Gwen Guthrie

 

Gwen Guthrie   ORANGE, N.J. (AP) -- Gwen Guthrie, a singer and songwriter who recorded several dance and R&B hits during the 1980s, died Wednesday of uterine cancer. She was 42.   She got her break in the mid-1970s when she was hired as a background vocalist for Aretha Franklin and later worked with Roberta Flack and Luther Vandross. She became a popular recording session singer,   performing on albums by Kenny Loggins and Steely Dan, among others.   Her biggest solo success came in 1986 with ``Ain't Nothin' Goin' on But the Rent.'' Words from that song -- ``no romance without finance'' -- became a popular catch-phrase. She was also among the first recording artists to raise money for the fight against AIDS.   Guthrie's self-titled debut album was released in 1982, featuring the song ``Should Have Been You,'' which helped establish her as one of the top club music performers of the period.