I cant believe that it's fifty years since Berry Gordy signed an $800 loan agreement from his family to start the iconic Motown label.
Acts such as The Supremes, The Temptations, Four Tops, Smokey Robinson and the Miracles , Marvin Gaye , Gladys Knight and the Pips and Stevie Wonder amongst countless others , some who came from the housing projects in Detroit and were catapulted to world wide fame. They all recorded their initial hits in the 'Hitsville USA' building which was a house with an annexe at the back which served as a recording studio.
I cant imagine what my life would have been like not growing up with all the fantastic songs that came from that label and those artistes.
I personally have so many Motown albums, compilations etc I must have most of the songs so many times over. I have tried to pick a favourite one but it can change within minutes.
If anyone has ever wondered where the initial Motown sound came from, the musicians were the regular house band known as the Funk Brothers. Unfortunately they were literally dumped from the company in 1972 when Motown relocated to Los Angeles.There was a documentary made in 2002 called Standing in the shadows of Motown'about the band which is an excellent piece of work.It has been claimed that these musicians played on more number one hits than the Beatles, Rolling Stones, Elvis and the Beach Boys combined!
I would like to wish Motown happy fiftieth birthday and thanks to anyone associated with the label for producing such fantastic music which has been loved by millions of people worldwide!
