I had a vague idea of what Motown was, but I decided to research it and really nail it down for good.
Motown, then, was a legendary African-American record label of the ‘60s and ‘70s. It still exists today, but its heyday was back during those two decades. It was managed by a visionary and well-organised guy by the name of Berry Gordy. The label celebrated black soul music, with a signature sound of catchy melodies, tambourine backbeats (especially in the first phase of the 1960s) and smooth vocals. In the ‘70s the label started to concede to the creative impulses of the different artists on their books. Motown employed various songwriters, and sometimes a number of their groups would sing their own versions of the same song, but then the label would usually decide on just one to release.
The impact of Motown can’t be overestimated – not only in terms of music, but for the fashion, dance and cultural attitudes at the time of the Civil Rights Movement. These days the label is mainly producing hip-hop and R&B, but when we talk of “Motown” we’re thinking of that golden era of black pop and soul before newer styles pushed it aside.
Let’s run through some of the big names (I highlight the greatest tracks or albums).
The Supremes (fronted by Diana Ross)
After the Supremes, Diana Ross left Motown and went solo with “Reach Out and Touch (Somebody’s Hand)” (1970), “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” (1970) and the ballad “Touch Me in the Morning” (1973), before turning to disco in the ‘80s with “I’m Coming Out” (1980), “Upside Down” (1980), “My Old Piano” (1980) and “Take Me Higher” (1995).
The film “Dreamgirls” (2006) is taken to be based on the story of the Supremes from their humble beginnings, with Beyoncé portraying the main character. The film is a nice way to get into the spirit of those years. Diana Ross herself played in a few films including “Lady Sings the Blues” (1972) about Billie Holiday and the romantic drama “Mahogany” (1975) where she played a fashion designer.
The Temptations
Famous hits from these well-choreographed five singers (see the photo at the top) include:
- “My Girl” (1964)
- “Papa Was a Rollin’ Stone” (1972)
The Four Tops
Their famous hits from the ‘60s sound very dated now: –
- “I Can’t Help Myself (Sugar pie, Honey Bunch)” (1965)
- “Reach Out I’ll Be There” (1968)
Smokey Robinson and the Miracles
- “The Tracks of My Tears” (1965)
Smokey Robinson was one of the major songwriters of Motown.
The Jackson 5
- “I Want You Back” (1969)
- “I’ll be there” (1970)
- “ABC” (1970, famously knocking the Beatles’ “Let it be” off the top spot of the charts)
- “Dancing machine” (1974) – where he was trying out his robot moves
The Jackson 5 were frustrated with Motown’s creative control, and left the label in 1975 to become “The Jacksons” (Motown retained the rights to the original name). But after Michael’s solo albums “Off the Wall”(1979) and “Thriller” (1982, the best-selling album of all time!), he parted ways with his brothers in the mid 1980s to pursue his solo career.
Janet Jackson was the younger sister and didn’t sing with her brothers. She was active in the ‘80s and ‘90s, not with Motown but with A&M Records. She had a similar, but inferior, style to Michael’s, and I don’t think much of her R&B albums “Control” (1986) and “Rhythm Nation 1814” (1989).
Gladys Knight and the Pips
- “I Heard it Through the Grapevine” (1967, before Marvin Gaye’s version)
- “Neither One of Us (Wants to be the first to say goodbye)” (1972)
She had plenty of hits after Motown too – including “Midnight Train to Georgia” (1973), “Best Thing that ever happened to me” (1974) – and last but not least the incredible James Bond theme song for “Licence to Kill”(1989).
The Commodores (Lionel Richie)
- “Easy” (1977)
- “Three Times a Lady” (1978)
Richie continued solo in the ‘80s with “Hello”, “All Night Long” and “Say You, Say Me”.
Stevie Wonder
A really incredible musician, Stevie Wonder’s great albums were written in the ‘70s – above all the masterpieces “Innervisions” (1973, when he was 23) and “Songs in the Key of Life” (1976). These works were already a sign that Motown (or Tamla, being part of Motown) was less authoritarian and was leaving more to the creativity of the artist. Stevie Wonder continues to produce music to this day (including gems like “I just called to say I love you”), but the ‘70s marks the peak of his career.
Marvin Gaye
Marvin Gaye starts off in the fold of Motown as one of its central figures with hits like “How Sweet it is (to be loved by you)” (1964), “Ain’t That Peculiar” (1965), and duets with Tammi Terrell like “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” (1967 – an example of the label releasing more than one version of a song), “You’re All I Need to Get By” (1968), and “I heard it Through the Grapevine” (1968).
But there was a shift in the ‘70s away from this original Motown sound and, as with Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye was able to exercise more creative control over his music with the smooth and groundbreaking album “What’s Going On”.
He finally left Motown in the ‘80s and eloped with Columbia Records to produce the album “Midnight Love” (1982) with a more electronic sound, including the track “Sexual Healing”.
Aretha Franklin
Of course not everyone who captured the Motown vibe was actually signed up with the label itself. Aretha Franklin – the “queen of soul’ – was active in the ‘60s with global hits like “Respect” (1967) and “A Natural Woman” (1967), but she mainly worked with Atlantic Records.
Just search “Motown greatest hits” in YouTube or AppleMusic and enjoy the groove and positive energy of those years.