The Ikettes "I'm So Thankful"

**jboy88** · 11-30-2012, 11:36 PM

I just got hip to this song yesterday! An outside project for Frank Wilson & Marc Gordon. I noticed the Lead vocalist sounds remarkably like Tammi Terrell during her pre-Motown phase. I'm assuming that Robbie Montgomery is the lead singer on this track and it has been confirmed that they weren't sisters. But were they related in another way, cousins perhaps?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cFnhyP4Tv3s

**Kamasu_Jr** · 12-01-2012, 08:41 AM

I don't think Robbie Montgomery sang lead on "...Thankful." I also don't think she was related to Tammi Montgomery. But maybe someone else knows for sure.
Ms. Robbie has a hit reality TV show Welcome to Sweetie Pie's, on the OWN network. The show is about the soul food restaurants she owns in St. Louis and runs with her family. Ikettes' memorabilia hangs in one of her businesses. By the way, some of the former Ikettes have also been featured on the show including Joshie Armstead and Jessie Smith, who is credited in the notes for the CD "Ikettes Can't Sit Down..." as the lead voice on I'm So Thankful. Jessie is heavily involved in the sanctified church these days, but she blessed Ms. Robbie's Upper Crust restaurant when it opened. I think Venetta Fields is still in Australia.

You can do a little Detroit Boogaloo to this one...watch out for the breakdown!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nEigJ9NzR8I

Dodododododadoo....
.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DIWbL_-cyaM

You know the camel walk is easy to do...

**keith_h** · 12-04-2012, 03:40 PM

I've loved this track for many years, but only recently discovered this alternative take on it by Edwin Starr and Blinky, from their album. For me it's different enough to be able to like both equally.

**keith_h** · 12-04-2012, 03:42 PM

I keep doing this, forgetting to leave the link off the post.

**keith_h** · 12-04-2012, 03:43 PM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x5dmgPaoiHU

**jboy88** · 12-04-2012, 10:49 PM

Oh yeah, I'd heard Edwin & Blinky's version on spotify as well as almost all of their album. Definitely could of been a single itself.

**robb_k** · 12-04-2012, 10:51 PM

Pretty nice! But how is it that we can find Motown Detroit cuts of THIS, and "My Heart is Calling" and "You Hit Me[[Right Where It Hurts", and yet no Detroit artist with Funk Brothers tracks singing "You Turned My Bitter Into Sweet". I'd surely like to have heard what The Funk Brothers could have done with that great song!

**brother_love** · 12-05-2012, 03:08 PM

I would have loved to have heard Wanda Rogers take on this song.

**robb_k** · 12-05-2012, 08:01 PM

I would have loved to hear Mary Love's perfect vocal track on "You Turned My Bitter Into Sweet" over a set of well-mixed Funk Brothers' backing tracks. In fact, I was surprised, even at the time [[1964) that Brenda and Patrice Holloway, The Vows, Hal Davis, Marc Gordon, Frank Wilson and Ed Cobb were signed to Motown, that Mary Love, Gloria Jones and Edna Wright [[Sandy Wynns) were not also signed by Motown, as they were the main female background singers used by Davis and Gordon in their L.A. Jobete Music productions. Wouldn't it have been nice to have scores on solos in the Motown Vaults sung by those artists?

**brother_love** · 12-06-2012, 01:30 PM

Gloria Jones, Edna Wright, Mary Love, Brenda Holloway and Patrice Holloway were some of the best of the west. I just ran into Edna this past Tuesday night at the Caole King & Friends benefit concert at The Doby Theater. Both her sister Darlene and Merry Clayton sang in the show.

**Kamasu_Jr** · 12-11-2012, 10:32 AM

IKETTES UPDATE: Jessie Smith popped up on another episode of Welcome to Sweetie Pie's. This episode which aired last Saturday involved Ms. Robbie having trouble with her voice and being excited over a visit by Dr. John, who was coming to St. Louis to perform and discovered Ms. Robbie on TV by accident.
Jessie Smith was seen visiting with Ms. Robbie and discussing her voice. Ms. Robbie did say she does not see Jessie that often, since she [[Jessie) joined the sancitfied church, but that they are still cordial. The episode ended with Ms. Robbie and Jessie [[I think that was her) joining Dr. John onstage for Wang Dang Doodle.

**motony** · 12-11-2012, 11:18 AM

I saw that , yes that looked like Jessie on stage with Ms. Robbie & the other bg singers doin Wang Dang Doodle. I missed the first 1/2 of the show.Some day Tina might show up at Sweetie Pies, that would be cool.

**Kamasu_Jr** · 12-11-2012, 11:29 AM

Originally Posted by motony

I saw that , yes that looked like Jessie on stage with Ms. Robbie & the other bg singers doin Wang Dang Doodle. I missed the first 1/2 of the show.Some day Tina might show up at Sweetie Pies, that would be cool.

It was a good episode because it featured music and Ms. Robbie rarely talks at length about the old days. By the way Tony, I went to a Memphis restaurant yesterday that serves the same kind of food as Sweetie Pies. I had candied sweets, meat loaf, cabbage, broccoli, dressing, chicken. I couldn't eat it all.

**motony** · 12-11-2012, 12:36 PM

near lunch & I'm hoping to eat some good country/soul food at the Colonial Room, Sanford Airport now has direct fligts to St. Louis so maybe get to eat at Sweetie Pies this year.I want to make sure Ms Robbie is around when I go.Kamasu, I'll need to get the low down on all the good restaurants in Memphie before I come up there...hope to see the Stax Museum this year.