News is belated being reported that Inez Foxx has died on 25 Aug 2022 aged
84. She was born in Greensboro, NC, on 9 Sep 1937 and was half of a duo with
her brother Charlie known as Inez & Charlie Foxx. She will be best
remembered for her 1963 Billboard Hot 100 top ten hit
"Mockingbird".
The birth dates are according to North Carolina birth index, however other
sources are quoting 1942 making her 79. Given that by 1960 she was already
married and recorded under her married name Johnston, I think 1937 is more
accurate as otherwise she would have been only 17/18 in 1960, which of
course is possible but improbable.
Inez later married songwriter/producer Luther Dixon who wrote "I Love You
1000 Times" together which was a #6 R&B (#31 Hot 100) hit for The
Platters in 1966. They later divorced.
She started recording in 1960 using her married name Inez Johnston,
releasing two singles on Brunswick "A Feeling (That I Can't Explain)" / "Big
Bad Betsy" (1960) and "A Change Of Heart" / "Why Did Ya!?" (1961) before her
biggest success "Mockingbird" in Jun 1963 on Symbol using her birth name Fox
with an added 'x'. The song is their arrangement of a traditional
lullaby "Hush Little Baby" which they auditioned to Juggy Murray who released it
on his Sue subsidiary Symbol.
Symbol released another four singles under her sole name although Charlie
was also present on the recordings. In Sep 1964 they began being billed as
Inez & Charlie Foxx. On later reissues of "Mockingbird" it is billed as
both but on the original 1964 release it was billed/credited only to Inez.
The song was a bit of a novelty record and the pair never managed to follow
it up.
By 1966 they moved to Musicor releasing "No Stranger To Love" / "Come By
Here" on the parent imprint followed by several on their Dynamo subsidiary.
The first on Dynamo was a big Northern Soul tune "Tightrope" (1967) played
at The Twisted Wheel, Manchester, that did nothing on the US R&B chart.
Another massive NS tune was "Never Love A Robin", which she wrote with her
husband Luther Dixon along with Thom Bell, but versions were mainly played by
Barbara (Gaskins) & her niece Brenda (Gaskins) or Tommy Hunt (both also released on Dynamo) but it was released on their 1967 album "Come By Here".
As the decade ended Inez left Musicor/Dynamo and recorded five singles
for Stax subsidiary Volt from Sep 1972 to Mar 1974 where she also released
an album "Inez Foxx at Memphis". Her brother worked as a
songwriter/producer. He died in 1998 aged 64.
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