Wild One (song)

: "This article is about the Martha and the Vandellas song. For other songs with the same title, see Wild One."Infobox Single
Name = Wild One
Background = khaki


Artist = Martha and the Vandellas
from Album = Dance Party
Released = November 1964
Format = Vinyl record (7" 45 RPM)
Recorded = Hitsville USA, Detroit, Michigan, 1964
Label = Tamla
Length = 2:43
Genre = Pop/soul
Writer = William "Mickey" Stevenson and Ivy Jo Hunter
Producer = William "Mickey" Stevenson and Ivy Jo Hunter
Chart position = * #34 US Pop Singles
* #11 Hot R&B Singles
Last single = "Dancing in the Street"
(1964)
This single = "Wild One"
(1964)
Next single = "Nowhere to Run"
(1965)

"Wild One" is a dance single by Motown girl group Martha & the Vandellas. Written and produced by William "Mickey" Stevenson and Ivy Jo Hunter (two-thirds of the collaborators behind the group's most celebrated tune, "Dancing in the Street"), the song was another Top 40 triumph for the group as it reached #34 on Billboard's Hot 100 singles chart and #11 on the Hot R&B singles chart. The song, which in lead singer Martha Reeves' description, was a tribute to bikers (released shortly after The Shangri-Las' "Leader of the Pack"), described the narrator's strong love for her "wild one" who is told he's "no good" by the narrator's close circle. The narrator tells her "wild one" to not listen to what others say and continue to "sav(ing his) love for (her)".

Credits

*Lead vocals by Martha Reeves
*Background vocals by Rosalind Ashford and Betty Kelly
*Written and produced by William "Mickey" Stevenson and Ivy Jo Hunter
*Instrumentation by The Funk Brothers:
*Benny Benjamin: drums
*James Jamerson: bass guitar
*Ivy Jo Hunter: percussion
*Jack Ashford: percussion, vibes
*Robert White: guitar
*Eddie Willis: guitar