Martha Davis

Born on January 15, 1951, in Berkeley, CA, Martha Davis earned great acclaim as the frontwoman and a guiding artistic force with the Los Angeles band the Motels during the 1980s. Her career had begun several years when she joined the Berkeley act Warfield Foxes in 1971 as a vocalist and guitarist. Relocating to Los Angeles in 1975, the band changed their name to the Motels and unsuccessfully shopped their demos before breaking up in 1976. Two years later, Davis reorganized the band with guitarist Jeff Jourard. Over the next decade, the Motels would release five records and notch a pair of Top Ten singles with "Only the Lonely" and "Suddenly Last Summer." In February 1987, following the defections of several members, Davis announced she was leaving the Motels to pursue a solo career. Her first solo release, Policy, was issued in November of that year. Its performance was a disappointment, failing to crack the Top 100 and spawning only the minor hit single "Don't Tell Me the Time" (although the song did manage to make the Top Ten in Australia). It was during this time that Davis also successfully overcame a battle with cancer. Her recording output has been scant since her heyday with the Motels, but Martha Davis has earned a place as one of the more influential and riveting female artists of the '80s. In 1998, she put together a new incarnation of the band that brought her to fame under the billing the Motels Featuring Martha Davis.