Motown Chartbusters is a series of compilation albums first released by EMI under licence on the Tamla Motown label in Britain. In total, 12 editions were released in the UK between 1967 and 1982. Volumes 1 and 2 were originally called British Motown Chartbusters; after this the title Motown Chartbusters was used.
Early Motown Records releases in Britain were not on the Motown label, but were issued on the London, Fontana, Oriole and Stateside labels. In 1964, Motown's first number 1 in Britain was "Baby Love" by the Supremes, released on EMI's Stateside label. "Where Did Our Love Go" by the Supremes, and "My Guy" by Mary Wells were amongst other big hits in the same year, also on Stateside. The first release on the Tamla Motown label was "Stop In The Name Of Love" by the Supremes, in March 1965.
By 1964, Motown had accumulated enough British hits for EMI to release a greatest hits album, A Collection of Tamla Motown Big Hits. [1] Over the next few years, several more compilations were released, including six in the series 16 Original Big Hits. [2] In 1967, the label issued the first of the Motown Chartbusters series. Although the series comprised mainly hit singles by various Motown artists, the albums also included other recordings that had not been hits in Britain and many significant single hits were excluded from the series. Later albums in the series failed to include any of the top ten singles achieved by Stevie Wonder, or any of his releases. Minor hits were sometimes included in place of bigger hits, most notably for the Jackson 5 and Michael Jackson. Because of Motown's policy of re-issuing tracks on single on a regular basis, there are some anomalies in the inclusion of tracks. Jimmy Ruffin's 'What Becomes of the Broken Hearted?' is included in both Volume 1 and Volume 9, as it was a UK hit single twice. Mary Wells' hit 'My Guy' features on Volume 7, released in 1972, after it had been a substantive reissue hit, despite being first released in 1964 and similarly 'Baby Love' is included on Volume 9, as it had been re-issued in 1974, ten years after it first charted in the UK for The Supremes.
The original albums were made by EMI under licence from Motown. EMI also made 8-track cartridge recordings of the early releases. In total, 12 editions were released in the UK, spanning 15 years from 1967 to 1982.
The first nine albums were Top 15 UK Albums Chart entries, whereas the later albums from 10 to 12 did not chart. The second volume of British Motown Chartbusters rose to No. 8 in January 1970. In the same year, Volume 3 spent six weeks at the No. 2 position, eventually reaching No. 1. Volumes 4 and 5 also hit No. 1. In 1971 Volume 6 went to No. 2 and, in 1972 and 1973, both Volumes 7 and 8 went to No. 9. [3]
The series was the most successful set of compilation albums in terms of sales until the release of the Now That's What I Call Music series began in the mid-1980s. A compilation album, Now That's What I Call Motown , was released on the Universal Motown label.
The series was re-issued by the budget label Spectrum, starting in 1997. The clear differences between the two releases are the logos on the disc and cover: the original release has the Tamla Motown logo; the re-release has the Motown logo.[ citation needed ]
After its success in the UK, Motown went on to release variants of the compilation format in other counties such as the United States and Australia. There were also various releases on the same type of platform, such as Motown Chartbusters, 150 Hits of Gold and boxed sets.[ citation needed ]
British Motown Chartbusters | |
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Compilation album by Various Artists | |
Released | 1967 Album No TML/STML11055 Stereo issued 1969 |
Genre | R&B, Soul |
Length | 44:47 |
Label | Tamla Motown, Spectrum |
First released in October 1967 as British Motown Chartbusters. It was re-released on the Spectrum label, and renamed Motown Chartbusters Volume 1
Track Listing
Chart (1967) | Peak position |
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UK Albums (OCC) [3] | 2 |
Chart (1986) | Peak position |
UK Albums (OCC) [3] | 25 |
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
United Kingdom (BPI) [4] sales since 1986 | Gold | 100,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
United Kingdom (BPI) [5] sales since 1997 | Gold | 100,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
British Motown Chartbusters Volume 2 | |
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Compilation album by Various Artists | |
Released | 1968 Album No TML/STML11082 |
Genre | R&B, Soul |
Length | 44:59 |
Label | Tamla Motown, Spectrum |
First released in November 1968 as British Motown Chartbusters Volume 2. It was re-released on the Spectrum label, and renamed Motown Chartbusters Volume 2
Track Listing
Chart (1968) | Peak position |
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UK Albums (OCC) [3] | 8 |
Motown Chartbusters Volume 3 | |
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Compilation album by Various Artists | |
Released | 1969 Album No TML/STML11121 |
Genre | R&B, Soul |
Length | 45:11 |
Label | Tamla Motown, Spectrum |
First released in November 1969.
Track Listing
Chart (1970) | Peak position |
---|---|
UK Albums (OCC) [3] | 1 |
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
United Kingdom (BPI) [6] sales since 1997 | Platinum | 300,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
Motown Chartbusters Volume 4 | |
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Compilation album by Various Artists | |
Released | 1970 Album No STML11162 |
Genre | R&B, Soul |
Label | Tamla Motown, Spectrum |
First released in October 1970.
Track Listing
Chart (1970) | Peak position |
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UK Albums (OCC) [3] | 1 |
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
United Kingdom (BPI) [7] sales since 1997 | Silver | 60,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
Motown Chartbusters Volume 5 | |
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Compilation album by Various Artists | |
Released | 1971 Album No STML11181 |
Genre | R&B, Soul |
Label | Tamla Motown, Spectrum |
First released in April 1971.
Track Listing
Chart (1971) | Peak position |
---|---|
UK Albums (OCC) [3] | 1 |
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
United Kingdom (BPI) [8] sales since 1997 | Silver | 60,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
Motown Chartbusters Volume 6 | |
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Compilation album by Various Artists | |
Released | 1971 Album No STML11191 |
Genre | R&B, Soul |
Label | Tamla Motown, Spectrum |
First released in October 1971.
Track Listing
Chart (1971) | Peak position |
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UK Albums (OCC) [3] | 2 |
Motown Chartbusters Volume 7 | |
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Compilation album by Various Artists | |
Released | 1972 Album No STML11215 |
Genre | R&B, Soul |
Label | Tamla Motown, Spectrum |
First released in November 1972.
Track Listing
Chart (1972) | Peak position |
---|---|
UK Albums (OCC) [3] | 9 |
Motown Chartbusters Volume 8 | |
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Compilation album by Various Artists | |
Released | 1973 Album No STML11246 |
Genre | R&B, Soul |
Label | Tamla Motown, Spectrum |
Track Listing
Chart (1973) | Peak position |
---|---|
UK Albums (OCC) [3] | 9 |
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
United Kingdom (BPI) [9] | Gold | 100,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
Motown Chartbusters Volume 9 | |
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Compilation album by Various Artists | |
Released | 1974 Album No STML11270 |
Genre | R&B, Soul |
Label | Tamla Motown, Spectrum |
First released in October 1974.
Track Listing
Chart (1974) | Peak position |
---|---|
UK Albums (OCC) [3] | 14 |
Motown Chartbusters Volume 10 | |
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Compilation album by Various Artists | |
Released | 1979 Album No STML12123 |
Genre | R&B, Soul |
Label | Tamla Motown, Spectrum |
First released in November 1979.
Some of the later releases were stamped in red vinyl.
Track Listing
Motown Chartbusters Volume 11 | |
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Compilation album by Various Artists | |
Released | 1980 Album No STML12139 |
Genre | R&B, Soul |
Label | Tamla Motown, Spectrum |
First released in December 1980 as "Motown Chartbusters '80". Renamed for CD release later.
An album also called Motown Chartbusters '80 was released in the same year on the Astor label (6264 187) in Australia. It had the exact track listing as Motown Chartbusters Volume 11. The cover was almost identical, with just minor changes.
Track Listing
Motown Chartbusters Volume 12 | |
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Compilation album by Various Artists | |
Released | 1982 Album No STML12164 |
Genre | R&B, Soul |
Label | Tamla Motown, Spectrum |
First released in July 1982.
Track Listing
Three years later after the first release of British Motown Chartbusters, Motown released a series called “Motown Chartbusters" on the Motown label in the United States. This consisted of only five albums which had completely different track listings to the UK releases.
Another difference was the number of tracks per album, the UK version consisted of 16 to 18 tracks, whereas the US version only had 12 tracks.
Motown Chartbusters Volume 1 | |
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Compilation album by Various Artists | |
Released | MS-707 |
Genre | R&B, Soul |
Label | Motown |
First released in December 1970.
Track Listing
Motown Chartbusters Volume 2 | |
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Compilation album by Various Artists | |
Released | MS-715 |
Genre | R&B, Soul |
Label | Motown |
First released in October 1970.
Track Listing
Motown Chartbusters Volume 3 | |
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Compilation album by Various Artists | |
Recorded | MS-732 |
Genre | R&B, Soul |
Label | Motown |
First released in May 1971.
Track Listing
Motown Chartbusters Volume 4 | |
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Compilation album by Various Artists | |
Released | MS-734 |
Genre | R&B, Soul |
Label | Motown |
First released in May 1971.
Track Listing
Motown Chartbusters Volume 5 | |
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Compilation album by Various Artists | |
Released | M-744L |
Genre | R&B, Soul |
Label | Motown |
First released in December 1971.
Track Listing
Motown Chartbusters Boxed sets | |
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Compilation album by Various Artists | |
Genre | R&B, Soul |
Label | Motown |
Motown Chartbusters 150 Hits Of Gold | |
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Compilation album by Various Artists | |
Released | 1985 WL72410[9] |
Genre | R&B, Soul |
Label | Motown |
First released in 1985.
Track Listing
Volume 1
Volume 2
Volume 3
Volume 4
Volume 5
Volume 6
Volume 7
Volume 8
Volume 9
Motown Chartbusters | |
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Compilation album by Various Artists | |
Released | 1986 |
Genre | R&B, Soul |
Label | Telstar |
This version was released on the Telstar label in 1986; it is not part of the original series.
Track Listing
William "Smokey" Robinson Jr. is an American R&B and soul singer, songwriter, record producer, and former record executive. He was the founder and frontman of the pioneering Motown vocal group the Miracles, for which he was also chief songwriter and producer. He led the group from its 1955 origins, when they were called The Five Chimes, until 1972, when he retired from the group to focus on his role as Motown Records vice president. Robinson returned to the music industry as a solo artist the following year. He left Motown in 1999.
Motown 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.
The Funk Brothers were a group of Detroit-based session musicians who performed the backing to most Motown recordings from 1959 until the company moved to Los Angeles in 1972.
The Andantes were an American female session group for the Motown record label during the 1960s. Composed of Jackie Hicks, Marlene Barrow, and Louvain Demps, the group sang background vocals on numerous Motown recordings, including songs by Martha Reeves & the Vandellas, the Temptations, Stevie Wonder, the Four Tops, Jimmy Ruffin, Edwin Starr, the Supremes, the Marvelettes, Marvin Gaye and the Isley Brothers, among others. It is estimated they appeared on 20,000 recordings.
The Supremes A' Go-Go is the ninth studio album released by Motown singing group the Supremes. It was the first album by an all-female group to reach number-one on the Billboard 200 album charts in the United States.
Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever is a 1983 television special, produced by Suzanne de Passe for Motown Records, to commemorate Motown's 25th year. The program was taped before a live audience at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium in Pasadena, California on March 25, 1983, and broadcast on NBC on May 16. Among its highlights were Michael Jackson's performance of "Billie Jean", Smokey Robinson's reunion with the Miracles, a Temptations / Four Tops "battle of the bands", Marvin Gaye's inspired speech about black music history and his memorable performance of "What's Going On", a Jackson 5 reunion, and an abbreviated reunion of Diana Ross & the Supremes, who performed their final #1 hit, "Someday We'll Be Together" from 1969. The show was co-written by de Passe with Ruth Adkins Robinson, who would go on to write shows with de Passe for the next 25 years, including the follow-up label tributes—through "Motown 40", Buz Kohan was the head writer.
Motown 1s is a collection of 25 #1 songs originally released by Motown Records, plus a newly recorded bonus track, "Ain't No Mountain High Enough," performed by Michael McDonald. It was released by Motown Records/UTV Records in 2004.
Diana Ross & the Supremes Join the Temptations is a collaborative album combining Motown's 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, the album was a success, reaching #2 on the Billboard 200. Diana Ross & the Supremes Join the Temptations spent four weeks at number one on the UK Albums Chart.
In Loving Memory is a gospel compilation released by Motown Records in September 1968. It is dedicated to the memory of Motown founder Berry Gordy's sister, Mrs. Loucye S. Gordy Wakefield, and features several popular Motown acts, including Diana Ross & the Supremes, The Temptations, The Miracles and Marvin Gaye, performing versions of popular gospel songs and spirituals.
Motown Remixed is a 2005 compilation album containing remixed versions of Motown hits, released on May 24, 2005 by Motown/Universal Records.
Eddie "Bongo" Brown was an American musician born in Clarksdale, Mississippi, and raised in Memphis, Tennessee. Brown played congas, bongos, the gourd and claves for Motown Records' in-house Funk Brothers band. One of his musical influences was Chano Pozo.
Tamla Motown Gold: The Sound of Young America is a three-disc compilation album released by the Tamla Motown label in 2001. It features all the hits from the label in the 1960s, by various artists.
A Motown Christmas is a Christmas music compilation album, originally released as a 2-LP set by Motown Records on September 25, 1973. It contains various seasonal singles and album tracks recorded by some of the label's artists from the 1960s and early 1970s. Some of the music had previously been released on the 1968 compilation Merry Christmas from Motown.
Paul Riser is an American trombonist and Motown musical arranger who was responsible for co-writing and arranging dozens of top ten hit records. His legacy as one of the "Funk Brothers" is similar to that of most of the other "Brothers", as his career has been overlooked and overshadowed by the stars of Motown that became household names. Some of the Funk Brothers he worked with include: Earl Van Dyke, Johnny Griffith, Robert White, Eddie Willis, Joe Messina, Dennis Coffey, Wah Wah Watson, James Jamerson, Bob Babbitt, Eddie Watkins, Richard "Pistol" Allen, Uriel Jones, Andrew Smith, Jack Ashford, Valerie Simpson, Eddie "Bongo" Brown, Benny Benjamin, Cornelius Grant, Joe Hunter, Richard "Popcorn" Wylie, Marcus Belgrave, Teddy Buckner and Stevie Wonder.
Ewart Gladstone Abner, Jr. was a major American record company executive who was President of Motown Records from 1973 to 1975 and was personal and business manager for Stevie Wonder for 10 years. In his executive roles at Motown, he helped direct careers for Marvin Gaye, Smokey Robinson and the Miracles, The Temptations, and the Jackson 5.
Classic Rock was a 31-volume series issued by Time Life during the late 1980s and early 1990s. The series spotlighted popular music played on Top 40 radio stations of the mid-to-late-1960s.
"Pops, We Love You " is a 1978 single recorded and released by Motown stars Diana Ross, Marvin Gaye, Smokey Robinson and Stevie Wonder, as a tribute to Berry "Pops" Gordy Sr., father of Motown founder Berry Gordy, who had died that year from cancer.
Motown: The Musical is a jukebox musical that premiered on Broadway in April 2013. The musical is based on Berry Gordy's autobiography To Be Loved: The Music, the Magic, the Memories of Motown (1994), and on the history of his founding and running of the Motown record label, and his personal and professional relationships with Motown artists such as Diana Ross, Smokey Robinson, Marvin Gaye, and Michael Jackson. The production's music and lyrics are taken from selections from the Motown catalog. It received four nominations at the 67th Tony Awards.
The Smokey Robinson Show was a 1970 musical variety special starring Smokey Robinson & The Miracles. It aired on ABC on December 18, 1970, and featured guest stars The Supremes, The Temptations, Stevie Wonder, and Las Vegas singer/performer and actress Fran Jeffries. The program was sponsored by Faberge and was produced by Screen Gems. The director was Kip Walton.
Antonio Lloyd "Tony" Newton is an electric bass player from Detroit, Michigan. Newton recorded and toured with The Jackson 5, Marvin Gaye, Aretha Franklin, The Temptations, Diana Ross, Tony Williams, John Lee Hooker, Smokey Robinson, Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson, Joachim Kühn, Gary Moore, Allan Holdsworth and others.