Rosetta Jeanette Hightower (23 June 1944 ^[1] ? 2 August 2014) was an American singer and the lead singer of the 1960s girl group The Orlons . ^[2] She was born in Philadelphia .

As lead singer of The Orlons, the Orlons recorded several Top 10 U.S. hits between 1962 and 1964, including " The Wah-Watusi ", " Don't Hang Up ", ^[1] " South Street ", and "Not Me". In early 1962, The Orlons provided backing vocals on Dee Dee Sharp 's " Mashed Potato Time " (#2 pop, No. 1 R&B). That spring, they recorded "The Wah-Watusi" which, in July 1962, made it in the Billboard charts to the No. 2 spot. ^[2] Around the same time, they recorded back-up vocals on Dee Dee Sharp 's second hit, "Gravy (For My Mashed Potatoes)" which went to No. 9. The follow-up to "The Wah-Watusi", "Don't Hang Up" reached No. 4 pop and No. 3 R&B in the fall and winter of 1962. The Orlons' first major performance was at New York's Apollo Theatre with The Crystals , Bob B. Soxx and the Blue Jeans , Chuck Jackson , Tommy Hunt , and Gene Chandler . In 1963, they had hits with "South Street" (No. 3 Pop, No. 4 R&B) ^[3] and "Crossfire" (No. 19 Pop, No. 25 R&B).

Hightower left the group in the late 1960s to pursue a solo career in the UK. ^[1] She joined the ranks of the then-popular female session singers who backed many hit songs. ^[4] This group included Madeline Bell , Lesley Duncan , Kiki Dee , and Sue and Sunny . She recorded with Joe Cocker on his With a Little Help From My Friends album. ^[5]

Moving permanently to England in 1970, Hightower married musician-producer Ian Green. She represented the US in Belgium for the first international singing contest ever held. ^{[6] [7]} She released numerous singles and at least two albums. In 1971, she was a backing vocalist for John Lennon 's " Power to the People ". ^[8]

Death [ edit ]

Rosetta Hightower Green died in Clapham , London, on 2 August 2014, aged 70. ^[9] Her son, Ian Green, Jr., works as Paul Oakenfold 's main co-producer and remixer. ^{[ citation needed ]}

References [ edit ]