Related Research Articles
The Supremes were an American female singing group and a premier act of Motown Records during the 1960s. Founded as The Primettes in Detroit, Michigan, in 1959, the Supremes were the most commercially successful of Motown's acts and the most successful American vocal group, with 12 number one singles on the Billboard Hot 100. Most of these hits were written and produced by Motown's main songwriting and production team, Holland–Dozier–Holland. At their peak in the mid-1960s, the Supremes rivaled the Beatles in worldwide popularity, and it is said that their breakthrough made it possible for future African American R&B and soul musicians to find mainstream success. Billboard ranked The Supremes as the 16th greatest Hot 100 artist of all time.
The Temptations are an American vocal group from Detroit, Michigan, who released a series of successful singles and albums with Motown Records during the 1960s and 1970s. The group's work with producer Norman Whitfield, beginning with the Top 10 hit single "Cloud Nine" in October 1968, pioneered psychedelic soul, and was significant in the evolution of R&B and soul music. The band members are known for their choreography, distinct harmonies, and dress style. Having sold tens of millions of albums, the Temptations are among the most successful groups in popular music.
Wilson Pickett was an American singer and songwriter.
Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on January 12, 1959, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of motor and town, has become a nickname for Detroit, where the label was originally headquartered.
Florence Glenda Chapman was an American singer and a founding member of the Motown vocal female group the Supremes. She sang on 16 top 40 singles with the group, including nine number-one hits. After being removed from the Supremes in 1967, Ballard tried an unsuccessful solo career with ABC Records before she was dropped from the label at the end of the decade.
Levi Stubbs was an American baritone singer, best known as the lead vocalist of the R&B group the Four Tops, who released a variety of Motown hit records during the 1960s and 1970s. He has been noted for his powerful, emotional, dramatic style of singing.
Bonny "Mack" Rice, sometimes credited as Sir Mack Rice, was an American songwriter and singer. His best-known composition and biggest hit as a solo performer was "Mustang Sally." He also wrote "Respect Yourself" with Luther Ingram.
The Contours were one of the early African-American soul singing groups signed to Motown Records. The group is best known for its classic chart-topping 1962 hit, "Do You Love Me", a million-selling single that became a major hit all over again in 1988.
"Baby I Need Your Loving" is a 1964 hit single recorded by the Four Tops for the Motown label. Written and produced by Motown's main production team Holland–Dozier–Holland, the song was the group's first Motown single and their first pop Top 20 hit, making it to number eleven on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number four in Canada in the fall of 1964. It was also their first million-selling hit single. Rolling Stone ranked the Four Tops' original version of the song at No. 400 on their list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
Edward Lee Floyd is an American soul-R&B singer and songwriter, best known for his work on the Stax record label in the 1960s and 1970s including the No. 1 R&B hit song "Knock on Wood".
The Originals, often called "Motown's best-kept secret", were a successful Motown R&B and soul group during the late 1960s and the 1970s, most notable for the hits "Baby, I'm For Real", "The Bells", and the disco classic "Down To Love Town." Formed in 1966, the group originally consisted of baritone singer Freddie Gorman, tenor/falsetto Walter Gaines, and tenors C. P. Spencer and Hank Dixon. Ty Hunter replaced Spencer when he left to go solo in the early 1970s. They had all previously sung in other Detroit groups, Spencer having been an original member of The (Detroit) Spinners and Hunter having sung with The Supremes member Scherrie Payne in the group Glass House. Spencer, Gaines, Hunter, and Dixon were also members of The Voice Masters. As a member of the Holland–Dozier–Gorman writing-production team, Gorman was one of the co-writers of Motown's first number 1 pop hit "Please Mr. Postman", recorded by The Marvelettes. In 1964 The Beatles released their version and in 1975 The Carpenters took it to number 1 again. This was the second time in pop history that a song had reached number 1 twice as "The Twist" by Chubby Checker, reached number 1 in both 1960 and 1961. In 2006, "Please Mr. Postman" was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame.
The Falcons were an American rhythm and blues vocal group, some of whose members went on to be influential in soul music.
"For Once in My Life" is a song written by Ron Miller and Orlando Murden for Motown Records' Stein & Van Stock publishing company, and first recorded in 1965.
"Don't Knock My Love" is a hit song performed by R&B singer Wilson Pickett and written by Pickett with Brad Shapiro. Released in the spring of 1971 from the album of the same title, it spent a week at number-one on the Billboard Best Selling Soul Singles Chart and peaked at #13 on the Billboard Hot 100 Singles Chart. The song, which was produced under a funk tempo was Pickett's last number-one single and one of his last hits for Atlantic Records.
100 Proof was an American funk/soul group, who formed in Detroit, Michigan, in 1969. They were put together by former Motown songwriting team Holland-Dozier-Holland, signing the group to their new Hot Wax Records label. The group went on to release several hit singles between 1969 and 1972. The biggest of these was "Somebody's Been Sleeping", which reached #8 on the Billboard Hot 100, sold more than one million copies, and received a gold disc awarded by the R.I.A.A..
Detroit, Michigan, is a major center in the United States for the creation and performance of music, and is best known for three developments: Motown, early punk rock, and techno.
"Just a Little Misunderstanding" (G7052) is a 1966 song by Motown Records R&B group The Contours on the company's Gordy subsidiary label. It was composed by Stevie Wonder, along with Motown staff songwriters Clarence Paul and Morris Broadnax. The song did not appear on any original Contours studio album. Paul and Motown A&R Director William "Mickey" Stevenson were the song's producers, and Wonder plays drums on the recording.
Joe Stubbs was an American R&B/soul singer who became the lead singer of four different groups throughout his recording career. He was the younger brother of The Four Tops' lead Levi Stubbs.
"Something About You" is a song written by Holland-Dozier-Holland and was first released by the Four Tops on their 1965 album Four Tops' Second Album.
New York soul refers to the soul music recorded and produced in New York City. New York soul was similar to similar in style to Memphis soul from the southern US, but it was more likely to have string arrangements added to the recordings. Unlike most southern soul, New York soul was not typically recorded by "house bands". Instead, New York soul was usually recorded by session musicians who were hired for a single recording.
References
- ↑ Freeland, Davic (2001). Ladies of Soul. University Press of Mississippi. p. 77. ISBN 9781604737271.
- 1 2 Leszczak, Bob (11 December 2014). Encyclopedia of Pop Music Aliases, 1950-2000. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 125. ISBN 9781442240087.
- 1 2 Wald, Elijah (February 8, 1985). "The Falcons Soar Again". The Boston Globe. pp. 9–10 – via newspapers.com.
- ↑ Warner, Jay (2006). American Singing Groups: A History from 1940s to Today. Hal Leonard Books. p. 457. ISBN 9780634099786.
- ↑ Bogdanov, Vladimir (2003). All Music Guide to Soul: The Definitive Guide to R&B and Soul. Hal Leonard Corporation. p. 549. ISBN 9780879307448.
- ↑ Freeland, Davic (2001). Ladies of Soul. University Press of Mississippi. p. 84. ISBN 9781604737271.
- ↑ The Falcons Charts on Allmusic
