Marvin Junior, the longtime lead singer extraordinaire of the Dells passed away on Wednesday at the age of 77.
Marvin Junior, Jr. told ABC 7-TV that his father died from kidney failure and a weak heart in his Harvey, IL home.
As the lead singer of the Dells, Junior‘s warm, earnest baritone vocals helped define the Harvey, IL, R&B/soul music group during its ’60s/’70s heyday (along with Johnny Carter’s mesmerizing falsetto).
One example of his vocal prowess is his ability at holding a note, as heard on the 1968 remake of their own “Stay in My Corner.”
Junior, along with the rest of the Dells, was a key influence on Robert Townsend in the making of his movie The Five Heartbeats. In the early ’50s, the group initially formed as the El Rays when the members were students at Thornton Township High School. The lineup was Marvin Junior, Johnny Funches, Verne Allison, Chuck Barksdale, Mickey McGill, and his brother Lucius.
After doing their share of street-corner harmonizing, the vocal group auditioned for Leonard Chess of Chess Records in nearby Chicago.
Information from Eurweb.com, ABC 7 Chicago and AllMusic.com contributed to this report.
