The Waters -

The Waters were an American soul group comprised of the namesake brother/sister singing clan. After numerous session backing credits, the four siblings made a 1975 self-titled album on Blue Note, followed with 1977–80 releases on Warner and Arista.

Members: Julia Waters, Luther Waters, Oren Waters, Maxine Waters

Background

The Waters became a featured recording group in Los Angeles in 1974 around siblings Julia Waters Tillman, Maxine Waters Willard, Luther Waters, and Oren Waters. Their mother encouraged family singing; the siblings learned notation in a church choir. Their grandfather played piano in honky-tonks. Oren, the youngest sibling, described the family vocal range as bass, tenor, alto, and soprano parts.

Julia went pro in the mid-1960s and brought her siblings into the Los Angeles studio circuit. In 1964, the family sang background vocals for Phil Spector on the Righteous Brothers hit “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’.” The siblings also backed Diahann Carroll, Juliet Prowse, and Bill Medley on Las Vegas dates. Due to their site-reading skills, producers referred the family to fellow record-makers.

Julia built the broadest early session résumé, singing backing on albums by Harvey Mandel (Cristo Redentor), Carole King (Tapestry), Al Kooper (New York City (You’re a Woman)), Leon Ware (Leon Ware), Bobby Bland (His California Album), Willie Hutch (The Mack), and Dave Mason (It’s Like You Never Left).

Oren sang backing on albums by Charles Wright & the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band (Express Yourself), Michel Colombier (Wings), David Axelrod (The Auction), Willie Hutch (Fully Exposed). Luther joined Oren on the 1972 Papa John Creach album Filthy! The following year, Maxine joined Oren behind Lamont Dozier on the Motown writer’s solo debut Out Here on My Own.

In 1974, all four siblings sang backing on albums by Dozier (Black Bach) and the Blue Note artists Gene Harris (Astral Signal) and Bobby Hutcherson (Linger Lane). That autumn, the Waters signed with Blue Note as a sovereign vocal quartet.

Discography:

Waters (1975)
Waters (1977)
Watercolors (1980)
Welcome Home ‎(1980)

Sources

New York Amsterdam News — June 2026 interview with all four siblings: strongest biographical source for the family musical background, church choir, Julia as the first professional session singer, Oren as the youngest sibling, Motown work, and Blue Note connection. (New York Amsterdam News)
Long Beach Post — Maxine Waters-Andrews interview: supplies the honky-tonk-pianist grandfather, musical literacy in adolescence, and Maxine’s account of the 1964 Phil Spector/Righteous Brothers session. (Long Beach Post)
Record World, March 7, 1981 — “Studio Singers: Unsung Heroes Behind the Music”: unusually useful contemporary interview with Maxine. She names the Ronettes claim, Diahann Carroll, Juliet Prowse, and Bill Medley; she also explains that sight-reading and producer referrals built the family session network without an agent. (World Radio History)
Herbie Hancock official discography / Carole King official discography: Hancock confirms Oren Waters on The Prisoner; King confirms Julia Tillman among the background singers on Tapestry. (Herbie Hancock)
Sessiondays session-credit transcriptions: confirms Oren on Charles Wright’s Express Yourself; Julia and Maxine on Al Kooper’s New York City (You’re a Woman); Julia and Maxine on The Mack and His California Album; Julia, Maxine, and Oren on Fully Exposed; all four siblings on Lamont Dozier’s Black Bach. (sessiondays Sessiondays » sessiondays)
Jazzdisco Blue Note sessionography: gives the August 13, 1974 Astral Signal date, the complete October–November Waters session chronology at Music Recorders, and the January 16, 1975 Linger Lane date with all four siblings. (Jazz Disco)
Record World, November 2, 1974: reports the Blue Note signing and identifies Keg Johnson as producer, George Butler as Blue Note general manager, and Waters as the label’s first vocal-group signing. (World Radio History)
The Waters full discography: the family supplied a 421-page credit compilation with the 2026 interview. It shows why an exhaustive backing-credit paragraph would swamp the BK; I used it as a cross-check and kept the prose to representative pre-debut sessions.