Gwen Oliver

(July 21, 1949 - November 27, 2020) Member of disco ensemble The Ritchie Family, During the 1960s, she was a member of the group Honey And The Bees who had a hit with "It's Gonna take a Miracle" in 1971. In 1974, she contributed backing vocals to William DeVaughn's album, . In 1975, along with Cassandra Wooten and Cheryl Mason Jacks, she became a member of The Ritchie Family who had the classic disco hit, "". In 1978, Wooten, Jacks and Oliver were fired without warning and a new line up was brought in. In the 2010s the Ritchie Family was reformed with original members Wooten and Jacks being joined by Renee Guillory-Wearing. In 2016, the group had a top 40 hit on the Billboard dance chart with "8695859". The Ritchie Family Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/orignalritchiefamily/) has pictures of her with Wooten, Mason-Dorman and Guillory-Wearing. One photo shows the four of them on stage suggesting she may have joined them to sing. She was married to trombonist Fred Wesley. In her later years, having left music, she lived life as a committed Christian, she was active in her church, involved in Bible study. Gwen Wesley died on November 27, 2020 at age 71.