Customer Reviews

The Complete Motown #1s Box

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

There is no question about the power of Motown Records these past 50 years. It really has brought out of the best of what great R&B and Soul have been of the changing times. It has shown the essence of greats we would not have imagined to see in what feels like eons. Since it debuted back in the 50's, with Smokey Robinson & The Miracles, Barry Gordy's legacy has shown just what the essence os great songs that have shown us the changes of our times, from Marvin gaye's What's Going On for the 70's, to the rises of fun & R&B in the 80's from the late Rick James with his Super Freak days. Now, it is just a gracious time for the company, as it certifies itself gold, and this mega boxed set is the best way to celebrate with it.

The 2008 Complete Motown #1's Box Set, celebrates the best and brightest hits that Motown records has done, throughout its 50 year legacy. This 10 disc package is a definitive and well-planned dedication to all of the acts that have made Motown records one of the signature landmark cornerstones of our music industry. The songs have all been remastered noblely, and the package on the outside, which mainly displays a beautiful replica of their original headquaters in Detroit, Michigan, feels like a great trip back through time. The boxed set itself includes a lot of great #1 songs from the cream of the crop of the Motown Standards from the greats like Stevie Wonder with his classics like Part-Time Lover and Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours, to the elegant 60's from greats like Marvin Gaye & Tammi Tarell, and Diana Ross & The Supremes with Baby Love and You Can't Hurry Love, all the way to the 80's and 90's gems like Lionel Richie and his elegance of Hello and his smashing hits like All Night Long and Hello, to the lingerings of the Hip Hop & Soul with the 90's from dynamos like Johnny Gill from New Edition with Rub Me The Right Way, all the way to the conquering heroes of 90's R&B with Boyz II Men and their mega-hits The End Of The Road and I'll Make Love To You. It feels like with each album, there is a story to tell, and a great to be re-discovered.

All in all, while there are absolutely very few boxed sets I really recommend, The Complete Motown #1's Box Set is absolutely one of the most captivating ones I've known in recent memory. The collection is absolutely a pure delight for any hard core fan of the classics, or for anyone who has missed out on gems of R&B that are just awaiting to be rediscovered. I love the conccept of the collection, and if you're in the mood for a great package of old-fashioned soul, than The Complete Motown #1's is the collection for your music library just for you.

Packaging: A-

Songs: A-

Remastering: A

Price: B

Overall: B+

Being a collector of boxed sets since more than 20 years I never seen a more spectacular package than the house the ten cd:s of this collection are stored in. Worth some money just to own this replica of the hitfactory. The music is,of course, for the most part gorgeous. at least for fans of the sweet soulpop Motown produced.Judging by the 200 nr ones on this collection there are a few of this fans around. Marvin Gaye, Tempations, Jackson five, Stevie Wonder, Fourtops, Diana Ross and the Supremes and on and on and on. The idea of putting all number ones(from around the globe)together is a good point when it comes to show that Motown really has been hitsville USA. When it comes to presenting the absolutely best music from Motown..well that s another story since there are some later Motown hits that not always are up to the standard of the classic sixties, seventies output. Still there is enough gems there to justify the packing and in that manner the box also gives a picture of the way RnB has developed over almost 50 years. It also gave me an opportunity to hear some absolutely stunners I never would have heard otherwise.Overall this boxed set presents both ear- and eyecandy in a way I never seen or heard before. Don t let the price scare you, compared to most other collections of this site this is a keeper for the ages. Highly recomended. And the remastering makes some of the old classics sound new to my ears. This set must have been a real Love Child for the producers.

If you're like me, you've always wanted to visit the Motown Museum in Detroit, but haven't gotten around to it yet. The unique packaging of this fabulous collection is an exact reproduction in miniature of the famed Motown Studio A. Enclosed within is a 99 page booklet filled with rare photographs of the Tamla Motown stable of recording artists, song credit information and introductory notes by Smokey Robinson. For those who remember the 7 inch purple Gordy label 45 rpm's named after Motown Records founder, Berry Gordy, no matter how fancy the packaging, "It's What's In The Grooves That Count" and the smokin' slabs of Detroit soul to be found in this 10 compact disc collection will not disappoint. Original promotion for this box set indicated that versions of Tamla/Motown hits by non Motown artists reaching number 1 status would also be included, but it appears that there was a last minute change of plans, as the box set I purchased does not contain these covers, but the original versions included as a "bonus." A small quibble, as "covers" rarely matched the fire of the original recording sessions.
For hard core Motown collectors, this set may be overkill if you subscribed to the Complete Motown Singles Volume 1 through 12, but none the less, it is a sheer joy to look at! Makes me want to make that extra effort to visit the motorcity and breathe in the magic of the fabled "snake pit!"

I have been waiting to buy this collection for a long time, hoping for a drop in price. Although it is a bit pricey, this is a great collection of Motown's number-one hits. There are a number of Motown collections out there; this collection gathers up Motown's number one songs from pop, R&B, dance, adult contemptorary and world charts. So, it is not a complete overview of Motown's history; however, Motown has had so many number one hits that many of Motown's classics are on here. But note, songs like "Money (That's What I Want)" are not present because they did not hit number one.

At ten discs, there is a lot of music here. The first four discs cover Motown's peak era of the '60s and early '70s. Discs five and six move through Motown's underrated disco era, while seven and eight cover the slick '80s period. Discs nine and ten cover Motown's later years. There is definitely a decline in quality in the latter discs (and most of the number ones in the '90s came courtesy of Boyz II Men). But unlike many Motown compliations, this simply doesn't cover the classic period, but gives a fair sampling of the later Motown years, which are not covered as much.

Some of the songs here may be unfamiliar to listeners, although they hit number one on specific charts. For example, three of Diana Ross' most underrated songs - the lovely "I'm Still Waiting" (UK number one), "Last Time I Saw Him" (Adult Contemporary number one, 1973), "The Boss" (number one dance) are featured. I like that this collection covers some of Motown's lesser-known hits in its catalogue. Artists such as Ross, Stevie Wonder, Jackson 5/Michael Jackson figure prominently throughout the compilation since they each scored countless number ones, so much that this collection almost acts as a compilation for each of those individual artists.

The packaging itself is stunning. Boxed in a mini replica of the Motown building, the discs are packaged in pairs in digi-packs, supplemented by rare photos of Motown stars.

The sound is excellent. All tracks have been remastered, and the songs are presented in either single mixes or full album length, not butchered in favour of adding more tracks to each disc.

I collect many box sets, and I must say this is one of my favourite ones because of the song selection, art design and packaging, and it was obviously made with care and effort, not a cash cow like many box sets turn out to be. Enjoy the Motown sound throughout the decades.

For people who are into collecting hits from Motown that made it all the way to number 1, this box is for you. You can purchase every number one hit in one 24 bit, STEREO swoop and be done with it. Be mindful that over the years Motown has packaged and repackaged these same songs over and over again, first as 78, 45 and 33 & 1/3 rpm records, then resold to us as 8 tracks and cassettes for home and car, then sold to us again as single and/or twofer cd's. They re-appeared as 24 bit remastered cd collections then they were re-packaged as ANTHOLOGIES with extra tracks on them. NOW they are returning again as specially remastered products from Japan in little cardboard sleves that cost about $40 each. This is probably the best (and hopefully the last) Motown number one hits package ever offered. Cute packaging too.

I really like the packaging of this box set which is shaped into Detroit's Hittsville USA house. I would say 40% of songs were unfamiliar to me but still worth having the collection.

So far I have reviewed all of the songs for the #1 Motown Songs
compilation and noticed one #1 song missing. "Who's Holding Donna Now?"
by DeBarge was a #1 song on the Adult Contemporary chart around 1985
(I have conflicting information if it was a #1 or #2 song on R&B).
I guess gathering a compilation this big of #1 Motown songs, you are
bound to overlook something... no one is perfect.

If you love the sounds of Motown when there was great music being created by great artists, I would recommend this box set. If the song made it to #1 one on any chart or any country it is here. As someone who survived the turbelent 60's the Motown sound was the one positive voice. The great music that came out Detroit was fanatastic and it crossed over to all races and people. How can you forget the Supremes, Stevie Wonder and Smokey Robinson and the Temptations. This has it all. The price is a bit salty but if you are going to buy one box set this year make it this one. The box is great in the shape of the original Motown house in Detroit.

Excellent set for any fan of Motown. Having the case resemble Hitsville is even better. A definite collector's item as well as terrific music. It's Motown, how could you go wrong???

I may not be a huge Motown fan, but my dad is, and this was an awesome present for him - he loves it! The only caveat is that the songs on the CDs do NOT load into iTunes with track names, album names, or anything like that - they're just "Track #" and "Disk #" so be aware that if you want to put them on your iPod and are, like me, annoyed by unlabeled songs, that you'll have to label all of them yourself, by hand.