummer Howard Grimes. "And if he'd lived, that's what he would've been."
Now, nearly three decades after Wright's passing, a group of local and international soul music fans have banded together to honor him with a series of events this weekend that will culminate in a tribute concert at Ground Zero Blues Club on Saturday night and the unveiling of a memorial marker at his gravesite on Sunday.
Born in rural Lenow, Tenn., just outside Memphis, Overton Vertis Wright was a gospel singing prodigy. Wowing church audiences at the age of 6 and appearing on WDIA as a teen, he went onto national success with groups like the Sunset Travelers.
In 1964, with the help of local songwriter and manager Roosevelt Jamison, Wright entered the R&B field in spectacular fashion. The Jamison-penned, Wright-sung classic "That's How Strong My Love Is" (later covered by Redding and many others) marked the first hit for Quinton Claunch's local Goldwax label and launched Wright's secular career.
But Wright would have his greatest success in the mid-'60s after starting an association with Memphis producer Willie Mitchell and his Hi Rhythm band. Beginning with "Eight Men, Four Women" and continuing with classics like "A Nickel and a Nail," "Ace of Spades" and "I'd Rather Be Blind, Crippled and Crazy," Wright established himself as the deepest of the deep soul singers.
Wright was revered by his peers, including a young Al Green. "Al used to come in and try and listen to O.V. record," recalls Willie Mitchell, laughing. "And O.V. would see him and say, 'Al, what you doing here? Get out of my session!' "
Although he was a noted perfectionist in the studio, Wright never carried his own band on the road. "He didn't have to. He'd take your band and do a whole show with them and kill you," says his longtime friend and Hi label mate Otis Clay.
Part of Wright's appeal lay in his twinning of gospel and blues, the hallmark of his distinctive style. "He just had more church in him," says Howard Grimes. "That's what touched people."
Clay recalls being in the audience when Wright turned a Miami nightclub into a revival meeting. "Man, he whipped that audience into a frenzy like I've never seen," says Clay. "You would've thought he was a preacher passing out blessings. He'd say, 'If you love the blues, come up and shake my hand.' And, man, people lined up, just like they would in church. That was typical O.V."
Despite continuing to turn out one remarkable single after another, crossover success never came Wright's way. By the mid-'70s, personal and substance abuse issues began to cause him serious problems, and he was eventually sent to federal prison in Atlanta on drug charges.
Upon his release, he returned to music and signed with Mitchell's Hi label. By the late-'70s it seemed as though things might be turning Wright's way. He made a triumphant tour of Japan in 1978 with the Hi Rhythm band and Grimes recalls the ecstatic response that Wright was afforded in the Far East.
"I saw people out there in the audience crying, man. And I ain't just talking about women. I'm talking about men and women. That's how powerful he was," says Grimes. "When I saw how much they loved him over there, I felt like a whole new future was opening up. But it didn't happen."
Drug-related health problems finally caught up with Wright in 1979, after a severe heart condition weakened his body. He spent his final months in a hospital, checking out for a couple hours a day and heading to Mitchell's studio to record what would become his final album. Eventually withered down to 115 pounds, Wright suffered a final heart attack while on the road and died on Nov. 16, 1980.
The pain of Wright's loss and thoughts of what might have been still linger for his friends and peers. "There are those artists who self-destruct and that's what he did," says Clay. "He was a good person. He wouldn't hurt anyone else in the whole world, but he did a good job of hurting himself. It was just very sad."
For nearly three decades since his death, the flame of Wright's memory has been fanned by a few dedicated fans and collectors. But legal and contractual problems with Wright's early recordings have kept his greatest work from getting a wider rediscovery and reappraisal.
Meanwhile, Wright's life and legacy in Memphis have also tended to be overlooked. A year ago, local journalist and blogger Preston Lauterbach went searching for Wright's grave at the Galilee Memorial Gardens on the anniversary of his death. "But I couldn't find anything," says Lauterbach. "His grave was unmarked. When I found that out, I put a notice up on my Web site and people started to respond to it, saying we'll donate some money if you can collect enough to get him a marker."
Lauterbach soon teamed up with another writer and R&B aficionado, New York-based Red Kelly. They set up a PayPal account to collect donations for a gravestone, and with contributions pouring in unexpectedly from all corners of the globe -- Sweden, Japan, the U.K. -- they purchased a marker, which will be unveiled on Sunday with Wright's family in attendance.
Kelly and Lauterbach also decided to organize a memorial concert and a series of satellite events (see schedule below) in honor of Wright. The Saturday night tribute show at Ground Zero will reunite Otis Clay and the Hi Rhythm Section, marking their first full performance together since the early-'90s. A handful of surprise guests are also expected.
"I can't think of anyone else we could've done this for and gotten the response we have," says Red Kelly. "There's something about O.V. that just touches a nerve with people. I'm glad he's finally getting a little bit of the recognition he deserves."
--Bob Mehr: 529-2517
Preview
O.V. Wright Night Concert
Featuring Otis Clay, Hi Rhythm and special guests. Saturday, 8 p.m. at Ground Zero Blues Club, 158 Lt. George W. Lee St. Tickets are $25 and are available in advance at ovwright.org or at Midtown's Shangri-La Records, and Pop Tunes' Downtown Memphis and Whitehaven locations, or at the door the day of the show. For more information, call 359-2024.
O.V. Wright tribute events
In addition to the O.V. Wright memorial concert at the Ground Zero Blues Club on Saturday night, organizers have arranged satellite events celebrating Wright and his musical legacy this weekend. For more information or to RSVP for specific events, go to ovwright.org, e-mail ovwrightnight@gmail.com, or call 359-2024.
Friday, 3 p.m. Memphis' famed Royal Studios (1320 S. Lauderdale St.) will host a tour of the facilities and a meet-and-greet with Wright's legendary producer, Willie Mitchell. RSVP is required.
Saturday, noon: A special luncheon will be held at Downtown's Rendezvous (52 S. 2nd St.), with two of the key players in Wright's story, songwriter Roosevelt Jamison and Goldwax Records founder Quinton Claunch. Tickets, which also include lunch, are $30. RSVP is required
Saturday, 4 p.m. A private group tour of the Stax Museum of American Soul Music (926 E. McLemore Ave.). Stax's director of communications, Tim Sampson, will be conducting the tour and there will be a reduced admission charge of $8.50. RSVPs are required.
Sunday, at 2 p.m. A graveside service will be held honoring Wright and there will be an unveiling of his headstone at Galilee Memorial Gardens (8283 Ellis Road). The service will be led by Elder Eric McCreight, the son of Wright's last living sibling, Ada Bell McCreight. Mrs. McCreight, Wright's widow, Mrs. Alberta Wright, and his son, Overton Vertis, will also be in attendance. All are welcome to attend.
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