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36 of 37 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Don't miss this collection!!, November 20, 2005
As far as box sets go, this series is destined to be the king of them all. Most of us recall the three Complete Stax/Volt Singles box sets a few years back. These three sets contained 19 discs with every Stax and almost all its subsidiary labels' A-sides and a handful of B-sides. (The Gospel Truth singles were completely ignored, so there were no Rance Allen or Maceo Woods singles included). Nearly every Otis Redding, Sam & Dave, Isaac Hayes and you-name-it B-side went M.I.A. Not only do these Motown sets include every B-side, but they include ALL subsidiary labels plus first and second pressings which vary from slightly to two different takes. Yes, folks-everything on Tamla, Motown, Gordy, V.I.P., Soul, Rare Earth plus the temporary labels such as Divinity (Gospel), Mel-o-dy (Country), Workshop Jazz, Miracle, plus all the Rock/Pop, Blues, and Jazz recordings Hitsville ever put out. If that isn't enough, each set comes with a replica of a major 45 from that era. (The first volume features Barrett Strong's single, "Money".)
This first installment includes 45s from 1959 through 1961. Here is the humble beginning of what was to become the biggest black-owned independent record company ever. The set starts off with Marv Johnson's "Come To Me" (Tamla 101) from January 1959 and Eddie Holland's "Merry Go Round" (Tamla 102). Larger distribution required Berry Gordy to release these two on United Artists, based in New York in those days. It would be the next single that Tamla became a permanent entity with the release of Barrett Strong's "Let's Rock" b/w "Do the Very Best You Can" (Tamla 54021 and 54022). "Money" had to be distributed nationally via the Anna label (operated by Gordy's sister). The Miracles provided background vocals on the B-side, "I Apologize". "Bad Girl" (Motown G1) by the Miracles was diverted to the Chess label out of Chicago. In 1960, things took a turn for the better. Not only was "Money" revived, but the newly recorded "Shop Around" (found here in two different takes) went into the stratosphere and gave Motown its first major hit. In the same month (September 1960), Mary Wells hit the chart with her first release, the blues shouter, "Bye Bye Baby", the closest anyone at the label ever came to Little Richard. Mary's second single "I Don't Want To Take A Chance" (June 1961) fared a little better getting the strings treatment that "What's So Good About Goodbye" (December 1961) and Eddie Holland's "Jamie" (October 1961) received. The B-sides, "I'm So Sorry" and "Please Forgive Me", show that Mary is just at home with the Blues as with the contemporary R&B of the day. Rare singles by The Miracles include Shop Around follow up, "Ain't It Baby", "Broken-Hearted" "Everybody's Got To Pay Some Dues" and the non-LP single, "Mighty Good Lovin'". Eddie Holland would later be known for poet extraordinaire for scores of Motown artists, joining forces with his brother Brian and fellow vocalist, Lamont Dozier. His first outing, "Jamie" was a smash, but as soon as the public caught wind that this wasn't the great Jackie Wilson, they soon ignored subsequent singles by Eddie. But the greatest triumph in the first set belongs to The Marvelettes, who scored Number 1 right away with "Please Mr. Postman" (August 1961). And the story doesn't end here.
A mixed bag of then unknowns such as Marvin Gaye, The Valadiers, The Contours, The Supremes, The Temptations and even a young Jimmy Ruffin recorded a few of these early singles. Most wouldn't have major hits until 1963 or 1966. Marvin Gaye's bluesy "Let Your Conscience Be Your Guide" with organ backdrop is not unlike some of the British blues records later to come out during the invasion. The rocking "Never Let You Go" is where Marvin lets go with the excitement he was to become known for in later years. A promo single, "I'm Afraid The Masquerade Is Over" and "Witchcraft" was never released. Small wonder because "Masquerade" is over five minutes and it was unheard of in those days for a 45 to last significantly beyond three. "Soldier's Plea" is in the early Vietnam era draft department as is The Valadiers' "Greetings (This Is Uncle Sam)". The drill sergeant monologue at the end doesn't sound very convincing, but the original 45 containing the missing part in the middle was unearthed. The B-side, "Take A Chance" is much better and more suited to the group's sound. The Valadiers were probably the Duprees of Motown, adopting a more pop sound than say, The Temptations. The Contours wouldn't score big until the following year, but "Whole Lotta Woman" was one stomp, shout `n' work it on out piece of seven inch vinyl. This was another two version release and again, the first release has the edge. "The Stretch" is another one of those dance craze songs like the Vibrations' "Watusi" with a clever lyric. The tempo is relaxed here and not as tight allowing the early Funk Brothers to stretch out a bit. "Funny" is a beautiful ballad in the vein of The Flamingos while "Come On And Be Mine" is in Gospel territory. The Supremes' "I Want A Guy" contains a churchy sound very different from their later releases and is quite a few seconds longer than the mono album track. One can detect Diana Ross' early Gospel training in Smokey Robinsons' steamy song, "Who's Lovin' You". If you can listen to this version and still go back to the Jacksons' take, check your pulse. It's a shame this was stuck on the B-side of Berry Gordy's throwaway piece, "Buttered Popcorn", but Rule Number One is "The boss is always right". Rule number two: "If the boss is wrong, see Rule Number One". Here Florence sounds more like a non-descript singer backed by The Supremes. I actually prefer the earlier pressing because Ballard was a stone soul singer anyway and the spontaneity was refreshing. (Don't miss her bring-down-the-rafters take on Sam Cooke's "Ain't That Good News" on the 2001 Anthology collection). Their popularity wasn't huge until 1964, but The Supremes are heard (mostly on backup vocals) on more recordings in this set than on all the others! The early Temptations' sides brim with excitement and where their later songs were better, they lacked the enthusiasm of "Romance Without Finance" and the Gospel tinged "Mother Of Mine". Dixie Hummingbirds influence is obvious here, especially with Mel's bass lines getting dangerously close to Willie Bobo's even this early. One favorite of Temp fans, the quirky "Check Yourself" is loaded with hooks and great lyrics, another one that should have at least dented the charts. The Robbs, a seminal rock/pop band from the late sixties, used some of these chords for their "Rapid Transit" single, 1967. Just before the draft took Jimmy Ruffin, he waxed a respectable disc on the Miracle label, "Don't Feel Sorry For Me" b/w "Heart", another ballad acronym picking out related words starting with each letter of the title. The A-side is an up tempo confession of cheating on his sweetheart, and "Heart" is more in line with a typical Jackie Wilson show-stopper.
Scores of blues, jazz vocalists and Gospel artists are all here: Mable John-nobody, I mean nobody sounds like Mabel and she sounds like no one else. History cries foul here, because Ms. John wouldn't have chart success until she went to Stax. Although Gordy gave her some pretty good songs: "Who Wouldn't Love A Man Like That", "Action Speaks Louder Than Words" and "No Love" (covered by Mary Wells on Two Lovers LP), they went nowhere. "Looking for A Man" is her ideal of the right man. She's deftly backed by The Supremes on this one. Her voice is sweet, yet sassy and street-wise. Sammy Ward was the Bobby Bland of Motown. He's all business and no fluff. Listen to the way he tears into "What Makes You Love Him" (again, two different versions recorded) and "That Child Is Really Wild", a rather funny take on a crude girlfriend. His only chart success (and that was R&B only) was "Who's The Fool". Don't want to miss that one. Gino Parks cuts loose with songs like "Same Thing", a vicious rocker complete with King Curtis-like tenor punches, and the hilarious "Blibberin' Blabbin' Blues", a take on the Leiber-Stoller song, Yakety-Yak. The latter three artists were featured on the 1970 LP release, "Switched On Blues", which contained stereo re-recordings of some of the singles here. If you can find this disc, be prepared to shell out a wheel barrel full of green. The Satintones made some nice singles, although ballads like "My Beloved" and "Angel" fared much better than the novelties. An aborted attempt at another answer song, "Tomorrow And Always" (The Shirelles' "Will You Love Me Tomorrow") never saw official release until now. Mickey Woods, a Gene Pitney type, pleaded with the late president John Kennedy not to draft him before tying the knot to his girlfriend on "Please Mr. Kennedy". The B-side, "They Call Me Cupid" is more in line with the contemporary of the day, though. Compare this to Marty Balin's "I Specialize In Love" from "Jefferson Airplane Loves You", who at the time was also trying to capitalize on Pitney's sound. A country-like singer, Debbie Dean charted briefly with "Don't Let Him Shop Around" backed up by The Miracles. Another answer-song here is Bob Kayli's (a.k.a. Robert Gordy) take on Jimmy Dean's Big Bad John. "Small Sad Sam" is quite a funny song in which he is abetted by The Supremes. Another novelty is Andre Williams' side-splitting "Shoo-Doo", a throwback to "I Never See Maggie Alone".
As far as Gospel goes, Gordy was not warm to it. Not that he disliked it; it just didn't send a whole lot of people to the cash registers. Labels such as Savoy, Excello, Jewel, Vee Jay and Specialty had plenty of Gospel artists and Gordy dismissed it as being tapped as far as it could go. Shame, because a lot of local Detroit churches could have sent their aspiring singers to 2648 W. Grand Blvd. As a result, a lot of local Gospel talent was never heard. So what if Gospel didn't sell like hot cakes? Many record companies used it as a tax write-off until the late 60's, when the interest was rekindled during the revival. The Gospel Stars were actually given an album on the Tamla imprint. Their single, He Lifted Me, is close to Myrtle Jackson's (Roberta Martin singers) version; Rev. Columbus Mann and The Golden Harmoneers (mistaken as The Gospel Harmonettes in some Motown discographies I've seen) are all fine examples of the genre. They are of the same high quality of the Savoy and Specialty counterparts. The latter's "I Am Bound" recalls The Soul Stirrers, the lead bass vocalist not unlike Melvin Franklin's. "Precious Memories" is transformed into a wonderful original in the tradition of the Blind Boys and Sensational Nightingales. I believe dismissing Gospel music on the Motown imprint was a mistake, because other independent labels thrived with it. Despite its low sales, the company would not have been the worst for wear.
I regret space does not permit me to touch on everything in this first collection, but don't let that stop you. Listen to the clips wherever you can find them. Yes, there are some real dogs in the collection, but there's some great music here too. Find some way to get the funds together to buy these because The Complete Motown Singles series is the most valuable piece of American Music History of the 60's. Not since the Complete Hot Five and Seven recordings of Louis Armstrong and the Complete Billie Holiday on Columbia have vaulted recordings of this magnitude seen the light of day.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
WARNING ABOUT SERIES AVAILABILITY, January 31, 2009
This entire series is amazing. I believe it will be complete 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 there have been 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 put 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 entire set 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 nail 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 out international 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 emailed Hip-O Select Records, the publisher, twice 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 opportunistic sellers to hoard the best volumes and then to gouge Motown fans later when the inventory with 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.
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3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Once you start , you won't be able to stop !, November 4, 2007
"The complete Motown singles" ????? Sounds like a project that could never be possible. But IT IS , and IT Has been started. Hip-O Select is issuing 12 box sets of EVERY Motown single released during the label's heyday of 1959-1972. Each package is a limited edition , superbly documented treasure trove of classic after classic, and many , if you're like me , some you will be discovering for the first time. WARNING !!!! Buy one , you'll need all twelve.
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