O.V. Wright

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O.V. Wright (b Overton Vertis Wright, 9 October 1939, Leno, Tennessee - d 16 November 1980, Memphis, Tennessee) was an American singer who is regarded as one of Southern soul's most authoritative and individual artists.

He began singing in church and later fronted a gospel group, the Harmony Echoes. His first secular recording in 1964 was "That's How Strong My Love Is", an impassioned ballad later covered by Otis Redding and the Rolling Stones. After being signed by Don Robey’s Back Beat label, further R&B hits followed, with Wright's plaintive delivery excelling on the slow material. Working with producer Willie Mitchell, success continued on songs including "The Ace Of Spades" and "A Nickel And A Nail".

However, Wright was imprisoned for narcotics offences during the mid-1970s, and, despite signing for Hi Records and releasing a series of quality recordings, his commercial success failed to recover after his release. A continuing drug problem weakened his health and he died from a heart attack aged 41.

More recently, his song, "Motherless Child" was sampled on the Ghostface Killah album Ironman on a song also called "Motherless Child." It and another Wright recording, "Let's Straighten It Out" have been published on Shaolin Soul, a compilation of tracks that have been sampled by the Wu Tang Clan and its members.