Motown Treasures

Just compiled a CDr of Motown Memories. ( Volume 1)



1   COME AND GET THESE MEMORIES      MARTHA REEVES & VANDELLAS
2   A LITTLE MORE LOVE      KIM WESTON
3   JAMIE      EDDIE HOLLAND
4   PLEASE MR. POSTMAN      MARVELETTES
5   PUT YOURSELF IN MY PLACE      ELGINS
6   I'LL ALWAYS LOVE YOU      SPINNERS
7   I WANT TO GO BACK THERE AGAIN      CHRIS CLARK
8   WHO WOULDN'T LOVE A MAN LIKE THAT      MABLE JOHN
9   DO YOU LOVE ME      CONTOURS
10   TOGETHER TILL THE END OF TIME      BRENDA HOLLOWAY
11   A BIRD IN THE HAND (IS WORTH TWO IN THE BUSH)      VELVELETTES
12   YOUR LOVE IS WONDERFUL      HATTIE LITTLES
13   FUNCTION AT THE JUNCTION      SHORTY LONG
14   COME ON AND SEE ME      TAMMI TERRELL
15   YOU REALLY GOT A HOLD ON ME      SMOKEY ROBINSON & MIRACLES
16   A BREATHTAKING GUY      DIANA ROSS & SUPREMES


I had the album, and I'm trying to reflect on what I knew then and now.
I'm guessing it was about 1969 when I obtained the LP. And on putting this together, it strikes me that I probably knew only 1 or 2 tracks at the time.
The Marvelettes, Miracles and Contours tracks I knew by covers by The Beatles and Brian Poole, but not sure I 'd hear the Motown originals.
The Elgins I might have heard on Motown Magic big hits . I had "Artistry of Brenda Holloway" so that might have been familiar. As for the rest I'm wondering if these were all real rarities at the time.

I guess we take things for granted, now that all this stuff is so readily available.

On putting this together , like the Motown Sound CDrs, I intended to use TCMS versions. But it's easier to pull these tracks from other CDs.
However, like the Terry Johnson situation, different mixes and versions might throw up a track that is NOT how I remember them from the original LP. On this set , I initially used the  Kim Weston from her anthology, but that is not the 45 mix. I then used the Version on "Big Hits and Hard to find"...but that had the wonderful strings segment "pulled back", so I had to go to TCMS version.

Mable John   ...I had to check which of the 2 versions released on 45 was used for the LP. The second version is the one I needed.

Hattie Littles 45 was issued twice on 45 but I can't tell any differences on these 2 45s at all. If there is a difference then I'm not sure I selected the Motown Memories version. It's pretty much how I remember it...after about 50 years !!
I think I recollect that compiler Dave Godin said it was his favourite all time Motown track?


onto Motown Memories volume 2....

 

 Volume 2..

1   MONEY (THAT'S WHAT I WANT)      BARRETT STRONG
2   BEECHWOOD 4-5789      MARVELETTES
3   DEVIL WITH  THE BLUE DRESS      SHORTY LONG
4   IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN ME       KIM WESTON
5   TAKE A CHANCE ON ME      EDDIE HOLLAND
6   YOU'RE GONNA LOVE MY BABY      BARBARA McNAIR
7   THERE'S A GHOST IN MY HOUSE      R. DEAN TAYLOR
8   MY SMILE IS JUST A FROWN TURNED UPSIDE DOWN      CAROLYN CRAWFORD
9   FINGERTIPS PT 2      STEVIE WONDER
10   WHEN I'M GONE      MARY WELLS
11   DARLING I HUM OUR SONG      MARTHA REEVES & VANDELLAS
12   I'LL TRY SOMETHING NEW      SMOKEY ROBINSON & MIRACLES
13   STANDING AT THE CROSSROADS OF LOVE      DIANA ROSS & SUPREMES
14   COME SEE ABOUT ME      CHOKER CAMPBELL
15   I'LL ALWAYS LOVE YOU      BRENDA HOLLOWAY
16   GREETINGS ( THIS IS UNCLE SAM)      MONITORS


Volume 2 done earlier...I never had a copy of this LP, but my Motown collecting buddy did. I must admit we concentrated on the Barbara McNair, R. Dean Taylor and Carolyn Crawford tracks. Don't recall playing the other tracks a lot...certainly compared to those 3.
Those 3, later considered NS biggies, were rare and new to us.....this was probably 1969 when we were playing these, so they had not been
given mega status.
So Mike Raven ( or somebody prompting him ) were on the ball.

My sister bought Volume One in the legendary Woolworths Sale (around 1970) when suddenly hundreds of Tamla-Motown LPs briefly appeared in their bargain bins.

At the time I was aware of the three tunes that had been covered by the British Beat-Groups, though I'm not sure if I'd ever heard the original versions.  However I was also well acquainted with "Function At The Junction" and The Spinners "I'll Always Love You", both of which had built up a bit of a reputation and had received the occasional radio spin in the years since their first release (probably on Emperor Rosco's Saturday lunchtime show on Radio One).  "Put Yourself In My Place" was also a song I knew very well, through the Isley Brothers version, and I was intrigued to find out that both versions used exactly the same backing track. "I Want To Go Back There Again" was also very familiar, possibly through the British cover versions that had received airplay back in '67.

"Volume One" was first released in January 1968 and, at that time, "I'll Always Love You" had just been re-released as a UK 45 on the "B" side of The Spinners version of "For All We Know".  Funnily, the original release of "I'll Always Love You" had "Tomorrow May Never Come" on the other side which caused some confusion when I got my hands on an original US Motown 45 around '71/2 as one of my workmates thought that "Tomorrow May Never Come" and "For All We Know" were the same song. It was only when I got the 45 home and played the single that I realised that they weren't!!

I think my sister still has her copy of the LP, and also her copy of the Isley Brothers LP with "Put Yourself In My Place" on it.  I shall have to investigate the next time I visit.

Roger 

The MOTOWN MEMORIES title was used again in 1972, for this one, subtitled 16 Non-Stop Tamla Hits:-

A1   –Earl Van Dyke & The Motown Brass - 6 By 6   
A2   –Edwin Starr - Agent Double 0 Soul   
A3   –The Isley Brothers - Take Some Time Out For Love   
A4   –Mary Wells - What's Easy For Two Is So Hard For One   
A5   –The Temptations - You're Not An Ordinary Girl   
A6   –Tammi Terrell - This Old Heart Of Mine (Is Weak For You)   
A7   –Four Tops - Something About You   
A8   –Earl Van Dyke & The Soul Bros - I Can't Help Myself
   
B1   –San Remo Strings - Festival Time   
B2   –Marvin Gaye - Little Darling (I Need You)   
B3   –Kim Weston - Helpless   
B4   –The Velvelettes - Lonely, Lonely Girl Am I   
B5   –Edwin Starr - Back Street   
B6   –Stevie Wonder - Nothing's Too Good For My Baby   
B7   –The Miracles - Whole Lot Of Shakin' In My Heart   
B8   –San Remo Strings - All Turned On

I know there were liner notes but I don't recall who wrote them nor do I remember who compiled it, but I loved this album.

SWI

The MOTOWN MEMORIES title was used again in 1972, for this one, subtitled 16 Non-Stop Tamla Hits:-

A1   –Earl Van Dyke & The Motown Brass - 6 By 6   
A2   –Edwin Starr - Agent Double 0 Soul   
A3   –The Isley Brothers - Take Some Time Out For Love   
A4   –Mary Wells - What's Easy For Two Is So Hard For One   
A5   –The Temptations - You're Not An Ordinary Girl   
A6   –Tammi Terrell - This Old Heart Of Mine (Is Weak For You)   
A7   –Four Tops - Something About You   
A8   –Earl Van Dyke & The Soul Bros - I Can't Help Myself
   
B1   –San Remo Strings - Festival Time   
B2   –Marvin Gaye - Little Darling (I Need You)   
B3   –Kim Weston - Helpless   
B4   –The Velvelettes - Lonely, Lonely Girl Am I   
B5   –Edwin Starr - Back Street   
B6   –Stevie Wonder - Nothing's Too Good For My Baby   
B7   –The Miracles - Whole Lot Of Shakin' In My Heart   
B8   –San Remo Strings - All Turned On

I know there were liner notes but I don't recall who wrote them nor do I remember who compiled it, but I loved this album.

SWI

Looking at the entry for the LP at 45Worlds it looks like the original concept for the LP, and the sleeve notes, were courtesy of somebody called Trevor Hall, who was at BBC Radio Blackburn at the time.

I've never owned a copy of the LP, I'd have had over half of the tracks on it on 45 when it was released but I think I was put off by the fact that all of the tracks were segued into each other and some were in the dreaded "electronically reprocessed stereo".

https://www.45worlds.com/vinyl/album/stml11200

Roger

And here they are ...

Eric
I will probably get around to a CDr of that lp as well.
Didn't EMI have a similar NS type effort that included "Third finger left hand"?.
Whoever compiled that knew nothing of the subject .

I think you must be referring to "Motown Disco Classics Volume 2" Mr Snakepit ....

https://www.45worlds.com/vinyl/album/stma8005

Roger