"You've Been in Love Too Long" is a 1965 dance single recorded by Motown girl group Martha and the Vandellas

Martha and the Vandellas

Martha and the Vandellas were among the most successful groups of the Motown roster during the period 1963–1967...

. Their fourth straight Top 40 hit in two years, this song focused on a pro-feminist theme under a gritty R&B background with the narrator (lead singer Martha Reeves

Martha Reeves

Martha Rose Reeves is an American R&B and Pop singer and former politician, and was the lead singer of the Motown girl group Martha and the Vandellas. During her tenure with The Vandellas, they scored over a dozen hit singles, including "Jimmy Mack", "Dancing in the Street" and "Nowhere to Run"...

) explaining to the woman in question that after years of holding on to an unfaithful and abusive lover that she should let him go saying "you're a fool for your baby". The song, produced and written by William "Mickey" Stevenson, Ivy Jo Hunter

Ivy Jo Hunter

Ivy Jo Hunter, born George Ivy Hunter and sometimes credited as Ivy Hunter, is a former R&B songwriter, record producer and singer, most associated with his work for the Motown label in the 1960s....

 and Clarence Paul

Clarence Paul

Clarence Otto Pauling , better known as Clarence Paul, was a songwriter and record producer for Detroit's Motown Records....

, peaked at #25 R&B and #36 Pop in 1965.
Many radio jocks preferred the "B" side, "Love (Makes Me Do Foolish Things)" in which caused split airplay and lower chart positioning. Bonnie Raitt

Bonnie Raitt

Bonnie Lynn Raitt is an American blues singer-songwriter and a renowned slide guitar player. During the 1970s, Raitt released a series of acclaimed roots-influenced albums which incorporated elements of blues, rock, folk and country, but she is perhaps best known for her more commercially...

 covered the song on her 1973 album, Takin' My Time

Takin' My Time

Takin' My Time is the third album by Bonnie Raitt, released in 1973 . Widely considered one of her strongest works, it was praised by critic Robert Christgau for "conveying songs from Calypso Rose and Martha Reeves Vandella into the women's music of the '70s."In an interview given in 1982, Raitt...

Personnel

• Lead vocals by Martha Reeves
  Martha Reeves
  Martha Rose Reeves is an American R&B and Pop singer and former politician, and was the lead singer of the Motown girl group Martha and the Vandellas. During her tenure with The Vandellas, they scored over a dozen hit singles, including "Jimmy Mack", "Dancing in the Street" and "Nowhere to Run"...
  
  
• Background vocals by Rosalind Ashford
  Rosalind Ashford
  Rosalind "Roz" Ashford-Holmes is an American soprano R&B and soul singer, famed for her work as member of the popular Motown singing group Martha and the Vandellas.-Early years:...
  
   and Betty Kelly
  Betty Kelly
  Betty Kelly is a former American singer, most famous for her tenure in the popular Motown singing group Martha and the Vandellas.-Early years:...
  
   and The Andantes
  The Andantes
  The Andantes were a prolific female sessions group for the Motown record label during the 1960s. Composed of Jackie Hicks, Marlene Barrow, and Louvain Demps, the group sang background vocals on numerous Motown recordings, including songs by Martha Reeves & the Vandellas, The Temptations, Stevie...
  
  
• Produced and written by William "Mickey" Stevenson, Ivy Jo Hunter
  Ivy Jo Hunter
  Ivy Jo Hunter, born George Ivy Hunter and sometimes credited as Ivy Hunter, is a former R&B songwriter, record producer and singer, most associated with his work for the Motown label in the 1960s....
  
   and Clarence Paul
  Clarence Paul
  Clarence Otto Pauling , better known as Clarence Paul, was a songwriter and record producer for Detroit's Motown Records....
  
  
• Instrumentation by The Funk Brothers
  The Funk Brothers
  The Funk Brothers was the nickname of Detroit, Michigan, session musicians who performed the backing to most Motown Records recordings from 1959 until the company moved to Los Angeles in 1972...