"My Guy" | ||||
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Single by Mary Wells | ||||
from the album Mary Wells Sings My Guy | ||||
B-side | "Oh Little Boy (What Did You Do to Me)" | |||
Released | March 13, 1964 | |||
Recorded | 1964 | |||
Studio | Hitsville U.S.A. (Studio A), Detroit, Michigan | |||
Genre | R&B [1] | |||
Length | 2:54 | |||
Label | Motown | |||
Songwriter(s) | Smokey Robinson | |||
Producer(s) | Smokey Robinson | |||
Mary Wells singles chronology | ||||
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"My Guy" is a 1964 hit single by American singer Mary Wells for the Motown label. Written and produced by Smokey Robinson of The Miracles, the song is a woman's rejection of a sexual advance and affirmation of her fidelity to her boyfriend, who is her ideal and with whom she is happy, despite his ordinary physique and looks.
At the session for the "My Guy" backing track, the studio musicians were having issues completing the intro. They had been playing all day and only a half-hour scheduled studio time was left. Trombonist George Bohanon said to keyboardist Earl Van Dyke that the opening measure of "Canadian Sunset" could be perfectly juxtaposed on the intro's chord changes, and Van Dyke, the session bandleader, expediently constructed an intro incorporating the opening of "Canadian Sunset" and also the "left hand notes" from "Canadian Sunset" composer Eddie Heywood's rendition of "Begin the Beguine". Van Dyke would recall: "We were doing anything to get the hell out of that studio. We knew that the producers didn't know nothing 'bout no 'Canadian Sunset' or 'Begin the Beguine'. We figured the song would wind up in the trash can anyway". [2]
When Wells recorded her vocal she sang over the song's outro with a huskiness evoking the line delivery of Mae West: Wells would recall: "I was only joking but the producers said 'Keep it going, keep it going'." [2]
Cash Box described it as "a tantalizing shuffle-twist hand-clapper that the lark and her combo-choral support serve up in most attractive fashion." [3]
"My Guy" became the biggest hit ever for Wells, Motown's first female star, and reached the top of the Billboard Hot 100 pop singles chart on 16 May 1964. [4] The song led the Cashbox magazine R&B chart for seven weeks. [5] "My Guy" was also Wells' last hit single for Motown, except for duets she recorded with label mate Marvin Gaye. An option in her recording contract let Wells 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 and possible movie roles. 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 (1979) and in a season one episode of Friends ("The One with Mrs. Bing").
In the United Kingdom, "My Guy" peaked at No.5 in June 1964.
In 1999, the 1964 recording of "My Guy" by Mary Wells on Motown Records was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. [6]
Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
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Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
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United Kingdom (BPI) [17] | Silver | 200,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. |
"My Guy" | ||||
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Single by Petula Clark | ||||
from the album Now | ||||
B-side | "Little Bit of Lovin'" | |||
Released | May 1972 | |||
Recorded | 1972 | |||
Genre | Easy listening | |||
Length | 3:12 | |||
Label | MGM | |||
Songwriter(s) | Smokey Robinson | |||
Producer(s) | Mike Curb, Don Costa | |||
Petula Clark singles chronology | ||||
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"My Guy" | ||||
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Single by Sister Sledge | ||||
from the album The Sisters | ||||
B-side | "Il Macquillage Lady" | |||
Released | January 1982 | |||
Recorded | 1981 | |||
Genre | Soul | |||
Length | 3:45 | |||
Label | Cotillion | |||
Songwriter(s) | Smokey Robinson | |||
Producer(s) | Sister Sledge | |||
Sister Sledge singles chronology | ||||
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"My Guy" has three times returned to the Billboard Hot 100; first as rendered by Petula Clark and featured on her 1971 album Now. It peaked at No.70, crossing over from the Easy Listening chart where it reached No.12. In 1980, Amii Stewart and Johnny Bristol recorded a medley of "My Guy" and another Motown classic, the Temptations' "My Girl": "My Guy - My Girl (Medley)" peaked at No.63 in the U.S., No.76 R&B, and No.39 in the UK. The track was reissued in 1985 with Bristol's vocal being replaced by Deon Estus: this version reached No.63 in the UK. Sister Sledge remade "My Guy" for their 1982 self-produced album The Sisters: Kathy Sledge, the group's usual lead singer, would recall - "I had very little input [into the album], but I did push for 'My Guy'." [18] Issued as the album's lead single, "My Guy" afforded Sister Sledge their third Top 40 hit although with a No.23 peak its chart impact was well below that of the group's precedent hits "He's the Greatest Dancer" and "We Are Family" (both 1979), which had respective chart peaks of No.9 and No.2. "My Guy" also afforded Sister Sledge a fifth and final Top 20 R&B hit on the R&B chart, peaking at No.14. The Sister Sledge version of "My Guy" had its strongest impact on the Easy Listening chart where it rose as high as No.2. Sister Sledge performed "My Guy" on the episode of the CBS-TV sitcom The Jeffersons entitled "My Guy, George", taped 17 January 1984 and broadcast 4 March 1984. In the guise of struggling musical act the Satin Sisters, Sister Sledge wooed George Jefferson to act as their manager by singing him an a cappella rendition of "My Guy" with the lyrics modified to flatter Jefferson.
"My Guy" has twice reached the C&W chart in renderings by Lynda K Lance (No.46 C&W, 1971) and by Margo Smith (No.43 C&W, 1980).
The song has also been recorded by Lucia Altieri (it) (rendered in Italian as "Non ti scuso piu"), Aretha Franklin, Nancy Holloway (fr) (rendered in French as "Bye Bye"), Claudine Longet, Barbara McNair, Melba Moore, Dara Sedaka, and Helen Shapiro. Mary Wells herself re-recorded the song in a funk rendition for her 1984 album, I'm a Lady.
More than via any straightforward remake, "My Guy" has had its highest profile since the Mary Wells original through its appearance on the soundtrack of the film Sister Act (1992), starring Whoopi Goldberg, in a rendition that substitutes "My Guy" with "My God", transforming the song into a gospel number.
In 1999, "My Guy" was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.[ citation needed ]
In 2008, the Los Angeles–based rock group Warpaint performed a version of the song on their EP Exquisite Corpse , titled "Billie Holliday".
"Baby Love" is a song by American music group the Supremes from their second studio album, Where Did Our Love Go. It was written and produced by Motown's main production team Holland–Dozier–Holland and was released on September 17, 1964.
"Come See About Me" is a 1964 song recorded by the Supremes for the Motown label. The track opens with a fade-in, marking one of the first times the technique had been used on a studio recording.
"Stoned Love" is a 1970 hit single recorded by The Supremes for the Motown label. It was the last Billboard Pop Top Ten hit for the group, peaking at number seven, and their last Billboard number-one R&B hit as well, although the trio continued to score top ten hits in the UK into 1972. In the UK, it was the post-Ross Supremes' biggest hit, reaching number 3 in the singles chart. The single spent six weeks in the UK top ten and five weeks in the US top ten. The BBC ranked "Stoned Love" at number 99 on The Top 100 Digital Motown Chart, which ranks Motown releases solely on their all time UK downloads and streams.
"My Girl" is a soul music song recorded by the Temptations for the Gordy (Motown) record label. Written and produced by the Miracles members Smokey Robinson and Ronald White, it became the Temptations' first U.S. number 1 single, and is currently their signature song. Robinson's inspiration for writing "My Girl" was his wife, Miracles member Claudette Rogers Robinson. The song was included on the Temptations 1965 album The Temptations Sing Smokey. In 2017, the song was selected for preservation in the National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".
"I Can't Help Myself" is a 1965 song recorded by the Four Tops for the Motown label.
"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 11 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.
"Reach Out I'll Be There" (also formatted as "Reach Out (I'll Be There)") is a song recorded by American vocal quartet Four Tops from their fourth studio album, Reach Out (1967). Written and produced by Motown's main production team, Holland–Dozier–Holland, the song is one of the most widely-known Motown hits of the 1960s and is today considered the Four Tops' signature song.
"Too Busy Thinking About My Baby" is a Motown song written by Norman Whitfield, Barrett Strong, and Janie Bradford. The song was first recorded by The Temptations as a track on their 1966 album Gettin' Ready. Eddie Kendricks sings lead on the recording, which was produced by Whitfield. Jimmy Ruffin also recorded a version with The Temptations providing background vocals in 1966. It remained unreleased until 1997.
"Nowhere to Run" is a 1965 song by Martha and the Vandellas for the Gordy (Motown) label and is one of the group's signature songs. The song, written and produced by Motown's main production team of Holland–Dozier–Holland, depicts the story of a woman trapped in a bad relationship with a man she cannot help but love.
"The Way You Do the Things You Do" is a 1964 hit single by the Temptations for the Gordy (Motown) label. Written by Miracles members Smokey Robinson and Bobby Rogers, the single was the Temptations' first charting single on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking in the Top 20 at number eleven; it also went to number one on the Cash Box R&B chart. The song has been an American Top 40 hit in four successive decades, from the 1960s to the 1990s. A version by Hall & Oates featuring Temptation members Eddie Kendricks and David Ruffin was nominated for a Grammy Award in 1986. A cover version by British reggae band UB40 hit number six in the U.S. in 1990.
"The Tracks of My Tears" is a song written by Smokey Robinson, Pete Moore, and Marv Tarplin. It is a multiple award-winning 1965 hit R&B song originally recorded by their group, The Miracles, on Motown's Tamla label. The Miracles' million-selling original version has been inducted into The Grammy Hall of Fame, has been ranked by the Recording Industry Association of America and The National Endowment for the Arts at No. 127 in its list of the "Songs of the Century" – the 365 Greatest Songs of the 20th Century, and has been selected by Rolling Stone as No. 50 on its list of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time", among many other awards. In 2021, Rolling Stone ranked the Miracles' original recording of "The Tracks of My Tears" as "The Greatest Motown Song of All Time".
"Heat Wave" is a 1963 song written by the Holland–Dozier–Holland songwriting team. It was first made popular by the Motown vocal group Martha and the Vandellas, who issued it as a single on July 10, 1963, on the Motown subsidiary Gordy label. The single reached number one on the Billboard Hot R&B chart—where it stayed for four weeks—and peaking at number 4 on the Billboard Hot 100.
"Wild One" is a dance single by Motown girl group Martha and the Vandellas. Written and produced by William "Mickey" Stevenson and Ivy Jo Hunter. The song was another Top 40 triumph for the group as it reached #34 on Billboard's Hot 100 singles chart and #11 on the Hot R&B singles chart. The backing track for 'Wild one' was an alternative version of the backing track to 'Dancing in the Street'.
"Forever Came Today" is a 1968 song written and produced by the Motown collective of Holland–Dozier–Holland, and was first made into a hit as a single for Diana Ross & the Supremes in early 1968. A disco version of the song was released as a single seven years later by Motown group the Jackson 5.
"Two Lovers" is a single released in 1962 by Mary Wells on the Motown record label. The song was the third consecutive hit to be both written and produced by Smokey Robinson of The Miracles and recorded by Mary Wells, the two previous charters being "The One Who Really Loves You" and "You Beat Me to the Punch." The song's cleverly devised lyrics at first appear to be about a girl singing to one lover who is "sweet and kind" and a second who treats her bad and makes her sad; eventually, the girl reveals that the two lovers are actually the same person. The song became Wells's most successful release to date, reaching #1 on the Billboard R&B chart and #7 on the Billboard pop chart. Its success would be eclipsed two years later by the singer's most successful release, "My Guy."
"When the Lovelight Starts Shining Through His Eyes" is a song written by Holland–Dozier–Holland and recorded in 1963 by Motown singing group The Supremes. It is notable as the Supremes' first Billboard Hot 100 Top 40 recording, following seven previous singles between January 1961 and September 1963 which failed to enter the Top 40. The single is also notable as the first Supremes single written and produced by Holland–Dozier–Holland, who had previously created hits for Martha and the Vandellas and Mary Wells.
"When I'm Gone" is a song written by Smokey Robinson and a single he produced twice, one for early Motown star Mary Wells and the other for fellow Motown vocalist Brenda Holloway. Holloway's version became a hit while Wells' was aborted after the singer left the label in 1964.
"I Like It Like That" was a 1964 hit song by Motown group The Miracles on its Tamla label subsidiary. This is not the Chris Kenner hit song of the same name but a Miracles original, written by Miracles members Smokey Robinson and Marv Tarplin, and is included on the group's first greatest hits album, Greatest Hits from the Beginning. It was also the title song from their deleted 1964 album of the same name.
"The Tip of My Fingers", also titled "The Tips of My Fingers", is a song written and originally recorded by American country music singer Bill Anderson. First included on his 1962 album Bill Anderson Sings Country Heart Songs, the song was a Top Ten country single for him in 1960.
"Where Did Our Love Go" is a 1964 song recorded by American music group the Supremes for the Motown label.