Biography
Just as Prince served as the architect behind Vanity 6 and Apollonia 6, Rick James assembled the Mary Jane Girls as an extension of his own creative vision. The ensemble took shape in the late 1970s after James recruited the singers to support his Stone City Band, at which point he devised their name to reflect his well-known affinity for cannabis. What began as a backing unit evolved into a standalone act that secured a contract with Motown in the early 1980s, the same label then hosting both James and his protégé Teena Marie.
The original roster featured Joanne “Jojo” McDuffie as lead vocalist alongside Candice “Candi” Ghant, Kim “Maxi” Wuletich, and Ann “Cheri” Bailey, each assigned a distinct persona crafted by James: JoJo embodied the tough streetwise figure, Candi the polished supermodel, Cheri the bubbly Valley Girl, and Maxi the leather-clad dominatrix wielding a whip and handcuffs. By 1985 Ann “Cheri” Bailey had stepped aside for Yvette “Corvette” Marine.
James supplied every song and production touch for the self-titled debut album released in 1983, which included the buoyant “Candy Man” and the sultry “All Night Long,” then repeated the process for the 1985 follow-up Only Four You. That set yielded the number-three R&B single “In My House” and the number-ten R&B single “Wild and Crazy Love.” The sole track not penned by James arrived in 1986, a cover of Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons’ “Walk Like a Man” featured in the comedy A Fine Mess.
No third album materialized after James’s acrimonious split with Motown in the mid-1980s precipitated the group’s dissolution. While working at the trade publication Black Radio Exclusive in 1986, Candice “Candi” Ghant expressed to On the Scene magazine her desire for the Mary Jane Girls to persist under the guidance of Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, yet those plans never materialized. The act formally disbanded by 1987.
The original roster featured Joanne “Jojo” McDuffie as lead vocalist alongside Candice “Candi” Ghant, Kim “Maxi” Wuletich, and Ann “Cheri” Bailey, each assigned a distinct persona crafted by James: JoJo embodied the tough streetwise figure, Candi the polished supermodel, Cheri the bubbly Valley Girl, and Maxi the leather-clad dominatrix wielding a whip and handcuffs. By 1985 Ann “Cheri” Bailey had stepped aside for Yvette “Corvette” Marine.
James supplied every song and production touch for the self-titled debut album released in 1983, which included the buoyant “Candy Man” and the sultry “All Night Long,” then repeated the process for the 1985 follow-up Only Four You. That set yielded the number-three R&B single “In My House” and the number-ten R&B single “Wild and Crazy Love.” The sole track not penned by James arrived in 1986, a cover of Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons’ “Walk Like a Man” featured in the comedy A Fine Mess.
No third album materialized after James’s acrimonious split with Motown in the mid-1980s precipitated the group’s dissolution. While working at the trade publication Black Radio Exclusive in 1986, Candice “Candi” Ghant expressed to On the Scene magazine her desire for the Mary Jane Girls to persist under the guidance of Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, yet those plans never materialized. The act formally disbanded by 1987.
Albums
20th Century Masters: The Millennium Collection: The Best of Mary Jane Girls
2001
In My House
1994
Only Four You
1985
Mary Jane Girls
1983
Singles
