If you were around for the neon-soaked transition of the early 80s, you remember the voice. It wasn't the bubblegum pop of the era. It was smoky. It was jagged. It was Martha Davis. As the frontwoman for The Motels, she didn't just sing songs; she projected film noir onto the Billboard charts.
But then, the radio silence happened. Or so it seemed to the casual listener.
Honestly, the story of the Motels Martha Davis is a lot messier and more resilient than the "where are they now" segments usually suggest. We’re talking about a woman who dissolved her band at the height of their fame, survived cancer twice, and dealt with unimaginable family tragedy, all while keeping a death grip on her creative soul.
The Barney’s Beanery Beginning
The Motels didn't just appear out of thin air with a Capitol Records contract. They started as The Warfield Foxes in Berkeley back in 1971. Martha was a young mom, having her first kid at 15. She was basically living a whole lifetime before she even stepped onto a stage in Los Angeles.
The name "The Motels" was a fluke.
The band was driving down Santa Monica Boulevard to a gig at Barney’s Beanery. Guitarist Dean Chamberlain looked at the flickering neon signs of the motor inns passing by and just said, "What about The Motels?" It stuck. It fit. It captured that transient, slightly lonely vibe that would define their sound.
By 1979, they signed with Capitol. It was Mother's Day.
When "Only the Lonely" Changed Everything
Most people know the hits. You've heard "Only the Lonely" and "Suddenly Last Summer" a thousand times on 80s retrospectives. They both hit Number 9 on the Billboard Hot 100.
But the path to those hits was weird.
The band actually recorded an entire album called Apocalypso in 1981. The label hated it. They thought it was too dark, too "not-hit-worthy." They shelved it. Martha had to go back, re-record, and basically strip things down. The result was All Four One, the album that made them superstars.
Apocalypso wouldn't actually see the light of day for another 30 years. When it was finally released in 2011, critics realized it might have been their masterpiece all along.
The Australian Obsession
Interestingly, while the US was slow to catch on, Australia went absolutely nuts for them early. "Total Control" was a massive hit there in 1980. Martha once joked that the stork must have dropped her on the wrong continent because the Aussies just got her brand of melancholic new wave immediately.
The 1987 "Bar" Breakup
In February 1987, Martha did something pretty cold, though she’d probably call it necessary.
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She took every member of the band, one by one, to a local bar. Over drinks, she told them the band was over. She was going solo.
The solo album, Policy, had some great players on it—Clarence Clemons and Charlie Sexton, to name a couple. But it didn't have that "Motels" friction. The industry was changing. The big hair and synth-heavy production of the late 80s started to drown out the raw, cinematic quality that made Martha special.
She eventually asked to be released from her contract. She walked away from the machine.
Survival and the Modern Era
If you think Martha Davis retired to a quiet life, you haven't been paying attention. She moved to a large property in Oregon, surrounded by animals. She kept writing. She kept recording.
But life kept throwing punches.
In late 2024, Martha had to cancel shows. She went public with the fact that she’d been dealing with a "two-year breast cancer thingie" (her words). She’d had the surgery, the blockers, and the radiation. The radiation actually caused her to lose her voice for a while.
"So no guitar, no voice, no shows," she told fans.
But Martha is a survivor. She's survived cancer twice now. She survived the loss of her eldest daughter, Maria, to an overdose in 2016—a tragedy that fueled the raw, haunting emotions of the 2018 album The Last Few Beautiful Days.
Why The Motels Martha Davis Still Matters
Today, the band is back in a big way. The current lineup includes long-time collaborators like Clint Walsh and Nic Johns, and most importantly, original keyboard and sax player Marty Jourard.
They aren't just a nostalgia act.
Martha’s voice has changed. It's lower, richer, and somehow more authoritative. She’s released children's albums (Red Frog Presents), jazz standards (I Have My Standards), and keeps unearthing lost demos from her vaults.
Actionable Insights for Fans and Collectors
If you're looking to dive deeper into the world of the Motels Martha Davis, don't just stick to the Greatest Hits.
- Seek out "Apocalypso": Listen to the 2011 release. It’s the "lost" album that shows the band at their most experimental and daring before the label smoothed out their edges.
- Watch the 1982 Videos: Martha was a pioneer of the MTV era. Her performance in the "Only the Lonely" video won an American Music Award for a reason. Her acting is subtle, moody, and lightyears ahead of the "hair metal" clips that followed.
- Check the 2026 Schedule: As of early 2026, Martha is back on her feet. Keep an eye on official tour dates, especially for boutique venues and "80s New Wave" festivals where the band still commands massive respect.
- Listen to "The Last Few Beautiful Days": If you want to hear what grief and resilience sound like in a pop format, this 2018 record is essential. It’s arguably the most cohesive thing they’ve done since the early 80s.
Martha Davis didn't just survive the 80s; she outlasted the tropes. She remains one of the few artists from that era who refuses to be a caricature of her former self. Whether she’s singing about a "shitshow" or a "mission of mercy," she’s doing it on her own terms.