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The Bar-Kays, Nona Hendryx, Gladys Knight: Veteran Hitmakers Span The Generations

Vernon Gibbs, Billboard, 4 June 1983

IN A BUSINESS where the term "veteran" can be applied to acts that have been consistent chartmakers for at least five years, it is a testament to their generation-spanning appeal that many of the hitmakers currently on the black music charts have careers that can now be counted in decades. Among those with at least 10 years of hits are Michael Jackson, George Clinton, Lionel Richie, Earth, Wind & Fire, the Bar-Kays, the Chi-Lites, Fatback and Chaka Khan. Those near or past 20 years of experience with current or recent hits include Smokey Robinson, Gladys Knight & the Pips, the Temptations. Dionne Warwick, Aretha Franklin, the Isley Brothers, Marvin Gaye and Nona Hendryx.

Total word count of piece: 2231

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