1.
Album
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Album, is a collection of audio recordings issued as a single item on CD, record, audio tape, or another medium. Albums of recorded music were developed in the early 20th century, first as books of individual 78rpm records, vinyl LPs are still issued, though in the 21st century album sales have mostly focused on compact disc and MP3 formats. The audio cassette was a format used from the late 1970s through to the 1990s alongside vinyl, an album may be recorded in a recording studio, in a concert venue, at home, in the field, or a mix of places. Recording may take a few hours to years to complete, usually in several takes with different parts recorded separately. Recordings that are done in one take without overdubbing are termed live, the majority of studio recordings contain an abundance of editing, sound effects, voice adjustments, etc. With modern recording technology, musicians can be recorded in separate rooms or at times while listening to the other parts using headphones. Album covers and liner notes are used, and sometimes additional information is provided, such as analysis of the recording, historically, the term album was applied to a collection of various items housed in a book format. In musical usage the word was used for collections of pieces of printed music from the early nineteenth century. Later, collections of related 78rpm records were bundled in book-like albums, the LP record, or 33 1⁄3 rpm microgroove vinyl record, is a gramophone record format introduced by Columbia Records in 1948. It was adopted by the industry as a standard format for the album. Apart from relatively minor refinements and the important later addition of stereophonic sound capability, the term album had been carried forward from the early nineteenth century when it had been used for collections of short pieces of music. Later, collections of related 78rpm records were bundled in book-like albums, as part of a trend of shifting sales in the music industry, some commenters have declared that the early 21st century experienced the death of the album. Sometimes shorter albums are referred to as mini-albums or EPs, Albums such as Tubular Bells, Amarok, Hergest Ridge by Mike Oldfield, and Yess Close to the Edge, include fewer than four tracks. There are no rules against artists such as Pinhead Gunpowder referring to their own releases under thirty minutes as albums. These are known as box sets, material is stored on an album in sections termed tracks, normally 11 or 12 tracks. A music track is a song or instrumental recording. The term is associated with popular music where separate tracks are known as album tracks. When vinyl records were the medium for audio recordings a track could be identified visually from the grooves
2.
The Supremes
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The Supremes were an American female singing group and the premier act of Motown Records during the 1960s. Most of these hits were written and produced by Motowns main songwriting and production team, founding members Florence Ballard, Mary Wilson, Diana Ross, and Betty McGlown, all from the Brewster-Douglass public housing project in Detroit, formed the Primettes as the sister act to the Primes. Barbara Martin replaced McGlown in 1960, and the signed with Motown the following year as the Supremes. Martin left the act in early 1962, and Ross, Ballard, during the mid-1960s, the Supremes achieved mainstream success with Ross as lead singer. In 1967, Motown president Berry Gordy renamed the group Diana Ross & the Supremes, Ross left to pursue a solo career in 1970 and was replaced by Jean Terrell, at which point the groups name reverted to the Supremes. After 1972, the lineup changed frequently, Lynda Laurence, Scherrie Payne. The Supremes disbanded in 1977 after 18 years, since Ballard sang, as did Paul Williams girlfriend Betty McGlown, the Primess manager Milton Jenkins decided to create a sister group to the Primes called the Primettes. Ballard recruited her best friend Mary Wilson, who in turn recruited classmate Diane Ross, mentored and funded by Jenkins, the Primettes began by performing hit songs by artists such as Ray Charles and the Drifters at sock hops, social clubs and talent shows around the Detroit area. Receiving additional guidance from group friend and established songwriter Jesse Greer, after winning a prestigious local talent contest, the Primettes sights were set on making a record. Robinson liked the girls and agreed to help, but he liked their guitarist even more, with the Primettes permission he hired Tarplin, who became the guitarist for the Miracles. Undaunted, later that year the Primettes recorded a single for Lu Pine Records, a label created just for them, titled Tears of Sorrow, the single failed to find an audience, however. Shortly thereafter, McGlown became engaged and left the group, local girl Barbara Martin was McGlowns prompt replacement. Determined to leave an impression on Gordy and join the stable of rising Motown stars, eventually, they convinced Gordy to allow them to contribute hand claps and background vocals for the songs of other Motown artists including Marvin Gaye and Mary Wells. In January 1961, Gordy finally relented and agreed to sign the girls to his label –, the Primes had by this time combined with Otis Williams & the Distants and would soon sign to Motown as the Temptations. Gordy gave Ballard a list of names to choose from that included such as the Darleens, the Sweet Ps, the Melodees, the Royaltones. Ballard chose the Supremes, a name that Ross initially disliked as she felt it too masculine, nevertheless, on January 15 the group signed with Motown as the Supremes. In the spring of 1962, Martin left the group to start a family, thus, the newly named Supremes continued as a trio. Between 1961 and 1963, the Supremes released six singles, none of which charted in the Top 40 positions of the Billboard Hot 100, jokingly referred to as the no-hit Supremes around Motowns Hitsville U. S. A
3.
The Temptations
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The Temptations are an American vocal group known for their success with Motown Records during the 1960s and 1970s. Known for their choreography, distinct harmonies, and flashy wardrobe, having sold tens of millions of albums, the Temptations are one of the most successful groups in music history. As of 2015, the Temptations continue to perform with one member, Otis Williams. Featuring five male vocalists and dancers, the formed in 1960 in Detroit. In 1964, Bryant was replaced by David Ruffin, who was the lead vocalist on a number of the groups biggest hits, including My Girl, Aint Too Proud to Beg, and I Wish It Would Rain. Ruffin was replaced in 1968 by Dennis Edwards, with whom the group continued to record hit records such as Cloud Nine, the groups lineup has changed frequently since the departures of Kendricks and Paul Williams from the act in 1971. Over the course of their career, the Temptations have released four Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles and fourteen R&B number-one singles, and their material has earned them three Grammy Awards. The Temptations were the first Motown recording act to win a Grammy Award - for Cloud Nine in 1969 -, six of the Temptations were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1989. Three classic Temptations songs, My Girl, Just My Imagination, the Temptations were also ranked at number 68 on Rolling Stone magazines list of the 100 Greatest Artists of all time. Eddie Kendricks and Paul Williams started singing together in church as children, by their teenage years, they formed a doo-wop quartet in 1955 with Kell Osborne and Wiley Waller, naming themselves the Cavaliers. After Waller left the group in 1957, the trio left Birmingham to break into the music business. The group settled in Detroit where they changed their name to the Primes under the direction of Milton Jenkins, the Primes soon became well known around the Detroit area for their meticulous performances. Jenkins later created a group, The Primettes, later known as the Supremes. Kendricks was already seen as an idol in the Detroit area while Williams was well received for his baritone vocals. Texas teenager Otis Williams moved to Detroit as a youngster to be with his mother, by 1958, Williams was the leader of a vocal group named Otis Williams and the Siberians. The group included Elbridge Al Bryant, James Pee-Wee Crawford, Vernard Plain, the group recorded a song, Pecos Kid for a label run by radio deejay Senator Bristol Bryant. Shortly after its release, the changed its name to The El Domingoes. Following this, Montgomery native Melvin Franklin replaced Arthur Walton as bass vocalist and Franklins cousin, Detroit-born Richard Street, signing with Johnnie Mae Matthews Northern Records, the group had their name changed again to The Distants
4.
Pop music
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Pop music is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form in the United States and United Kingdom during the mid 1950s. The terms popular music and pop music are used interchangeably, although the former describes all music that is popular. Pop and rock were synonymous terms until the late 1960s, when they were used in opposition from each other. Although pop music is seen as just the singles charts, it is not the sum of all chart music. Pop music is eclectic, and often borrows elements from other such as urban, dance, rock, Latin. Identifying factors include generally short to medium-length songs written in a format, as well as the common use of repeated choruses, melodic tunes. David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop music as a body of music which is distinguishable from popular, jazz, according to Pete Seeger, pop music is professional music which draws upon both folk music and fine arts music. Although pop music is seen as just the singles charts, it is not the sum of all chart music, the music charts contain songs from a variety of sources, including classical, jazz, rock, and novelty songs. Pop music, as a genre, is seen as existing and developing separately, pop music continuously evolves along with the terms definition. The term pop song was first recorded as being used in 1926, Hatch and Millward indicate that many events in the history of recording in the 1920s can be seen as the birth of the modern pop music industry, including in country, blues and hillbilly music. The Oxford Dictionary of Music states that while pops earlier meaning meant concerts appealing to a wide audience. Since the late 1950s, however, pop has had the meaning of non-classical mus, usually in the form of songs, performed by such artists as the Beatles. Grove Music Online also states that, in the early 1960s pop music competed terminologically with beat music, while in the USA its coverage overlapped with that of rock and roll. From about 1967, the term was used in opposition to the term rock music. Whereas rock aspired to authenticity and an expansion of the possibilities of music, pop was more commercial, ephemeral. It is not driven by any significant ambition except profit and commercial reward, and, in musical terms, it is essentially conservative. It is, provided from on high rather than being made from below, pop is not a do-it-yourself music but is professionally produced and packaged. The beat and the melodies tend to be simple, with limited harmonic accompaniment, the lyrics of modern pop songs typically focus on simple themes – often love and romantic relationships – although there are notable exceptions
5.
Soul music
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Soul music is a popular music genre that originated in the United States in the late 1950s and early 1960s. It combines elements of African-American gospel music, rhythm and blues, Soul music became popular for dancing and listening in the United States, where record labels such as Motown, Atlantic and Stax were influential during the Civil Rights Movement. Soul also became popular around the world, directly influencing rock music, catchy rhythms, stressed by handclaps and extemporaneous body moves, are an important feature of soul music. Other characteristics are a call and response between the lead vocalist and the chorus and a tense vocal sound. The style also occasionally uses improvisational additions, twirls and auxiliary sounds, Soul music reflected the African-American identity and it stressed the importance of an African-American culture. The new-found African-American consciousness led to new styles of music, which boasted pride in being black, Soul music dominated the U. S. R&B chart in the 1960s, and many recordings crossed over into the pop charts in the U. S. By 1968, the music genre had begun to splinter. Some soul artists developed funk music, while other singers and groups developed slicker, more sophisticated, by the early 1970s, soul music had been influenced by psychedelic rock and other genres, leading to psychedelic soul. The United States saw the development of neo soul around 1994, there are also several other subgenres and offshoots of soul music. The term soul had been used among African-American musicians to emphasize the feeling of being an African-American in the United States, according to another source, Soul music was the result of the urbanization and commercialization of rhythm and blues in the 60s. The phrase soul music itself, referring to music with secular lyrics, is first attested in 1961. The term soul in African-American parlance has connotations of African-American pride, gospel groups in the 1940s and 1950s occasionally used the term as part of their name. The jazz style that derived from gospel came to be called soul jazz, important innovators whose recordings in the 1950s contributed to the emergence of soul music included Clyde McPhatter, Hank Ballard, and Etta James. Ray Charles is often cited as popularizing the genre with his string of hits starting with 1954s I Got a Woman. Singer Bobby Womack said, Ray was the genius and he turned the world onto soul music. Charles was open in acknowledging the influence of Pilgrim Travelers vocalist Jesse Whitaker on his singing style, little Richard and James Brown were equally influential. Sam Cooke and Jackie Wilson are also acknowledged as soul forefathers. Cooke became popular as the singer of gospel group The Soul Stirrers
6.
Motown
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Motown is an American record company. The record company was founded by Berry Gordy, Jr. as Tamla Records on January 12,1958, the name, a portmanteau of motor and town, has also become a nickname for Detroit. Motown played an important role in the integration of popular music as an African American-owned record label that achieved significant crossover success. In the 1960s, Motown and its subsidiary labels were the most successful proponents of what came to be known as the Motown Sound, a style of soul music with a distinct pop influence. During the 1960s, Motown achieved spectacular success for a record company,79 records in the Top Ten of the Billboard Hot 100 record chart between 1960 and 1969. The company was sold to MCA Inc. Motown was later sold to PolyGram in 1994, before being sold again to MCA Records successor, Universal Music Group, Motown spent much of the 2000s as a part of the Universal Music subsidiaries Universal Motown and Universal Motown Republic Group, and headquartered in New York City. From 2011 to 2014, Motown was a part of The Island Def Jam Music Group division of Universal Music. On April 1,2014, Universal Music Group announced the dissolution of Island Def Jam and it now operates out of the landmark Capitol Tower. For many decades, Motown was the highest-earning African American business in the United States, Berry Gordy got his start as a songwriter for local Detroit acts such as Jackie Wilson and the Matadors. Wilsons single Lonely Teardrops, written by Gordy, became a huge success and he realized that the more lucrative end of the business was in producing records and owning the publishing. In 1959, Billy Davis and Berry Gordys sisters Gwen and Anna started Anna Records, Davis and Gwen Gordy wanted Berry to be the company president, but Berry wanted to strike out on his own. On January 12,1959, he started Tamla Records, with a loan from his family. Gordy originally wanted to name the label Tammy Records, after the hit song popularized by Debbie Reynolds from the 1957 film Tammy, when he found the name was already in use, Berry decided on Tamla instead. Tamlas first release, in the Detroit area, was Marv Johnsons Come to Me in 1959 and its first hit was Barrett Strongs Money, which made it to number 2 on the Billboard R&B charts. Gordys first signed act was the Matadors, who changed their name to the Miracles. Their first release, Got a Job, was a record to the Silhouettes Get a Job. The Miracles first, minor hit was their single, 1959s Bad Girl, released in Detroit as the debut record on the Motown imprint
7.
Record producer
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A record producer or music producer oversees and manages the sound recording and production of a band or performers music, which may range from recording one song to recording a lengthy concept album. A producer has many roles during the recording process, the roles of a producer vary. The producer may perform these roles himself, or help select the engineer, the producer may also pay session musicians and engineers and ensure that the entire project is completed within the record companies budget. A record producer or music producer has a broad role in overseeing and managing the recording. Producers also often take on an entrepreneurial role, with responsibility for the budget, schedules, contracts. In the 2010s, the industry has two kinds of producers with different roles, executive producer and music producer. Executive producers oversee project finances while music producers oversee the process of recording songs or albums. In most cases the producer is also a competent arranger, composer. The producer will also liaise with the engineer who concentrates on the technical aspects of recording. Noted producer Phil Ek described his role as the person who creatively guides or directs the process of making a record, indeed, in Bollywood music, the designation actually is music director. The music producers job is to create, shape, and mold a piece of music, at the beginning of record industry, producer role was technically limited to record, in one shot, artists performing live. The role of producers changed progressively over the 1950s and 1960s due to technological developments, the development of multitrack recording caused a major change in the recording process. Before multitracking, all the elements of a song had to be performed simultaneously, all of these singers and musicians had to be assembled in a large studio and the performance had to be recorded. As well, for a song that used 20 instruments, it was no longer necessary to get all the players in the studio at the same time. Examples include the rock sound effects of the 1960s, e. g. playing back the sound of recorded instruments backwards or clanging the tape to produce unique sound effects. These new instruments were electric or electronic, and thus they used instrument amplifiers, new technologies like multitracking changed the goal of recording, A producer could blend together multiple takes and edit together different sections to create the desired sound. For example, in jazz fusion Bandleader-composer Miles Davis album Bitches Brew, producers like Phil Spector and George Martin were soon creating recordings that were, in practical terms, almost impossible to realise in live performance. Producers became creative figures in the studio, other examples of such engineers includes Joe Meek, Teo Macero, Brian Wilson, and Biddu
8.
Frank Wilson (musician)
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Frank Edward Wilson was a songwriter and record producer for Motown Records. Wilson was born in Houston to James Wilson and Samantha Gibbs, while still in his teens, he moved to Los Angeles, California. In 1965, Berry Gordy asked the producers Hal Davis and Marc Gordon to set up an office of Motown in Los Angeles, Wilson accepted an offer to join the team. In December 1965, Stevie by Patrice Holloway was the first single released from the West Coast operation and he became particularly important after Holland-Dozier-Holland left the company. He also launched his own publishing firms, Traco Music and Specolite Music, Ascap, earlier, Wilson had also tried his hand at being a recording artist himself, recording the single Do I Love You for release on the Motown subsidiary label Soul. Supposedly 250 demo 45s were pressed, but by that time Wilson decided he would focus on producing. Somehow at least two known copies survived, one of which fetched over £25,000 in May 2009, because of the scarcity of the original single and the high quality of the music, it has been championed as one of the rarest and most valuable records in history. Wilson left Motown in 1976 and became a born again Christian and he became a minister, traveling and writing books with his wife Bunny Wilson, and was also involved in the production of gospel music as well. In 2004, was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Divinity from Vision International University in Ramona, California, some of the books he has authored includes, The Master Degree-Majoring in Your Marriage and Unmasking the Lone Ranger, a best seller for men. Both were published by Harvest House Publishers and he conducted Unmasking the Lone Ranger and Masters Degree seminars nationally and internationally based upon his books. Wilson has also appeared on television talk shows including, Two on the Town, The Other Half. Wilson died on September 27,2012 after a battle with prostate cancer. 1994, Motown Comes Home - Various Artists 2002, Lights, Camera and my Sugar Baby - Frank Wilson. Previously unreleased Motown recording issued on A Cellarful of Motown, CD2006, Each Day Gets Better - John Legend 2012, Do I Love You - Angelica 2016, Ill Be Satisfied - Frank Wilson Kent Records UK. Previously Unreleased Motown recording cut in L. A. with the Wrecking Crew, all Music Guide Frank Wilson Tell Me Baby Article
9.
Smokey Robinson
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William Smokey Robinson, Jr. is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and former record executive. Robinson was the founder and front man of the Motown vocal group the Miracles, Robinson led the group from its 1955 origins as the Five Chimes until 1972 when he announced a retirement from the group to focus on his role as Motowns vice president. However, Robinson returned to the industry as a solo artist the following year. Following the sale of Motown Records in 1988, Robinson left the company in 1990 and he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987. Robinson was awarded the 2016 Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for his contributions to popular music. Smokey Robinson was born to an African-American father and a mother of African-American and his uncle Claude gave him the nickname Smokey Joe when he was a child. He attended Northern High School, where he was above average academically, at one point, he and Diana Ross lived several houses from each other on Belmont, he once said he has known Ross since she was about eight. Robinson said his interest in music started after hearing the groups Nolan Strong & the Diablos and Billy Ward, Robinson later listed Barrett Strong, a Detroit native, as a strong vocal influence. In 1955, he formed the first lineup of the Five Chimes with childhood friend Ronald White and classmate Pete Moore, two years later, in 1957, they were renamed the Matadors and included Bobby Rogers. Another member, Emerson Rogers, was replaced by Bobbys cousin Claudette Rogers, the groups guitarist, Marv Tarplin, joined them sometime in 1958. The Matadors began touring Detroit venues around this time and they later changed their name to the Miracles. In August 1957, Robinson and the Miracles met songwriter Berry Gordy after an audition for Brunswick Records. At that time during the audition, Robinson had brought along with him a Big 10 notebook with 100 songs he wrote while in high school, Gordy was impressed with Robinsons vocals and even more impressed with Robinsons ambitious songwriting. With his help, the Miracles released their first single, Got a Job and it was the beginning of a long and successful collaboration. During this time, Robinson attended college and started classes in January 1959, Robinson dropped out after only two months following the Miracles release of their first record. Gordy formed Tamla Records which was reincorporated as Motown. The Miracles became one of the first acts signed to the label, in point of fact, they had actually been with Gordy since before the formation of Motown Records. In late 1960, the recorded their first hit single, Shop Around
10.
Cream of the Crop
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Cream of the Crop is the eighteenth studio album released by Diana Ross & the Supremes for the Motown label. It was the final regular Supremes studio album to lead singer Diana Ross. The album was released in November 1969, after the release, according to Motown data this album sold over 575,000 copies in the USA. Someday was originally to have released as Ross first solo single. Motown chief Berry Gordy appended the Supremes billing to the single so as to more publicity for Ross exit from the group. Another selection of note is The Young Folks the charting b-side of No Matter What Sign You Are from Let the Sunshine In, Cream of the Crop also includes covers of songs by The Beatles and Bob Dylan. Since another Ross-led Supremes single or album had not been planned, however, many songs such as those mentioned and Shadows of Society portend to a much more serious image for the group. The lead #1 single, Someday Well Be Together proved to be a multi-format smash winning back their black fan base while not alienating their pop audience, the previous singles had much more of a pop sound. Along with their increasingly polished pop image, the group found themselves at odds with the new black pride sweeping across America, as the final #1 single of the exciting but turbulent 1960s, Someday Well Be Together would prove quite prophetic in many ways. Peddle forward to 1993, the Frankie Knuckles mix of Someday Well Be Together would become the single from Dianas retrospective box set, Forever Diana. The album closer, The Beginning of the End, features Motown artist Syreeta Wright alongside Ross and Supremes members Mary Wilson, Wright was Berry Gordys original choice to replace Ross in the Supremes, because she had a range and tone similar to Ross. Motown had flooded the market with at least 4 new albums in a twelve-month period, Syreeta Wright – background vocals on The Beginning of the End. Julia Waters – background vocals on Someday Well Be Together, maxine Waters – background vocals on Someday Well Be Together. Merry Clayton - background vocals on Someday Well Be Together, new York, Motown Record Co. /Universal Music. Dreamgirl & Supreme Faith, My Life as a Supreme
11.
Puzzle People
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Puzzle People is the eleventh studio album released by American soul quintet The Temptations for the Gordy label in 1969. Also included are psychedelic-styled covers of songs such as The Isley Brothers Its Your Thing, The Beatles Hey Jude. The lyrics on some of the numbers, written by former Motown artist Barrett Strong, were becoming increasingly socially conscious. Slave deals with the injustice in the system, while Message From a Black Man is a Black power song with a militant refrain. Message From a Black Man was a radio request in 1969, although the Temptations themselves. Puzzle People was released on the day as Together, a duets album of covers by the Temptations. It peaked into the Top 5 on the Billboard Pop Albums chart, superscripts denote lead singers for each track, Dennis Edwards, Eddie Kendricks, Paul Williams, Melvin Franklin, Otis Williams. All selections produced by Norman Whitfield
12.
G.I.T. on Broadway
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G. I. T. on Broadway, also known as Diana Ross and the Supremes and The Temptations on Broadway, is a 1969 television special produced by Motown Productions and George Schlatter-Ed Friendly Productions. The special, a follow-up to 1968s successful TCB program, is a musical revue starring Motowns two most popular groups at the time, Diana Ross and the Supremes with the Temptations. Containing primarily Broadway showtunes, the special was taped before a studio audience in mid-1969. Like TCB, the title of the program was derived from an acronym, a soundtrack album for the special, titled Diana Ross and the Supremes and The Temptations on Broadway, was issued five days before the program aired. Though there were no singles released from this album in the USA, two months after its release, Diana Ross left The Supremes to embark upon a solo career. Diana Ross & the Supremes, Diana Ross Mary Wilson Cindy Birdsong The Temptations, various clips are available for viewing online by streaming media sites, including YouTube. As of June 2016, the vinyl LP soundtrack album has not been remastered and reissued on CD, G. I. T. on Broadway at the Internet Movie Database
13.
Single (music)
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In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a song recording of fewer tracks than an LP record, an album or an EP record. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats, in most cases, a single is a song that is released separately from an album, although it usually also appears on an album. Typically, these are the songs from albums that are released separately for promotional uses such as digital download or commercial radio airplay and are expected to be the most popular, in other cases a recording released as a single may not appear on an album. As digital downloading and audio streaming have become prevalent, it is often possible for every track on an album to also be available separately. Nevertheless, the concept of a single for an album has been retained as an identification of a heavily promoted or more popular song within an album collection. Despite being referred to as a single, singles can include up to as many as three tracks on them. The biggest digital music distributor, iTunes, accepts as many as three tracks less than ten minutes each as a single, as well as popular music player Spotify also following in this trend. Any more than three tracks on a release or longer than thirty minutes in total running time is either an Extended Play or if over six tracks long. The basic specifications of the single were made in the late 19th century. Gramophone discs were manufactured with a range of speeds and in several sizes. By about 1910, however, the 10-inch,78 rpm shellac disc had become the most commonly used format, the inherent technical limitations of the gramophone disc defined the standard format for commercial recordings in the early 20th century.26 rpm. With these factors applied to the 10-inch format, songwriters and performers increasingly tailored their output to fit the new medium, the breakthrough came with Bob Dylans Like a Rolling Stone. Singles have been issued in various formats, including 7-inch, 10-inch, other, less common, formats include singles on digital compact cassette, DVD, and LD, as well as many non-standard sizes of vinyl disc. Some artist release singles on records, a more common in musical subcultures. The most common form of the single is the 45 or 7-inch. The names are derived from its speed,45 rpm. The 7-inch 45 rpm record was released 31 March 1949 by RCA Victor as a smaller, more durable, the first 45 rpm records were monaural, with recordings on both sides of the disc. As stereo recordings became popular in the 1960s, almost all 45 rpm records were produced in stereo by the early 1970s
14.
The Weight
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The Weight is a song originally by the Canadian-American group The Band that was released as Capitol Records single 2269 in 1968 and on the groups debut album Music from Big Pink. Written by Band member Robbie Robertson, the song is about a visitors experiences in a town mentioned in the lyrics first line as Nazareth. The Weight has significantly influenced American popular music, having been listed as #41 on Rolling Stones 500 Greatest Songs of All Time published in 2004. Pitchfork Media named it the 13th best song of the Sixties, the Weight is one of The Bands best known songs though it was not a significant mainstream hit for the group in the U. S. peaking at only #63. The Bands recording fared much better in Canada and the UK – in those countries, however, the songs popularity was greatly enhanced by three cover releases in 1968 and 1969 with arrangements that appealed to a diversity of music audiences. Aretha Franklins 1969 soul music arrangement was included in her This Girls in Love with You album, which peaked in the U. S. at #19 and #3 on the soul chart, and peaked in Canada at #12. Jackie DeShannons 1968 pop music arrangement, debuting on the Hot 100 one week before The Bands, a joint single rhythm and blues arrangement released by Diana Ross & the Supremes and The Temptations in 1969, hit #46 in the U. S. and #36 in Canada. The Bands and Jackie DeShannons versions never mentioned the title, the Bands version credits Jaime Robbie Robertson, Rick Danko, Richard Manuel, Garth Hudson, Levon Helm on the record label, rather than The Band. The original members of The Band performed The Weight as an American Southern folk song with country music, the lyrics, written in the first-person, are about a travelers experiences arriving, visiting, and departing a town called Nazareth. According to Robertson, this is based on Nazareth, Pennsylvania because it was the home of Martin Guitars and he wrote the guitar parts on a 1951 Martin. The singers, led by Helm, vocalize the travelers encounters with people in the town from the perspective of a Bible Belt American Southerner, like Helm himself, a native of rural Arkansas. After Helms death in 2012, Robertson, who was raised in Canada, described how visits to the Memphis, Tennessee area, around which Helm grew up, affected him and influenced his songwriting, going there was like going to the source. Because I was at such a vulnerable age then, it made a big impact on me. So it was like, Woah, this is where this music grows in the ground, and it very much affected my songwriting and, because I knew Levons musicality so well, I wanted to write songs that I thought he could sing better than anybody in the world. While I was there, I was just gathering images and names, and ideas and rhythms, and when it was time to sit down and write songs, when I reached into the attic to see what I was gonna write about, thats what was there. I just felt a strong passion toward the discovery of going there, and it opened my eyes, when I sat down to write songs, thats all I could think of at the time. The colorful characters in The Weight were based on real people members of The Band knew, as Levon Helm explained in his autobiography, This Wheels on Fire. In particular, young Anna Lee mentioned in the verse is Helms longtime friend Anna Lee Amsden
15.
Diana Ross & the Supremes Join The Temptations
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Diana Ross & the Supremes Join the Temptations is, as the title implies, a collaborative album combining Motowns two best selling groups, Diana Ross & the Supremes and the Temptations. Issued by Motown in late 1968 to coincide with the broadcast of the Supremes/Temptations TCB television special, originally the lead single was to have been The Impossible Dream as featured in the climax to the TV spectacular TCB. However, it was decided to release Im Gonna Make You Love Me as a single even though it wasnt featured on TCB. This became a hit on both the Billboard Hot 100 and the R&B charts, and the follow-up, Ill Try Something New, was a Top 30 hit. A third single, I Second That Emotion, was released exclusively in the United Kingdom, however, a true reflection of Im Gonna Make You Love Mes popularity was that it was certified platinum and was the #1 single on both Cash Box and Record World. By rights, this should be credited as yet another #1 single for both Diana Ross and The Supremes and the Temptations, interestingly enough, it was produced by Frank Wilson and Nick Ashford - without his songwriting partner-wife Valerie Simpson. Diana Ross & the Supremes Join the Temptations marks the first on-record appearance of new Temptations lead singer Dennis Edwards and this was an unbelievably successful time for Motown. All of the tracks on the album are covers of songs by other artists, Motowns Marvin Gaye had previously had hits with Try It Baby and, as a duet with Tammi Terrell, Aint No Mountain High Enough. This Guys in Love with You was a hit for bothDionne Warwick and Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass, while Funky Broadway had been recorded as a hit for Dyke & the Blazers, Frank Wilson served as executive producer of the project. Diana Ross shares lead vocals on track with one or more of the Temptations, identified by superscripts, Eddie Kendricks, Dennis Edwards, Paul Williams, Melvin Franklin. These tracks can be found on Joined Together, The Complete Studio Duets, opening Medley When the Lovelight Starts Shining Through His Eyes Come See About Me Stop. Mary Wilson and Cindy Birdsong also have leads on this track, instrumentation on Try It Baby, This Guys in Love With You, Funky Broadway, Ill Try Something New, and The Impossible Dream is performed by Los Angeles area session musicians. On all other tracks, the instrumentation is provided by Motowns studio band, The Funk Brothers, with strings and horns by the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. Im Gonna Make You Love Me b/w A Place in the Sun Ill Try Something New b/w The Way You Do the Things You Do I Second That Emotion b/w The Way You Do the Things You Do
16.
The Band
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The Band was a Canadian roots rock group, originally consisting of four Canadians—Rick Danko, Garth Hudson, Richard Manuel, and Robbie Robertson —and one American, Levon Helm. The members of the Band first came together as they joined the rockabilly singer Ronnie Hawkinss backing group, in 1964, they separated from Hawkins, after which they toured and released a few singles as Levon and the Hawks and the Canadian Squires. The next year, Bob Dylan hired them for his U. S. tour in 1965, because they were always the band to various frontmen, Helm said the name The Band worked well when the group came into its own. The group began performing as the Band in 1968 and went on to ten studio albums. Dylan continued to collaborate with the Band over the course of their career, the original configuration of the Band ended its touring career in 1976 with an elaborate live ballroom performance featuring numerous musical celebrities. This performance was immortalized in Martin Scorseses 1978 documentary The Last Waltz, the Band recommenced touring in 1983 without guitarist Robertson, who had found success with a solo career and as a Hollywood music producer. Following a 1986 show, Manuel committed suicide, Danko died of heart failure in 1999, after which the group broke up for good. Helm was diagnosed with cancer in 1998 and was unable to sing for several years. He continued to perform and released several albums until he died in 2012. The group was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 1989, in 2004 Rolling Stone ranked them No.50 on its list of the 100 greatest artists of all time, and in 2008 they received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2004, The Weight was ranked 41st on Rolling Stones list of the 500 greatest songs of all time, in 2014, the Band was inducted into Canadas Walk of Fame. While most of the Hawks were eager to join Hawkinss group and he had earned a college degree, planned on a career as a music teacher, and was interested in playing rock music only as a hobby. The Hawks were in awe of his wild, full-bore organ sound, Hudson finally relented, as long as the Hawks each paid him $10 per week to be their instructor, all music theory questions were directed to Hudson. While pocketing a little cash, Hudson was also able to mollify his familys fears that his education had gone to waste. The piano–organ combination was uncommon in rock music, and for all his aggressive playing, there is a view that jazz is evil because it comes from evil people, but actually the greatest priests on 52nd Street, and on the streets of New York City were the musicians. They were doing the greatest healing work, and they knew how to punch through music which would cure and make people feel good. With Hawkins, they recorded a few singles in this period, Hawkins regularly convened all-night rehearsals following long club shows, with the result that the young musicians quickly developed great technical prowess on their instruments. In late 1963, the split from Hawkins over personal differences
17.
Sly and the Family Stone
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Sly and the Family Stone was an American band from San Francisco. Active from 1966 to 1983, the band was pivotal in the development of funk, soul, rock, the band was the first major American rock group to have an integrated, multi-gender lineup. Formed in 1966, the groups music synthesized a variety of musical genres to help pioneer the emerging psychedelic soul sound. In the 1970s, the band transitioned into a darker and less commercial sound on releases such as Theres a Riot Goin On and Fresh. The work of Sly and the Family Stone greatly influenced the sound of subsequent American funk, pop, soul, R&B, and hip hop music. In 2010, they were ranked 43rd in Rolling Stone list of The 100 Greatest Artists of All-Time, the band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1993. Sly Stone was a member of a deeply religious middle-class household from Dallas, Texas, K. C. and Alpha Stewart held the family together under the doctrines of the Church of God in Christ and encouraged musical expression in the household. While attending high school, Sylvester and Freddie joined student bands, One of Sylvesters high school musical groups was a doo-wop act called The Viscaynes, in which he and a Filipino teenager were the only non-white members. The Viscaynes released a few singles, and Sylvester recorded several solo singles under the name Danny Stewart. By 1964, Sylvester had become Sly Stone and a jockey for San Francisco R&B radio station KSOL. During the same period, he worked as a producer for Autumn Records, producing for San Francisco-area bands such as The Beau Brummels. One of the Sylvester Stewart-produced Autumn singles, Bobby Freemans Cmon, Stewart recorded unsuccessful solo singles while at Autumn. In 1966, Sly Stone formed a band called Sly & the Stoners, around the same time, Freddie founded a band called Freddie & the Stone Souls, which included Gregg Errico on drums, and Ronnie Crawford on saxophone. At the suggestion of Stones friend, saxophonist Jerry Martini, Sly and Freddie combined their bands, creating Sly and the Family Stone in November 1966. At first the group was called Sly Brothers and Sisters but after their first gig at the Winchester Cathedral in Redwood City they changed the name to Sly & the Family Stone. Since both Sly and Freddie were guitarists, Sly appointed Freddie the official guitarist for the Family Stone, meanwhile, Sly recruited Larry Graham to play bass guitar. Vanetta Stewart wanted to join the band as well and she and her friends, Mary McCreary and Elva Mouton, had a gospel group called The Heavenly Tones. Sly recruited the teenagers directly out of school to become Little Sister, Sly
18.
Frankie Valli
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Frankie Valli is an American singer, known as the frontman of The Four Seasons beginning in 1960. He is known for his powerful falsetto voice. Valli scored 29 Top 40 hits with The Four Seasons, one Top 40 hit under The Four Seasons alias The Wonder Who. and nine Top 40 hits as a solo artist. As a member of The Four Seasons, Vallis number-one hits included Sherry, Big Girls Dont Cry, Walk Like a Man, Rag Doll, Vallis recording of the song Cant Take My Eyes Off You reached number two in 1967. Youre Ready Now, a Valli solo recording from 1966, became a hit in the UK as part of the Northern soul scene. As a solo artist, Valli scored number-one hits with the songs My Eyes Adored You and Grease. Valli, Tommy DeVito, Nick Massi and Bob Gaudio – the original members of The Four Seasons – were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990 and the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 1999. Valli was born Francesco Stephen Castelluccio, the eldest of three sons to an Italian family in the First Ward of Newark, New Jersey. His father, Anthony Castelluccio, was a barber and display designer for Lionel model trains, his mother, Mary Rinaldi, was a homemaker and beer company employee. He was inspired to take up a career at the age of seven after his mother took him to see the young Frank Sinatra at the Paramount Theater in New York City. One of his favorite singers was Texas Jean Valli, from whom he obtained his last name. Until he could support himself with music, he worked as a barber, Vallis birth year has been called into question. Valli never addressed the issue himself, until the 2007 posting at the Official Frankie Valli Site, sponsored by his current record label, much of the previous official publicity surrounding his career used 1937 as the birth year. Other sources, such as the Bear Family Records release, titled The Four Lovers, as well as a 1965 mug shot, available through The Smoking Gun, Valli began his singing career in the early 1950s with the Variety Trio. Vallis desire to sing in public was granted when, having heard Valli sing. In late 1952, the Variety Trio disbanded and Valli, along with Tommy DeVito, became part of the band at The Strand in New Brunswick. For his part, Valli played bass and sang and he cut his first single, My Mothers Eyes, in 1953 as Frankie Valley, a variation on a name he adopted from Texas Jean Valli, a female hillbilly singer as discussed in a 2014 article. Frankie said in 2010 that Jean took him to music publishers Paul and Dave Kapp
19.
Mary Wilson (singer)
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Mary Wilson is an American vocalist, best known as a founding member of the Supremes. Wilson remained with the following the departures of other original members, Florence Ballard in 1967. Following Wilsons own departure in 1977, the group disbanded, Wilson was inducted along with Ross and Ballard into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988. Mary Wilson was born to Sam and Johnnie Mae Wilson in Greenville and she was the eldest of three children including a brother, Roosevelt, and a sister, Katherine. Wilson lived with her parents and moved to St. Louis and later to Chicago before living with her aunt Ivory I. V. Wilson reunited with her mother and siblings at the age of 9. To make ends meet, Wilsons mother worked as a domestic worker, before reaching her teenage years, Wilson and her family had settled at Detroits upstart housing project, the Brewster-Douglass Housing Projects. Mary Wilson first met Florence Ballard at a school in Detroit. The duo became friends while singing in the talent show. In 1959, Ballard asked Wilson to audition for Milton Jenkins, who was forming a group to his male vocal trio. Wilson was soon accepted in the known as The Primettes, with Diana Ross. Wilson graduated from Detroits Northeastern High School in January 1962, despite her mothers insistence she go to college, Wilson instead focused on her music career. The Primettes signed to Motown Records in 1961, changing the name to The Supremes. In between that period, McGlown left to get married and was replaced by Barbara Martin, in 1962, the group was reduced to a trio after Martins departure. By 1964, the group had become international superstars, in 1967, Motown president Berry Gordy changed the name of the group to Diana Ross & The Supremes and, after a period of tension, Florence Ballard was removed from the Supremes that July. Cindy Birdsong was chosen to take her place, the new lineup continued to record hit singles, although several stalled outside the top 20 chart range. Ross left the group in early 1970, and at her farewell performance Jean Terrell was introduced as the replacement for Ross, with Terrell, the Supremes recorded seven top-40 hit singles in a three-year period. One River Deep/Mountain High was a collaboration with the Four Tops, others included Up the Ladder to the Roof, Stoned Love, Nathan Jones and Floy Joy. Of these releases, only Stoned Love reached a No.1 status, unlike the latter years with Ross, however, all but one of the hits Automatically Sunshine succeeded in reaching the top 20 charts, with two breaking into the top 10
20.
Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing
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Aint Nothing Like the Real Thing is a 1968 single released by American R&B/soul duo Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell, on the Tamla label in 1968. The B-side of the single is Little Ole Boy, Little Ole Girl from the duos United LP, in the UK Aint Nothing Like the Real Thing reached number 34. Aint Nothing Like the Real Thing is ranked as the 57th biggest US hit of 1968, christians 1986 live album release Live At Six Flags features Aint Nothing Like the Real Thing in medley with Dont Worry Baby and I Go to Pieces. Aint Nothing Like the Real Thing was recorded by UK singer Elton John,1975, The Dynamic Superiors - album Pure Pleasure. Soap stars Tammin Sursok and Michael Graziadei performed & recorded the song for their show The Young and the Restless
21.
Uptight (Everything's Alright)
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Uptight is a 1965 hit single recorded by Stevie Wonder for the Tamla label. One of his most popular singles, Uptight was the first Stevie Wonder hit single to be co-written by the artist. A notable success, Uptight peaked at number 3 on the Billboard Pop Singles chart in early 1966, Billboard ranked it as the 59th biggest American hit of 1966. An accompanying album, Up-Tight, was rushed into production to capitalize on the singles success, the single was a watershed in Wonders career for several reasons. Aside from the number-one hit Fingertips, only two of Wonders singles had reached the Top 40 of Billboards Pop Singles chart, and the fifteen-year-old artist was in danger of being let go. In addition, Wonders voice had begun to change, and Motown CEO Berry Gordy was worried that he would no longer be a commercially viable artist, nelson George, in Where Did Our Love Go. As Wonder presented his ideas, finished or not, he went through everything, I asked, Are you sure you dont have anything else. He started singing and playing Everything is alright, uptight and that was as much as he had. The resulting song, Uptight, features lyrics which depict a young mans appreciation for a rich girls seeing beyond his poverty to his true worth. On the day of the recording, Moy had completed the lyrics, but didnt have them in Braille for Wonder to read and she sang a line ahead of him, and he simply repeated the lines as he heard them. In 2008, Moy commented that he never missed a beat during the recording, a note-for-note re-recording of Wonders version was used as the backing track for Bill Cosbys 1967 musical comedy single, Little Ole Man. Bill Cosby is not related to the songs co-writer Henry Cosby, australian band Human Nature recorded a version for their 2006 album Dancing in the Street, The Songs of Motown II and released a remixed single version in 2007. The song appeared in the 2013 Glee tribute episode Wonder-ful as performed by Cassandra July, the song also appears in D-TV set to Donalds Double Trouble. The song also appears in the 1995 film Mr. Hollands Opus and is featured on the soundtrack, lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics
22.
Psychedelic soul
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It came to prominence in the late 1960s and continued into the 1970s, playing a major role in the development of funk and disco. Pioneering acts included Sly and the Family Stone, Jimi Hendrix, mainstream acts that developed a psychedelic sound included the Supremes and Stevie Wonder. Acts that achieved notability with the sound included the Chambers Brothers, the 5th Dimension, Edwin Starr, and George Clintons Funkadelic and Parliament ensembles. Following the lead of Jimi Hendrix in psychedelic rock, in the late 1960s psychedelia began to have a impact on African American musicians. Influenced by the civil movement, it had a darker. Other Motown acts soon followed into psychedelic territory, including established performers like the Supremes with Reflections, Love Child, psychedelic influences could also be heard in the work of Stevie Wonder and in Marvin Gayes socially conscious work from Whats Going On. George Clintons interdependent Funkadelic and Parliament ensembles and their various spin-offs, took the genre to its most extreme lengths, making funk almost a religion in the 1970s. And Your Ass Will Follow, and Maggot Brain, and Parliament album Osmium, producing over forty singles, including three in the US top ten, and three platinum albums. Acts like Earth, Wind & Fire, Kool & the Gang, and Ohio Players, who began as psychedelic soul artists, incorporated its sounds into funk music and eventually the disco which partly replaced it
23.
AllMusic
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AllMusic is an online music guide service website. It was launched in 1991 by All Media Guide which later became All Media Network, AllMusic was launched in 1991 by Michael Erlewine of All Media Guide. The aim was to discographic information on every artist whos made a record since Enrico Caruso gave the industry its first big boost and its first reference book was published the following year. When first released onto the Internet, AMG predated the World Wide Web and was first available as a Gopher site, the AMG consumer web properties AllMusic. com, AllMovie. com and AllGame. com were sold by Rovi in July 2013 to All Media Network, LLC. All Media Network, LLC. was formed by the founders of SideReel. com. The following are contributors to AllMusic, as of this date, All Media Network also produced the AllMusic guide series that includes the AllMusic Guide to Rock, the All Music Guide to Jazz and the All Music Guide to the Blues. Vladimir Bogdanov is the president of the series, in August 2007, PC Magazine included AllMusic in its Top 100 Classic Websites list. All Media Network AllGame AllMovie SideReel All Music Guide to the Blues All Music Guide to Jazz Stephen Thomas Erlewine Official website
24.
Diana Ross
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Diane Ernestine Earle Ross, known professionally as Diana Ross, is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and record producer. As part of the Supremes, her success made it possible for future African-American R&B, Dianas high-pitched and bright lyric-soprano voice has been enjoyed and still is by fans around the world. The group released a record-setting twelve number-one hit singles on the US Billboard Hot 100, including the hits Where Did Our Love Go, Baby Love, Come See About Me, Stop. In the Name of Love, You Cant Hurry Love, You Keep Me Hangin On, Love Child and she later released the album Touch Me in the Morning in 1973, its title track reached number 1, as her second solo hit. That same year, her album Lady Sings The Blues, which was the soundtrack of her film based on the life of jazz singer Billie Holiday. By 1975, the Mahogany soundtrack included her third number-one hit and her eponymous 1976 album included her fourth number-one hit, Love Hangover. In 1979, Ross released the album The Boss and her 1980 semi-eponymous album Diana reached number 2 on the US Billboard albums chart, and spawned the number-one hit Upside Down, and the international hit Im Coming Out. After leaving Motown, Ross achieved her sixth and final US number-one hit, Ross has also ventured into acting, with a Golden Globe Award and Academy Award-nominated performance for her performance in the film Lady Sings the Blues. She also starred in two films, Mahogany and The Wiz, later acting in the television films Out of Darkness, for which she also was nominated for a Golden Globe Award. Ross was named the Female Entertainer of the Century by Billboard magazine, Ross has sold more than 100 million records worldwide, when her releases with the Supremes and as a solo artist are tallied. In 1988, Ross was inducted to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as member of the Supremes, alongside Mary Wilson and she was the recipient of the Kennedy Center Honors in 2007, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2016. She is a 12-time Grammy nominee, never earning a competitive honor, in December 2016, Billboard magazine named her the 50th most successful dance artist of all time. Diane Ross was born at Hutzel Womens Hospital in Detroit on March 26,1944 and she was the second eldest child of Ernestine, a schoolteacher, and Fred Ross, Sr. a former Army soldier. Much has been made of whether her first name ends in an a or an e, according to Ross, her mother actually named her Diane but a clerical error resulted in her name being recorded as Diana on her birth certificate. She was listed as Diane during the first Supremes records, she introduced herself as Diane until early in the groups heyday and her friends and family still call her Diane. Rosss grandfather John E. Ross, a native of Gloucester County, Virginia, was born to Washington Ross, Virginia Baytops mother Francis Frankey Baytop was a former slave who had become a midwife after the Civil War. Ross and her family lived at Belmont Road in the North End section of Detroit, near Highland Park, MI. When Ross was seven, her mother contracted tuberculosis, causing her to seriously ill
25.
Eddie Kendricks
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Edward James Kendrick, best known by the stage name Eddie Kendricks, was an American singer and songwriter. Noted for his falsetto singing style, Kendricks co-founded the Motown singing group The Temptations. His was the voice on such famous songs as The Way You Do The Things You Do, Get Ready. As a solo artist, Kendricks recorded several hits of his own during the 1970s, Kendricks was born in Union Springs, Alabama on December 17,1939, the son of Johnny and Lee Bell Kendrick. He had one sister, Patricia, and three brothers, Charles, Robert, and Clarence and his family moved to the Ensley neighborhood of Birmingham, where he met and began singing with his best friend Paul Williams in their church choir in the late 1940s. In 1955, Kendricks, Williams, and friends Kell Osborne and Jerome Averette formed a group called The Cavaliers. The group decided to move for better opportunities in their musical careers, in Cleveland, they met manager Milton Jenkins, and soon moved with Jenkins to Detroit, Michigan, where the Cavaliers renamed themselves The Primes. Under Jenkins management, the Primes were successful in the Detroit area, in 1961, Osbourne moved to California, and the Primes disbanded. The Temptations began singing background for Mary Wells, after an initial dry period, The Temptations quickly became the most successful male vocal group of the 1960s. Although technically Kendricks was first tenor in the harmony, he predominately sang in a falsetto voice. He was also allowed to sing a few leads in his natural voice such as May I Have This Dance. He also leads on Im Gonna Make You Love Me, a duet with Diana Ross and the Supremes. His favorite food was cornbread, and as a result he was nicknamed Cornbread by his groupmates, according to Otis Williams, Kendricks romantically pursued Diana Ross, lead singer of the Supremes, and he was said to have been close friends with Martha Reeves of the Vandellas. In her second book, Supreme Faith, Supremes singer Mary Wilson writes that she and Kendricks were lovers briefly, but remained close friends. Kendricks remained in the group through the rest of the decade, as he grew away from the group, Kendricks began to rekindle his friendship with ex-Temptation David Ruffin, who convinced him to leave the group. He explained that they were working people that didnt have their best interests at heart. Kendricks, however, initially decided to stay in the group because he was worried he would not get the support he needed if he left the group, Kendricks also expressed the fact that his relationship with Berry Gordy was less than cordial. Berry Gordy is a man I dont know, I only met him three times, he said, but I know he didnt particularly care for me
26.
Paul Williams (The Temptations)
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Paul Williams was an American baritone singer and choreographer. Williams was noted for being one of the members and original lead singer of the Motown group The Temptations. Along with David Ruffin, Otis Williams, and fellow Alabamians Eddie Kendricks and Melvin Franklin, personal problems and failing health forced Williams to retire in 1971. He was found two years later as the result of an apparent suicide. Paul Williams was born and raised in the Ensley neighborhood of Birmingham and he was the son of Sophia and Rufus Williams, a gospel singer in a gospel music vocal group called the Ensley Jubilee Singers. He met Eddie Kendricks in elementary school, supposedly, the two first encountered each other in a fistfight after Williams dumped a bucket of mop water on Kendricks, both boys shared a love of singing, and sang in their church choir together. As teenagers, Williams, Kendricks, and Kell Osborne and Willie Waller performed in a singing group known as The Cavaliers. In 1957, Williams, Kendricks, and Osbourne left Birmingham to start careers, now known as The Primes, the trio moved to Cleveland, Ohio, and eventually found a manager in Milton Jenkins, who moved the group to Detroit, Michigan. Although The Primes never recorded, they were performers, and even launched a spin-off female group called The Primettes. In 1961, Kell Osborne moved to California, and the Primes disbanded, Kendricks returned to Alabama, but visited Paul in Detroit shortly after. While on this visit, he and Paul had learned that Otis Williams, More hits quickly followed, including My Girl, Aint Too Proud To Beg and Im Losing You. Williams sang lead on several of the songs, and served as the main lead singer during the groups early years. His early leads include, Your Wonderful Love, Slow Down Heart, I Want a Love I Can See, and Oh, Mother of Mine and Farewell My Love both shared with Eddie Kendricks. Williams later leads on Temptations songs include, Just Another Lonely Night, No More Water in the Well, a version of Hey Girl. Williams also sang lead with Dennis Edwards, who joined in 1968, one of his best-known lead performances is his stand out live performance of For Once in My Life, from the television special TCB, originally broadcast on December 9,1968 on NBC. The live version of the song Dont Look Back is also cited as one of his standout performances. He also took over the vocal for live performances of My Girl following David Ruffins departure from the group. In 1965, Williams began an affair with Winnie Brown, hair stylist for The Supremes, in the spring of 1969, Williams and Brown opened a celebrity fashion boutique in downtown Detroit
27.
I'll Be Doggone
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Ill Be Doggone is a 1965 song recorded by American soul singer Marvin Gaye and released on the Tamla label. The song talks about how a man tells his woman that hell be doggone about simple things but if she did him wrong that hed be long gone. Ill Be Doggone gave Marvin his third top-ten pop hit, where it peaked at eight on the Billboard Hot 100, with that number matched by his follow-up record. In 1973, Penny DeHaven released a Country version on a single only, albert King covered the song on his 1972 album Ill Play the Blues for You. Twiggy covered it in her album Please Get My Name Right, bob Weir covered the song on his 1978 solo album Heaven Help The Fool. He also performed it live with his band frequently during that time, list of number-one R&B singles of 1965 Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics To improve this article, add in what hit it was preceded and followed by
28.
Marv Tarplin
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Marvin Marv Tarplin was an American guitarist and songwriter, best known as the guitarist for the Miracles from the 1950s through the early 1970s. He was one of the original members and co-wrote several of their biggest hits. He is also a winner of the BMI Songwriters Award, and the ASCAP Award Of Merit, referred to as the Miracles secret weapon, Tarplin began his career accompanying the Supremes, who at the time were still teenagers, and known as the Primettes. They were seeking an audition with Motown Records, and Tarplin played guitar as they performed for Miracles lead singer Smokey Robinson, Robinson was impressed by Tarplins guitar playing, and lured him away from the Primettes to join the Miracles in 1958. His guitar riffs at the beginning of the Miracles 1965 Grammy Hall of Fame million-seller and he is mentioned, though not pictured, on the back cover of the groups very first album, Hi. Were the Miracles, and listed as a group member. In addition, Tarplin co-wrote several Robinson produced hits by Marvin Gaye, including the Top 10 million selling hits, Aint That Peculiar and Ill Be Doggone. His guitar work was featured on Gayes Top 40 hit, One More Heartache, which he also co-wrote, and another of Gayes chart hits, 1965s Take This Heart of Mine. He also played on The Four Tops 1970 Top 20 hit, Still Water, co-written by Robinson, Tarplin also appeared with the group on The Ed Sullivan Show, the 1964 film, The T. A. M. I. Marv also appeared onstage with the Miracles on the 1983 NBC-TV music special Motown 25, Yesterday, Today, Tarplin left the Miracles in 1973, shortly after Smokey Robinson and his wife Claudette left the group. His replacement in the Miracles was Donald Griffin, brother of Billy Griffin, Robinson and Tarplin continued to collaborate as writers on Robinsons solo recordings, including hits such as Cruisin and the Being with You. Tarplin also continued to play guitar on record and in concert for Robinson, in 2007, Milwaukee, Wisconsin musician, Paul Cebar, paid homage to Tarplin with his song Marvs Fluttering Guitar from the album Tomorrow Sound Now For Yes Music People. In 1987, Smokey Robinson was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a solo artist, the Miracles were finally retroactively inducted into the hall by a special committee in 2012, alongside Smokey Robinson. Tarplin retired from touring in 2008 and is pictured on the cover of the 2009 Motown CD release The Miracles – Depend On Me, The Early Albums. On February 9,2012, it was announced that Marv Tarplin would be inducted with the rest of the Miracles into the Rock. This induction occurred on April 14,2012 and this induction occurred without the usual process of nomination and voting, under the premise that the entire group should have been inducted with Smokey Robinson back in 1987. Three years after leaving Robinson, Tarplin died in his Las Vegas home of undetermined causes on September 30,2011, Tarplin and his former wife Sylvia had a daughter named Talese. He also had two daughters, Eboney and Lisa, from another relationship
29.
Robbie Robertson
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Jaime Royal Robbie Robertson, OC, is a Canadian musician, songwriter, film composer, producer, actor, and author. Robertson is best known for his work as lead guitarist and primary songwriter for The Band and his work with The Band was instrumental in creating the Americana music genre. He is ranked 59th in Rolling Stone magazine’s list of the 100 greatest guitarists. As a songwriter, Robertson is credited for writing The Weight, The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down, Up on Cripple Creek, Broken Arrow, Somewhere Down the Crazy River, and many others. Robertson has been inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame, as a film soundtrack producer and composer, Robertson is best known for his numerous collaborations with director Martin Scorsese. His working relationship with Scorsese began with the influential rockumentary film The Last Waltz and he has also worked on many other soundtracks for film and television. Robertson was born in Toronto, an only child and his mother, Rosemarie Dolly Myke Chrysler, was a Mohawk raised on the Six Nations Reserve southwest of Toronto, Ontario. In her early life as an orphan, Chrysler lived with an aunt in Toronto. Robertsons biological father was Alexander David Klegerman, a Jewish professional gambler, Klegerman was killed in a hit-and-run accident as he was changing a tire on the Queen Elizabeth Way. Robertsons mother married James Patrick Robertson, a co-worker at the jewelry plating factory, Robertson earned his nickname from teachers and students at school, who started calling him Robbie in reference to his last name. As a child, Robertsons mother would travel with her son to the Six Nations Reserve to visit her family. These two experiences would impact Robertsons view of Americana, influencing The Band song Life is a Carnival and the movie Carny, Robertson began playing in bands in 1957 with his friend Pete Thumper Traynor, who would later found Traynor Amplifiers. Traynor customized Robertsons guitar for The Robots, fitting it with antennae, after Robbie and The Robots, Robertson played with Little Caesar and the Consuls, and with the Traynor-led combo The Suedes, which featured Scott Cushnie on piano. Robertson became a fan of the Arkansas-based rockabilly group Ronnie Hawkins, Hawkins took a liking to Robertson and would have him run errands for the Hawks. Hawkins hired pianist Scott Cushnie away from The Suedes, and took him on tour with Ronnie Hawkins, when The Hawks bass player left the group, Cushnie recommended that Hawkins hire Robertson to replace him on bass. Hawkins invited Robertson to come to Arkansas, and then flew to the UK to perform on television there, meanwhile, Robertson spent his living allowance on records and practiced intensively each day. Upon returning, Hawkins was amazed at Robertsons progress and hired him to play bass, Cushnie left the band a few months after joining them, and Robertson soon switched over from bass to playing lead guitar for The Hawks. Robertson soon developed into a guitar virtuoso, Levon Helm was already a member of the Hawks and soon became close friends with Robertson
30.
Stevie Wonder
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Stevland Hardaway Morris, known by his stage name Stevie Wonder, is an American musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, and multi-instrumentalist. A child prodigy, he is considered to be one of the most critically and commercially successful musical performers of the late 20th century, Wonder signed with Motowns Tamla label at the age of 11, and he continued performing and recording for Motown into the 2010s. He has been blind since shortly after birth, Wonder is also noted for his work as an activist for political causes, including his 1980 campaign to make Martin Luther King Jr. s birthday a holiday in the United States. In 2009, Wonder was named a United Nations Messenger of Peace, in 2013, Billboard magazine released a list of the Billboard Hot 100 All-Time Top Artists to celebrate the US singles charts 55th anniversary, with Wonder at number six. Stevie Wonder was born in Saginaw, Michigan, in 1950, the third of six children of Calvin Judkins and Lula Mae Hardaway, when Wonder was four, his mother left his father and moved to Detroit with her children. She changed her back to Lula Hardaway and later changed her sons surname to Morris. Wonder has retained Morris as his legal surname and he began playing instruments at an early age, including piano, harmonica and drums. He formed a partnership with a friend, calling themselves Stevie and John, they played on street corners. Before signing, producer Clarence Paul gave him the name Little Stevie Wonder, because of Wonders age, the label drew up a rolling five-year contract in which royalties would be held in trust until Wonder was 21. He and his mother would be paid a stipend to cover their expenses, Wonder received $2.50 a week. Wonder was put in the care of producer and songwriter Clarence Paul, tribute to Uncle Ray was recorded first, when Wonder was still 11 years old. Mainly covers of Ray Charless songs, it included a Wonder and Paul composition, the Jazz Soul of Little Stevie was recorded next, an instrumental album consisting mainly of Pauls compositions, two of which, Wondering and Session Number 112, were co-written with Wonder. At the end of 1962, when Wonder was 12 years old, he joined the Motortown Revue, at the Regal Theater, Chicago, his 20-minute performance was recorded and released in May 1963 as the album Recorded Live, The 12 Year Old Genius. A single, Fingertips, from the album was released in May. The song, featuring a confident and enthusiastic Wonder returning for a spontaneous encore that catches out the replacement bass player, was a No.1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 when Wonder was aged 13, making him the youngest artist ever to top the chart. The single was simultaneously No.1 on the R&B chart and his next few recordings, however, were not successful, his voice was changing as he got older, and some Motown executives were considering cancelling his recording contract. During 1964, Wonder appeared in two films as himself, Muscle Beach Party and Bikini Beach, but these were not successful either, sylvia Moy persuaded label owner Berry Gordy to give Wonder another chance. He also began to work in the Motown songwriting department, composing songs both for himself and his mates, including The Tears of a Clown, a No.1 hit for Smokey Robinson
31.
Sly Stone
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In 1993, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the group. The Stewart family was a deeply religious middle-class household from Denton, born March 15,1943, before the family had moved from Denton, Texas to Vallejo, California in the North Bay of the San Francisco Bay Area, Sylvester was the second of the familys five children. As part of the doctrines of the Church of God in Christ, to which the Stewart family belonged, the eldest sister, Loretta, was the only Stewart child not to pursue a musical career. All of the other Stewart children would later adopt the surname Stone, Sylvester was identified as a musical prodigy. By the time he was seven, Sylvester had already become proficient on the keyboards, and by the age of eleven, he had mastered the guitar, bass, and drums as well. While still in school, Sylvester had settled primarily on the guitar. One of these was the Viscaynes, a group in which Sylvester. The fact that the group was integrated made the Viscaynes hip in the eyes of their audiences, and would later inspire Sylvesters idea of the multicultural Family Stone. The Viscaynes released a few singles, including Yellow Moon and Stop What You Are, during the same period. With his brother, Fred, he formed several short-lived groups, the nickname Sly was a common one for Sylvester throughout his years in grade school. Early on, a classmate misspelled his name Slyvester, and ever since, adopting the stage name Sly Stone, he then formed The Stoners in 1966 which included Cynthia Robinson on trumpet. With her he started his band, Sly and the Family Stone. Stone, Robinson, and Fred Stewart were joined by Larry Graham, Greg Errico, working around the Bay Area in 1967, this multiracial band made a strong impression. On the first recordings Little Sisters Vet Stone, Mary McCreary, in 1968 sister Rosie Stone joined the band. Stone was influential in guiding KSOL-AM into soul music and started calling the station K-SOUL, the second was a popular soul music station, at 107.7 FM. The current KSOL has a different format and is unrelated to the two stations. Along with James Brown and Parliament-Funkadelic, Sly and the Family Stone were pioneers of late 1960s and their fusion of R&B rhythms, infectious melodies, and psychedelia created a new pop/soul/rock hybrid the impact of which has proven lasting and widespread. Motown producer Norman Whitfield, for example, patterned the labels forays into harder-driving, the pioneering precedent of Stones racial, sexual, and stylistic mix, had a major influence in the 1980s on artists such as Prince and Rick James
32.
Otis Williams
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Otis Williams is an American baritone singer. Nicknamed Big Daddy, he is also a songwriter and a record producer. Williams is best known as the founder and last original surviving member of the Motown vocal group The Temptations and he also owns the rights to the Temptations name. Williams was born Otis Miles, Jr. in Texarkana, Texas to Otis Miles and Hazel Louise Williams, an unmarried couple who separated shortly after their sons birth. While he was still a toddler, his married and moved to Detroit, Michigan. Hazel Williams moved her son to Detroit when he was ten years old, becoming interested in music as a teenager, Otis Miles, Jr. adopted his mothers maiden name for his stage name, and as Otis Williams put together a number of singing groups. These groups included Otis Williams and the Siberians, the El Domingoes, in 1959, The Distants scored a local hit, co-written by Williams and their manager/producer Johnnie Mae Matthews, called Come On, with lead vocals by Richard Street. Future Distants recordings were not as successful, and after an offer from Berry Gordy of Motown Records, Williams and his friends/bandmates Elbridge Al Bryant and Melvin Franklin quit the Distants. Eddie Kendricks and Paul Williams from The Primes later joined Williams, Bryant, and Franklin to create the Elgins, in fact, the groups lineup changes were so frequent, stressful and troublesome that Williams and Melvin Franklin promised each other they would never quit the group. Franklin would remain in the group until 1994, when he became incapable of continuing. Franklin died on February 23,1995, leaving Otis Williams, then 53, Williams is the co-author, with Patricia Romanowski, of Temptations, a 1988 book that served as both his autobiography and a history of the group. Ten years later, the book was adapted into a NBC television miniseries The Temptations, Williams was portrayed by actor Charles Malik Whitfield. Williams has provided non-singing contributions to some Temptation songs, including Im Gonna Make You Love Me, in 1989, Otis Williams was inducted into The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of The Temptations. Williams received a doctorate from Stillman College in May 2006. Williams married Josephine Rogers in 1961, the son, Otis Lamont, was born the same year. He and Josephine divorced in 1964, Otis Lamont Williams was a construction worker who died in a workplace accident in Detroit in 1983. Williams dated Florence Ballard of The Supremes and was for a time engaged to R&B singer Patti LaBelle, Williams great grand son is a Alabama based rapper by the name of Yelawolf Williams was married to Ann Cain from 1967 to 1973. Williams married his wife, Arleata Goldie Williams, in 1983
33.
Melvin Franklin
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David Melvin English better known by the stage name Melvin Franklin, or his nickname Blue, was an American bass singer. Franklin was best known for his role as a member of Motown singing group The Temptations from 1960 to 1994, David English was born in Montgomery, Alabama to Rose English, a teenage mother from nearby Mobile. His biological father was the preacher of the English familys church in Mobile, following Davids birth, Rose English married Willard Franklin and moved to Detroit, her grandmother insisting young David be left behind in her care. David English finally moved to Detroit with his mother and stepfather in 1952 at age ten, Franklin often referred to Street and Ruffin as his cousins. In 1958, a classmate of Franklins at Northwestern High School, Otis Williams, invited Franklin to join his group, Otis Williams. Franklin joined the group as its bass singer, and remained with Williams and Elbridge Bryant when they, Paul Williams, in March 1961, the Elgins signed with Motown Records under a new name, The Temptations. He had a fondness for the blue, and so he was nicknamed Blue by fellow singers. According to Otis Williams, Franklin romantically pursued Supremes singer Mary Wilson at one point, Otis and Melvin were the only Temptations who never quit the group. One of the most famous singers in black music over his long career. Franklin sang a handful of featured leads with the group as well, including the songs I Truly, Truly Believe, Silent Night, The Prophet, and his signature live performance number, Ol Man River. Franklin was usually called upon to deliver ad-libs, harmony vocals and his line from The Temptations 1970 #3 hit Ball of Confusion, and the band played on, became Franklins trademark. In the late 1960s, Franklin was diagnosed with arthritis, the symptoms of which he combated with cortisone so that he could continue performing, in 1978 he was shot in the hand and in the leg while trying to stop a man from stealing his car in Los Angeles. The incident prevented Franklin from participating in the Temptations upcoming tour of Poland, on February 17,1995, after a series of seizures, Melvin collapsed into a coma and remained unconscious until his death on February 23,1995, he died in his wife Kimberlys arms. His mother Rose Franklin died in March 2013 and he is entombed at Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, California in Courts of Remembrance, C-3571, outer south-east wall. In addition to singing, Franklin also worked as a voice actor, in 1984, he provided the voice for the character of Wheels in the animated series Pole Position. He also appeared in the movie Sky Bandits in 1986, in 1989, Melvin Franklin was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of The Temptations. On August 17,2013, in Cleveland, Ohio, Melvin Franklin was inducted into the Official R&B Music Hall of Fame along with The Temptations, on February 9,2013, his wife received the lifetime achievement award on his behalf. In 1998, NBC aired The Temptations, a television miniseries based upon an autobiographical book by Otis Williams
34.
My Guy
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My Guy is a 1964 hit single recorded by Mary Wells for the Motown label. Written and produced by Smokey Robinson of The Miracles, the song is a dedication to the goodness of her man. Van Dyke would recall, We were doing anything to get the out of that studio. We knew that the producers didnt know nothing bout no Canadian Sunset or Begin the Beguine and we figured the song would wind up in the trash can anyway. My Guy became the biggest hit ever for Wells, Motowns first female star, the song led the Cashbox magazine R&B chart for seven weeks. My Guy also happened to be Wells last hit single for Motown, an option in her recording contract allowed Wells to terminate the contract at her discretion after she reached her twenty-first birthday on May 13,1964. Encouraged by her ex-husband, Wells broke her Motown contract and signed with 20th Century Fox in hopes of higher royalties, however, Wells career never again reached the heights it had at Motown, and she never again had a hit single as big as My Guy. Her version of the song was used in the film More American Graffiti In the United Kingdom, My Guy peaked at number five in June 1964. In 1980 Amii Stewart and Johnny Bristol recorded a medley of My Guy and another Motown classic, the track was re-issued in 1986 with Bristols vocal being replaced by Deon Estus, this version reached #63 UK. Sister Sledge remade My Guy for their 1982 album self-produced album The Sisters, Kathy Sledge, the usual lead singer, would recall - I had very little input. My Guy also afforded Sister Sledge a fifth and final Top 20 R&B hit its R&B chart peak being #14, the Sister Sledge version of My Guy had its strongest impact on the Easy Listening chart where it rose as high as #2. My Guy has twice reached the C&W chart in renderings by Lynda K Lance, the song has also been recorded by Lucia Altieri, Aretha Franklin, Nancy Holloway, Claudine Longet, Barbara McNair, Melba Moore, Dara Sedaka, and Helen Shapiro. Mary Wells herself re-recorded the song in a rendition for her 1984 album. In 1999, My Guy was inducted to the Grammy Hall of Fame, in 2008, the Los Angeles-based rock group Warpaint performed a version of the song on their EP Exquisite Corpse under the title Billie Holliday. Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics
35.
My Girl (The Temptations song)
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My Girl is a 1964 standard recorded by The Temptations for the Gordy label which became a number one hit in 1965. Written and produced by The Miracles members Smokey Robinson and Ronald White, the became the Temptations first U. S. number-one single. Robinsons inspiration for writing this song was his wife, Miracles member Claudette Rogers Robinson, the song was featured on the Temptations album The Temptations Sing Smokey. Musically, the song is notable because the six ascending guitar notes in the riff over the C chord are a perfect example of a C major pentatonic scale. Similarly, the riff in the song that is played over the F chord is a perfect example of an F major pentatonic scale. The recorded version of My Girl was the first Temptations single to feature David Ruffin on lead vocals, previously, Eddie Kendricks and Paul Williams had performed most of the groups lead vocals, and Ruffin had joined the group as a replacement for former Temptation Elbridge Bryant. While on tour as part of the Motortown Revue, a tour for most of the Motown roster. The group had included a medley of standards in the show, one of which. Impressed, Robinson decided to produce a single with Ruffin singing lead, Robinson saw Ruffin as a sleeping giant in the group with a unique voice that was mellow yet gruff. Robinson thought that if he could write just the song for Ruffins voice. The song was to be something that Ruffin could belt out yet something that was also melodic, according to Robinson, he allowed the group to create their own background vocals because they were so great at background vocals. The signature guitar riff heard during the introduction and under the verses was played by Robert White of the Funk Brothers and this part can be heard without vocals on the 2004 deluxe edition of the soundtrack from the 2002 documentary Standing in the Shadows of Motown. My Girl was later sampled for Stay, a single from the Temptations 1998 album Phoenix Rising, the single was re-released in 1992. It did not reach the Billboard charts, but did reach number two in the UK Singles Chart and my Girl climbed to the top of the U. S. pop charts after its Christmas time 1964 release, making it the Temptations first number-one hit. The single was also the first number-one hit on the reinstated Billboard R&B Singles chart, the single also gave the Gordy label its first number one on the Hot 100. The Temptations were the first Motown act to earn a Grammy, in 2004, My Girl was ranked number 88 on Rolling Stones list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. This version, produced by Steve Cropper, was featured on Reddings critically acclaimed album Otis Blue, in 1975, Glen Campbell recorded the song on his album Rhinestone Cowboy. In 1988, Suave had a Top 40 Pop hit & Top 10 R&B hit with the song, r&B/soul group The Whispers covered the song in a disco style for their eponymous 1980 album
