Doris Jones

Doris Jones, an American-born soul singer, is better known in Europe than in the U.S.A. Born in South Carolina in 1948, she moved to New York 11 years later and started singing in the Merick Baptist Church Choir.

At 20 she formed a group called Sex, Love & Life with her sister Lumishia Jones and a friend; the threesome played places like the Galaxy, the Jupiter, and the Boston Globe. In 1972, as the Electric Ladies, Jones and two other girls recorded "King Kong" on Mainstream Records. The record stiffed in the States and Britain.

Her next project was a band, Gallery, that toured the States. After that experience, Jones regrouped with her sister and a friend named Karen and formed Black Stash. They recorded "Mighty Love Man" for Opal Productions, produced by the Exciters' Herb Rooney.

Her break arrived when Ian Levine came from the UK to the States searching for artists to record. He had already cut the Exciters, a group that featured Brenda Reid (L.A. Reid's mother), but was looking for more.

Levine discovered Jones through Rooney and cut some tracks on her in a New Jersey studio that were released in England -- "He's So Irreplaceable," and "Stranded in the Wilderness." Levine recorded Jones often and the results can be heard on CD: The Best of Doris Jones: No Way Out, on Hot Productions.