Career
The group's self-titled debut album was released in 1983 and yielded their first R&B hits: "Candy Man," "All Night Long" (which was later included in the soundtrack of the 2002 video game Grand Theft Auto: Vice City), and "Boys." The group released their second album Only Four You in 1985. That album's lead single "In My House" became the group's biggest hit, reaching #3 on the R&B chart and then crossing over to the Hot 100 chart, where it reached #7 and spent 12 weeks in the Top 40. To date, this is the Mary Jane Girls' only Top 40 hit in the U.S. It also charted on the Hot Dance Club Play chart, peaking at #1 for two weeks in April 1985. "Wild and Crazy Love" was the second single from this album and it also fared well on the R&B (#10) and dance charts (#3). It barely missed the Top 40 on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at #42. The last single, "Break It Up," only reached #79 on the R&B chart and did not chart on the Billboard Hot 100. The group covered the Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons hit "Walk Like a Man," which was included on the soundtrack of the 1986 film A Fine Mess. The song missed the U.S. Top 40 by one spot. The group's next single, "Shadow Lover," was released in the spring of 1986, but problems between Motown and Rick James resulted in little promotion for the single, although it was performed on Soul Train. That same year, the Mary Jane Girls were ready to record their third album titled Conversation. The album was never released and the group officially broke up in 1987.
After Ghant and Wuletich left the group, JoJo McDuffie carried on as a solo artist. She also recorded with Rick James on his 1997 Urban Rhapsody album on the track "Never Say You Love Me," which was originally written for Teena Marie. After leaving the Mary Jane Girls, Cheryl Bailey sang lead for Morris Day's studio group The DayZs. Yvette Marine went on to appear in R&B singer, Pebbles' Mercedes Boy music video in 1988. In 1991, she sued Virgin Records, claiming that she had shared the lead vocals on the songs "Opposites Attract," "Knocked Out," and "I Need You" on Paula Abdul's debut album Forever Your Girl. In 1993, a jury eventually ruled against Marine.
In 1995, McDuffie, Ghant, and Wuletich, under the name "MJG," appeared on the daytime talk show Jenny Jones as the show's first musical guests. By 1997 Ghant and Wuletich left the group once again.
Read more about this topic: Mary Jane Girls
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