Edna Wright is best-known for the four years she spent as the lead singer of the female vocal trio Honey Cone, but the Los Angeles native had a long resume before forming that well-known group and remained active in music long after Honey Cone's breakup. Born in L.A. in 1944, Wright is the younger sister of vocalist Darlene Love (who is known for her years with Bob B. Soxx & the Blue Jeans, a group that had some hits in the early '60s). ...show more

Edna Wright is best-known for the four years she spent as the lead singer of the female vocal trio Honey Cone, but the Los Angeles native had a long resume before forming that well-known group and remained active in music long after Honey Cone's breakup. Born in L.A. in 1944, Wright is the younger sister of vocalist Darlene Love (who is known for her years with Bob B. Soxx & the Blue Jeans, a group that had some hits in the early '60s).

Like Love, Wright was a member of an L.A.-based vocal group called the Blossoms, and like Love, Wright had some gospel credentials but ended up making secular R&B her main focus. In the '60s, Wright (who had a Christian upbringing and sang in church when she was growing up) performed gospel with the Church of God in Christ Singers; most of her work, however, has been secular. In her pre-Honey Cone days, Wright sang backup for various artists, including Ray Charles and the Righteous Brothers. And she also did some recording as a solo artist in the '60s; using the pseudonym Sandy Wynns, Wright recorded a solo single, titled "A Touch of Venus," for the Champion label.

The tune wasn't well-known nationally, although it did become a small regional hit in Southern California. It was in 1969 that Wright's best-known gig got underway; that year, she formed Honey Cone and hired Shellie Clark (born in 1943 in Brooklyn, NY) and Carolyn Willis (born in 1946 in Los Angeles, CA). Clark and Willis both had noteworthy resumés; Clark was a former member of Ike & Tina Turner's female backup singers the Ikettes, while Willis -- like Wright's sister Darlene Love -- had been with Bob B. Soxx & the Blue Jeans. ...show less