Customer Reviews

The Complete Motown Singles, Vol. 9: 1969

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There aren't words enough to describe this series. Volume 9 is 6 discs , 7 hours , 18 minutes , and 27 seconds of 148 slices of Motown Heaven. The label responsible has taken such great care with all nine of these releases that it will be a shame when it ends after the last three boxes. The projected date for the end of the series is 2009---on Motown's (and my) 50th birthday. These sets deserve the highest accolades ever ! They are all lovingly assembled utilizing the best source material available , with the entire package being a treasure. It all started in 1959 , and now 1,254 songs and over 57 hours of Motown magic later , the complete Motown singles project is winding down with a full head of steam. Buy them all now----before you can't !

Here's the latest in the twelve volume set of the Complete (well, almost) Motown Singles. I say almost because Motown no longer owns the masters for many of the Rare Earth singles. What we do get is catalog numbers, release dates and credits to those recordings not included.
That said, 1969 was the final year for Diana Ross & the Supremes. Their first single, "I'm Living In Shame" went top 10, and they went out with a number one record (Someday We'll Be Together). On top of that, they concluded a highly successful stint performing and recording with their male counterpart group, The Temptations. Not bad, considering their lackluster success after Florence Ballard left the group in mid-'67. "Someday" was really intended for Diana's first solo single (it had been recorded at the same session as "These Things Will Keep Me Loving You") and had no trace of Mary Wilson and Cindy Birdsong on the disc. It was also the year the Jackson 5 released their first single, "I Want You Back". Other established acts such as Gladys Knight, Marvin Gaye and The Temptations had one of their most successful years against unbelievable odds. David Ruffin had exited the Tempts the previous year, Marvin Gaye lost Tammi Terrell, his singing partner, to bad health, and Gladys Knight was thrown the leftover crumbs from the table, yet she turned them into gems weaving her magical vocals in and out of impossible places. All the big hits are here, of course with B-sides in thier proper place along with some alternate takes or mixes. Like in previous collections, there are some withdrawn singles, this time from trumpeter Jonah Jones and vocalist extraordinaire Billy Eckstine. It's just a shame that the popularity of some of the greatest early Motown artists such as Martha & the Vandellas, The Marvelettes and even the Four Tops was beginning to wane. Even The Miracles were struggling a bit, although they managed to pull a couple of big hits out of the bag. Some newer acts found some fame, though--The Originals scored big with a Marvin Gaye production, "Baby I'm For Real" as well as Edwin Starr's, "25 Miles". They would continue their success the following year. Another major addition to Motown '69 was Hugh Masakela's imprint, Chisa. The Jazz Crusaders, Stu Gardner and others were added to the label because of it. A Jazz oriented label, it took Motown back into the genre once more since 1963's Workshop Jazz label.
There were only a couple of duds here, but I won't mention them. Motown kept the standards high every step of the way during the 60's, but it would not continue very far ino the next decade, as the house band, the beloved Funk Brothers, were squeezed out of their plans when they moved West. Three more volumes will follow, each with diminishing luster, I'm sure, but I'm still looking forward to them and all future Motown releases from Hip-O.

To me, 1969 was an excellent year for the Motown label(s). The album product that year produced some of the best material. It also saw the debut of Michael Jackson (Jackson 5), a dynamic performer, on the Motown imprint with his brothers. The cover features the Jackson 5's first #1 hit 'I Want You Back', which is actually a 45, inserted in the front cover. A superb reproduction of the 45!
The info alone in this, like all of the other volumes is invaluable. Such an amount of information is priceless to any Motown fan. An excellent read to those who are just passing Motown fans.
Like always, if you have already purchased the previous volumes, grab this one, as anything by Michael Jackson or his imprint is commanding high prices, especially his vinyl, which is making a huge comback.

With the end of the 1960s, Motown was going through some major changes, which other people have mentioned previously. One thing that would have a major impact on Motown itself was Founder and President Berry Gordy's decision to move some of the production for the Record Company to Los Angeles, which would culminate in the Company moving all of its facilities to LA in 1972.

There are a lot of good highlights for 1969 besides the classic songs by Stevie Wonder, Diana Ross, Marvin Gaye and the other top of the line singers/groups: "Friendship Train" and "The Nitty Gritty" by Gladys Knight & The Pips are intense, powerful songs. Marvin Gaye has a hit song that he doesn't even sing in with "Baby, I'm For Real" by the Originals. This song (epecially the style of the song) and the follow-up one the very next year would help inspire Gaye to eventually create his classic "What's Going On" album in 1971.

There is sadness here, because it appears that all the Marvin Gaye/Tammi Terrell songs released in 1969 weren't by her at all, but by Valerie Simpson, since Terrell was very ill from the brain tumor that would eventually kill her the following year.

Overall, once again, the Motown machine back then was in full throtle, and only the future lay ahead for one of the greatest small companies to ever become synonymous with American popular music.

This boxed set is awesome! Just like all the others in the series, it doen't disappoint...a must-have for collectors.

This entire series is amazing. I believe it will be completed at the publication of the 12th volume, and each volume has 5 or 6 discs. I am up to Volume 9, and I can't really say there has yet been a single weak song. And I have now discovered so many awesome Motown songs I had never even heard before! This truly is a treasure trove. Yes, some songs are better than others, but all the music from this amazing dozen-year Motown era is great. The British Invasion may have brought over the Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Who and many others, but our American Motown is of equal or better historic significance. This music is just so consistently CLASSY it defies words. Elegance just pours out from each disc here, it is unprecedented and will never be equaled in the future.

I've been surprised to learn that there are styles of music other than soul on the Motown label. There is some very good country music as well. These discs also have a smattering of interviews and some other holiday-type nonsense which are very fun to hear and which puts the entire era in context.

The packaging for the entire series is the best I've ever seen. It is a little hard to hold the book open so you can pull out or put in the discs, but this is a minor struggle and it is well worth it. The discs are held tightly in place and are well protected, and the historical information about any particular song is readily accessible. The 45 disc which slots into the front cover is really an innovative and clever flourish, and it gives the volume's book a really nice upgrade.

Okay, here is the bummer, and it is a major one. If you are like me, you are going to want the entire series if you buy even a single volume. You will buy the first volume and you will immediately realize that it is a worthwhile investment to obtain the entire series. And who really wants to own only part of a series of anything? The cost of even one volume here is enough that you'll probably want the entire collection. Well, as I write this, in January of 2009, volume 6 is no longer available. Gone. Completely gone, except for some guy trying to sell copies for $2000 as an Amazon-affiliated seller. As good as this music is, I'm not going to spend $2000 on a single volume. Yes, I've searched eBay relentlessly for months, with no luck at all. Yes, I've searched the virtual catacombs of international online sellers, with no luck at all.

So, I'm already over a thousand bucks into this series and yet my collection is missing one of the best volumes (it covers 1966 when a lot of the talent was at their crescendos). I've twice emailed Hip-O Select Records, the publisher, and not heard a word back. I've called their customer service, and they were clueless and indifferent. The girl who answered the phone for them did not know a thing about the series. Basically what has happened, by proclaiming this as a "Limited Edition," is that they have created an inducement for various sellers to hoard the best volumes and then to gouge Motown fans later when the inventory held by legitimate sellers is gone. They then jack the price up into the stratosphere.

So, one can only hope that Hip-O Select does another run of these amazing Motown volumes. If you are a Motown fan, you will be astonished when you hear all the incredible treasures which this series contains.