Happy birthday to Wendy Moten, born November 22, 1965.
Wendy Moten has been known by the general public for two splashes nearly two decades apart: the first was her signature hit, the Whitney Houston-like big ballad, “Come In Out Of The Rain,” and the second was a surprise stint on a television music competitionreality TV series. But Wendy Moten has been a sought-after singer in the music industry for more than thirty years. The Memphis-born vocalist first broke out as a backing vocalist for Michael Bolton, and her reputation won for her a contract with Capitol Records, where she recorded with producer Troy Taylor (Boyz II Men, Kool & the Gang) for her successful debut album. “Come In” hit the top 5 on the AC charts in 1992 and appeared to indicate a bright future for the attractive, big voiced singer. However the follow up, Life’s What You Make It, failed to chart, resulting in her separation from Capitol. She recorded two more records in the 90s, working with talents like Carol Bayer Sager and James Ingram, but never achieved the level of success that her talent deserved.
Around the turn of the century, Moten began serving regularly as a featured vocalist on tour with Julio Iglesias. She also worked on albums by Michael McDonald, Kirk Whalum and Buddy Guy and performed off Broadway (“Mama I Want To Sing”).
In 2010, Moten teamed with pianist/producer Clay Perry and completed Tis The Season, an enjoyable holiday album that showed her to still be in fine voice. She has continued to record sporadically and in 2022 released a brilliant cover of Stevie Wonder’s “As” on Woodward Avenue Records. It followed a surprise appearance as a contestant on NBC’s The Voice where she earned a new generation of fans.
While she has punched a lot of important tickets during her career, it is the beautiful “Come In Out of the Rain” that remains Wendy Moten’s most recognizable calling card, and it sounds as good today as back in 1992.
By Chris Rizik