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At a party to celebrate the 37th wedding anniversary of Lionel Ritchie's parents, Lionel's father stood up and toasted his wife: "She's a great lady, a great mother and a great friend." That gave Lionel an idea for a waltz...and before long, he had composed a "Great Song of the '70s" and dedicated it to HIS wife, Brenda.
Lionel felt "Three Times a Lady" was not a good fit for his group, The Commodores, and thought Frank Sinatra would would be the perfect artist to record it. Motown Producer James Carmichael disagreed and convinced him to let the Commodores take a crack at it.
The result: an unprecedented hit: #1 on Billboard's Hot 100, Soul chart, R&B chart...and, amazingly, the COUNTRY chart!
It also went to #1 in Canada, the U.K., South Africa and the Philippines...and hit the Top 5 in 25 other countries!
In addition, it was nominated for two Grammys: "Song of the Year" and "Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo, Group, or Chorus." It also won an American Music Award and a People's Choice Award!
But wait, there's more! "Three Times a Lady" was the only Motown Record to reach the Billboard Top 10 for the ENTIRE YEAR of 1978!
To top it all off, The Commodores were named "R&B Group of the Year," by 'Billboard," "Rolling Stone" and "Cashbox" magazines!
Sinatra indeed!
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