Super 60s Soul

In the Sixties, Motown grew from a local Detroit business into a major force in the music industry. Early material from stars who helped create Hitsville USA, like Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye and the Supremes, is showcased here, alongside the work of less celebrated artists such as Debbie Dean, the Satintones and Singin’ Sammy Ward.

The collection begins with one of the label’s most important acts. Led by the multi-talented Smokey Robinson, the Miracles were the first group signed to Motown and they gave the company its first hit in ‘Shop Around’ (heard here in Mary Wells’ version). Their much-covered ‘You Really Got A Hold On Me’ began life as a B-side in November 1962 before being flipped by DJs.

Berry Gordy swiftly established a network of labels, probably to increase his chance of airplay. Tamla was first, in 1959, swiftly followed by Motown. The Creations’ ‘This is Our Night’ appeared on the subsidiary Mel-o-dy. Jimmy Ruffin’s ‘Don’t Feel Sorry For Me’ was originally on Miracle, later renamed Gordy, along with the Temptations’ debut 45 ‘Oh, Mother Of Mine’/’Romance Without Finance’ and the follow-up, ‘Check Yourself’.

The first ever Tamla single, Marv Johnson’s ‘Come To Me’, was released locally, then licensed to United Artists nationwide. Similar arrangements pertained to Tamla’s first hit Barrett Strong’s ‘Money (That’s What I Want)’; the version here is from the Miracles’ debut album. This and Strong’s next 45 ‘Yes, No, Maybe So’ were picked up nationally by Anna Records, owned by Gordy’s sisters Gwen and Anna. Other material from Anna includes David Ruffin’s ‘I’m In Love’ and ‘I’ll Never Break Your Heart (Part 1)’, on which Joe Tex is backed by the Vibrators.

There are other landmark recordings here. The Satintones were the first group to record a single for the Tamla imprint, ‘Going To The Hop’/‘Motor City’. Some claim that the B-side inspired the name ‘Motown’, on which the group’s subsequent singles appeared. ‘Tomorrow And Always’, an answer song to the Shirelles’ ‘Will You Love Me Tomorrow’, strayed too close to the original and was withdrawn after Motown lost a copyright lawsuit. Singer Chico Leverett’s solo venture ‘Solid Sender’ can be found on CD2.

A less contentious entry to the answer-song canon from the same family was Debbie Dean’s riposte to ‘Shop Around’, ‘Don’t Let Him Shop Around’; its B-side, ‘A New Girl’, is also featured here. Dean was Motown’s first white singer and, at 33, older than most of her labelmates. She was dropped after two more singles, but returned four years later as a writer.

The girl -group sound was fundamental to the success of Motown. The Marvelettes blazed the trail, ‘Please Mr Postman’ gave Tamla its first mainstream chart-topper in late 1961 when the group members were still in high school. ‘I Want A Guy’ and ‘All The Love I’ve Got’ were B-sides, while ‘Way Over There’ is a cover of a Miracles’ song from the girls’ debut album.

The Supremes would quickly overtake the Marvelettes in terms of popularity, taking longer to arrive at their distinctive style. ‘Your Heart Belongs To Me’/‘(He’s) Seventeen’ gave them their first Hot 100 entry, a lowly number 95. ‘Never Again’ was a flipside. All three songs featured on their first LP.

‘Someday We’ll Be Together’ was their final Number 1 in 1969 and Diana Ross’s swansong with the group. The original was sung by Johnny (Bristol) and Jackey (Beavers), two of the song’s three composers. Their version appeared on the Tri-Phi/Harvey label, established by Anna Gordy and husband Harvey Fuqua, the third songwriter, as successor to Anna Records. Shorty Long’s ‘I’ll Be Here’ and ‘It’s Been a Long Time’ by the Five Quails were also on Tri-Phi, which Motown purchased in the mid Sixties.

It’s evident that an intricate web of connections links the material on these three CDs. The Motown hit factory allowed for considerable crossover in songs, composing credits and session work. For instance, Marvin Gaye, whose six cuts here include debut 45 ‘Let Conscience Be Your Guide’ and breakthrough single ‘Stubborn Kind Of Fellow’, played drums for the Marvelettes. Songwriters Eddie Holland and Lamont Dozier’s sometimes overlooked careers as vocalists can also be rediscovered here.

Behind some of the less familiar names, lurk Motown stalwarts. The Veils are a version of Martha and the Vandellas, while the Pirates on ‘Mind Over Matter’ are unrelated to Johnny Kidd and are, in fact, the Temptations. Smokey Robinson and fellow Miracle Ronnie White were Ron and Bill of the novelty single ‘It’, which predated the Miracles’ first 45 as the new label searched for a hit. Berry Gordy also made several attempts at exploiting the dance-craze market with ‘Congo (Pts 1 and 2)’ by the Twistin’ Kings, Popcorn and the Mohawks’ ‘Shimmy Gully’, the Contours ‘The Stretch’ and ‘Camel Walk’ by Saundra Mallet and the Vandellas.

But super soul was the label’s forte. Many of these early cuts were instant favourites of the pre-fame Beatles and in London’s Mod clubs. The rest of the world would soon catch up.