A Motown Timeline: 1971

SHAPING THE FUTURE — AND IS THAT MOWEST?

It might have been called Gordy Hall, although Detroit hardly needed a physical reminder of what the Motown founder was achieving for the city and its stature at home and abroad.

The Orchestra Hall was part of local history, having for years been the residency of the Detroit Symphony, but by 1971, it was in dire need of renovation and preservation. Berry Gordy reportedly made a financial bid to help accomplish that – but others prevailed. A proviso of his offer? That the building carry his name.

***Diana’s first solo TV special, in April***

Welcome to the year in which Gordy was ever more bound into the upper social and political circles of his hometown. Exemplifying that in April was the second annual Sterling Ball, organised and chaired by Gordy’s sister, Esther Edwards, to raise money for college scholarships for inner-city youngsters. The night’s guests included members of Detroit’s auto industry royalty, the Fords, and of the moneyed Schoenith family, as well as the former governor of Michigan, G. Mennen Williams. The venue was equally posh: Gordy’s sprawling mansion on the city’s fancy Boston Boulevard.

In retrospect, 1971 stands tall because it was also when Marvin Gaye produced one of the most enduring, influential albums in popular music history, and when Stevie Wonder’s adulthood – arriving in the same month that Gaye’s What’s Going On was released – delivered for him the freedom to begin creating a body of work for the ages.

It was also the last full year in which Motown Records was headquartered in Detroit.

In addition to the innovation of Gaye and Wonder, the company maintained its commercial clout. The Jackson 5 sustained their enormous popularity, not least with the debut of a TV cartoon series; Diana Ross began broadening her career into film; the reborn Supremes delivered on disc and in concert; and the Temptations and the Undisputed Truth certified the ongoing talent of producer/songwriter Norman Whitfield.

Too, the company took heart from the Grammy nomination of one of the albums on its political Black Forum imprint, namely, Dr. Martin Luther King’s Why I Oppose The War In Vietnam. In February, Motown VP Ewart Abner told the trade press that it was planning a further nine albums for release in 1971, and was approaching various high-profile influencers in black political circles about recording for the label.

There were other Motown moments of note: a business partnership with Sammy Davis, Jr., an unlikely and unusual hit for radio DJ Tom Clay on the newly-formed MoWest label, Valerie Simpson’s development as an artist as well as a songwriter, and an early version of the talent that was Meatloaf (or Meat Loaf, as he later became).

***Stevie declares his allegiance in July 1971***

The company’s annual gross revenues were by now exceeding $40 million (equivalent to more than $300 million today). Motown opened the year with ten percent of the titles on the Billboard Hot 100, and went on to score five Number One hits on the Cash Box Top 100. Upon release, What’s Going On seemed to become a permanent fixture on the album charts. And there was another measure of Motown’s influence on the record business as a whole: in January ‘71, Columbia Records, one of the industry’s largest players, cut a deal with Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff to distribute their label. It was evidence of the growing sales power of R&B and black talent in the wider pop market – largely attributable to what Gordy had achieved during the preceding ten years.

Now, to the detail. Below is an account of 1971, subjective rather than exhaustive, to convey its flavour at the hands of Motown’s music makers and backroom believers. It’s divided into three sections: the first, a chronological run-down of significant dates during 1971, followed by examples of the year’s notable singles and album releases. If a 45 or album topped the Billboard R&B or pop charts – or both – that entry is shown in bold-face italics.

MOTOWN 1971

January: Jobete Music begins the year pitching its catalogue at country & western producers and artists, circulating demos of some 20 songs in Nashville. Recent C&W-charting versions of Jobete titles include Bill Anderson & Jan Howard’s “Someday We’ll Be Together” and Connie Eaton & Dave Peel’s “It Takes Two.”

January 1: R. Dean Taylor is featured in the Detroit Free Press, described as a singer/songwriter who “could well emerge as big or bigger” than the likes of James Taylor, Elton John, Harry Nilsson and Rod Stewart – “the 1970s Bob Dylan, if you please.”

January 2: The first Billboard Hot 100 of the new year contains ten hits by Motown acts, including two in the Top 10. Bulleting up are Gladys Knight & the Pips, Edwin Starr, Rare Earth and Diana Ross. Also ranked are the Jazz Crusaders (“Way Back Home”) on the Motown-distributed Chisa label.

January 20: Diana Ross marries Robert Silberstein in Las Vegas, Nevada, exchanging vows in a private ceremony at the Silver Bells chapel. He is a wealthy PR professional, whom Ross met by accident.

January 28: Stevie Wonder continues his latest U.K. tour, playing this night at Manchester’s Odeon Theatre, with Martha Reeves & the Vandellas as support act. The following night, the show moves to Birmingham’s Odeon theatre, with a top ticket price of one pound, ten shillings.

January 31: In a Melody Maker interview, Martha Reeves offers appreciation for the loyalty of British fans. “The minute we were met at the airport by a press guy from EMI,” she remarks, “he was saying welcome home, and it really feels like that.”

January 31: The Jackson 5 return to their Gary, Indiana hometown for two shows at the city’s Westside High School to help raise campaign funds for the re-election of mayor Richard Hatcher.

February 3: Florence Ballard files an $8.7 million lawsuit in Detroit’s Wayne County Circuit Court against Berry Gordy and Diana Ross, among others, with allegations of conspiracy to eject her from the Supremes and deprive her of record royalties.

February 6: In Las Vegas, Bobby Darin records Live! At The Desert Inn, intended to be his first album release for Motown. His first 45 for the company, “Melodie,” is issued in April.

February 7: Gladys Knight & the Pips perform “If I Were Your Woman” and “Bridge Over Troubled Water” on The Ed Sullivan Show, the last Motown act to appear before the long-running series is cancelled in March.

February 13: Cash Box reports the latest songwriters to be signed to Jobete Music include Clifton Davis and Patti Dahlstrom.

February 20: Motown executive Ewart Abner announces that nine new albums will be released this year on its Black Forum label, including one based on the experiences of black soldiers in Vietnam and another featuring writer and civil rights activist James Baldwin.

February 22: A five-LP boxed set, The Motown Story – The First Decade, is released. To accompany the many hits which are included, a variety of Motown artists talk about their music and their career experiences; the overall narrator is radio DJ Charlie Van Dyke.

March: Motown officially confirms the departure of Eddie Kendricks from the Temptations, and announces a nationwide search for his replacement. Kendricks’ first solo single, “This Used To Be The Home Of Johnnie Mae,” is released on March 4.

March 1: A merchandising campaign built around the Jackson 5 kicks off with a 64-page, full-colour fan book for sale on newsstands. Startime Productions, which has previously handled merch campaigns for the Beatles and the Monkees, is also offering J5 posters, photos and stamps, with plans for lines of clothes and toys.

March 6: The Supremes finish a five-night run at the Blue Room of the Shoreham Hotel in Washington, D.C., then go on to play the Elmwood Casino in Windsor. On opening night at the latter, audience members include Berry Gordy, Smokey and Claudette Robinson, and Florence Ballard with Eddie Holland.

March 6: The Jackson 5’s “Mama’s Pearl” is Motown’s first Number One on the Cash Box Top 100 singles chart this year, followed by six more through September, including Marvin Gaye’s “What’s Going On.” On the Billboard Hot 100, the company scores one chart-topper, the Temptations’ “Just My Imagination (Running Away With Me).”

March 16: The 1970 Grammy award winners are announced, and Dr. Martin Luther King’s Why I Oppose The War In Vietnam – released on Motown’s Black Forum label – is picked as Best Spoken Word Recording. None of Motown’s other nominees (Diana Ross, the Jackson 5, Stevie Wonder, Edwin Starr, the Four Tops) prevail in their categories.

March 18: Motown reissues R. Dean Taylor’s “Gotta See Jane” on its rock label, Rare Earth, to only modest chart success. Three years earlier, it was a Top 20 hit in Britain.

March 27: Marvin Gaye’s “What’s Going On” spends the first of five weeks atop Billboard’s Soul Singles chart. His next two 45s also reach Number One. What’s Going On rules the Soul LPs countdown for nine weeks this year.

March 28: The Temptations play the Kiel Convention Hall in St. Louis, Missouri, for the third successive year. The venue seats more than 9,000.

April 2: Motown Productions announces that Diana Ross will star as Billie Holiday in a new film, Lady Sings The Blues, to be directed by Sidney Furie. Its budget is said to be $5.5 million.

April 10: Detroit’s Olympia Stadium plays host to Smokey Robinson & the Miracles, Martha Reeves & the Vandellas, and Jr. Walker & the All Stars. Also on the bill: Invictus Records’ Chairmen of the Board. Tickets are $4-$6.

April 17: British Motown Chartbusters Vol. 5 reaches Number One on the U.K. album charts, holding there for three weeks. The series’ Vol. 6 peaks at No. 2 in October.

April 18: Diana Ross’ first solo television special is broadcast by the ABC-TV network, with Bill Cosby, the Jackson 5 and Danny Thomas as guest stars. Diana! is the initial project from Motown Productions, Inc., the parent firm’s TV and theatrical arm.

April 19: Michigan congressman John Conyers, Jr. gives a laudatory speech about Berry Gordy and Motown Records in the House of Representatives, and it’s entered into the Congressional Record. The company “serves as the best proof of what a man can do against the odds,” says Conyers.

April 24: The second annual Sterling Ball fundraiser is held at Berry Gordy’s mansion on Boston Boulevard, Detroit. The result is a total of $40,000 for college scholarships to support inner-city youngsters, gifted in the name of the late Loucye Gordy Wakefield. A souvenir LP featuring various Motown acts is given to guests.

April 29: Michael Jackson becomes the first Motown artist to appear on the cover of Rolling Stone, headlined “Why does this eleven year-old stay up past his bedtime?” When the feature is published, Jackson is 12.

April 30: The Supremes appear on The David Frost Show. Three nights later, the reshaped trio makes their New York nightclub debut at the Americana Hotel’s Royal Box for a two-week run.

May 21: Marvin Gaye’s What’s Going On and Valerie Simpson’s Exposed are released. The sleeves of both albums list the musicians playing on the sessions – thought to be the first time any Motown LPs have done this.

June 1: The Commodores are signed to Motown Record Corp.

June 21: The acrimonious lawsuit continues between Motown and Holland/Dozier/Holland, with Wayne County Circuit Court ordering the latter to produce tax and payroll records as well as “all items of composed, written and recorded material” requested by Motown and its Jobete Music arm.

June 22: The MoWest label debuts with Tom Clay’s “What The World Needs Now/Abraham, Martin And John,” produced (with a Gene Page arrangement) by Clay, a former Detroit radio DJ. It peaks inside the Top 10 of Billboard’s Hot 100 in August.

June 24: Due to illness, Paul Williams is advised by doctors to reduce his working schedule as a member of the Temptations. Richard Street is slated to fill in. Motown’s management arm says Street has been travelling with the group as a “sixth member” for the past six months.

June 28: Motown & the Arrival of Black Music by David Morse is published in the U.K. It’s considered to be the first book about the company’s start-up, creativity and success.

July 1: Now aged 21, Stevie Wonder signs new recording and producer contracts with Motown Record Corp., as well as stock and stock repurchase agreements in the event the company goes public. (It never does).

July 2-4: The Supremes headline three nights at the Greek Theater in Los Angeles.

July 16: At New York’s Madison Square Garden, the Jackson 5 begin a 42-date national tour, with the Commodores and Yvonne Fair as opening acts.

August 1: Damon Harris is signed to Motown as a member of the Temptations, replacing Eddie Kendricks. He signed with the group seven days earlier.

August 1: The Detroit Free Press reports that the city’s Orchestra Hall, for many years the home of the Detroit Symphony, has received a $25,000 offer from Motown towards the cost of renovation and preservation. The only proviso is that the building be renamed Gordy Hall.

August 8: Stevie Wonder plays the Carter Barron Amphitheatre in Washington, D.C., with Martha Reeves & the Vandellas and Eddie Kendricks also on the bill. The following night, the Supremes and the Four Tops open at the venue in a fundraiser for Rep. Walter Fauntroy, a founding member of the Congressional Black Caucus.

August 21: Detroit mayor Roman Gribbs declares this to be “Rare Earth Day,” celebrating Motown’s rock label and its roster of artists.

August 21: Diana Ross’ “I’m Still Waiting” is Number One in the U.K. The track is not released as a 45 in the U.S. until October, nor is it a major hit there. “I’m Still Waiting” returns to the U.K. Top 10 in 1991.

August 24: The first edition of weekly music TV show Soul Train is taped in Los Angeles, hosted by Don Cornelius. Appearing on this debut are Gladys Knight & the Pips and Eddie Kendricks, among others.

September 11: ABC-TV’s Saturday morning cartoon series The Jackson 5ive makes its debut, with “ABC” featured in the first episode.

September 16: The Jackson 5’s Goin’ Back To Indiana TV special airs on the ABC-TV network, with guests stars including Diana Ross, Bobby Darin and Bill Cosby. Motown ships the soundtrack album later this month.

September 22: Martha Reeves & the Vandellas open a four-week engagement at the International Hotel, Las Vegas. Their set includes Rare Earth’s “I Just Want To Celebrate” and the Undisputed Truth’s “Smiling Faces Sometimes.” Also on the bill: comedian Redd Foxx.

October 1: Chrome And Hot Leather, with Marvin Gaye as a Green Beret in his second movie acting role, unspools in cinemas in Detroit and elsewhere.

October 30: Cash Box reports that Thelma Houston has been signed to Motown, and will record for the MoWest label. Her manager is former company exec Marc Gordon, who also directs the career of the 5th Dimension.

December 6: A new Broadway-bound musical, Pippin, undergoes a rehearsal reading in Dallas. Berry Gordy invests $140,000 in the project, and Motown later releases the original cast album. The show is a Broadway hit from 1972-77.

December 10: Stevie Wonder performs during a “Free John Sinclair” rally in Ann Arbor, Michigan to protest Sinclair’s 1969 imprisonment for marijuana possession. John Lennon, Bob Seger and Phil Ochs also appear.

December 11: Michael Jackson’s first solo single release, “Got To Be There,” peaks at No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100.

December 3: In the Los Feliz district of Los Angeles, filming begins on Lady Sings The Blues with Diana Ross and Billy Dee Williams; the director is Sidney Furie.

December 12: Berry Gordy receives an honorary degree of music from Eastern Michigan University.

December 21: At Detroit’s Cobo Hall, Martha Reeves & the Vandellas give their final concert. David Ruffin makes a cameo appearance. “I felt that we were being rejected because of a decline in attention from Motown,” Reeves writes years later, “and a lack of steady work.”

SELECTED SINGLES (by release date)

January 7: The Jackson 5, “Mama’s Pearl,” Motown 1177

January 14: The Temptations, “Just My Imagination (Running Away With Me),” Gordy 7105 (#1 R&B, #1 pop)

January 19: R. Dean Taylor, “Ain’t It A Sad Thing,” Rare Earth 5023

January 20: Marvin Gaye, “What’s Going On,” Tamla 54201 (#1 R&B, #2 pop)

February 12: Kiki Dee, “Love Makes The World Go ’Round,” Rare Earth 5025

February 18: Stevie Wonder, “We Can Work It Out,” Tamla 54202

February 25: Smokey Robinson & the Miracles, “I Don’t Blame You At All,” Tamla 54205

March 4: Eddie Kendricks, “This Used To Be The Home Of Johnnie Mae,” Tamla 54203

March 11: Sammy Davis, Jr., “In My Own Lifetime,” Ecology 1000

March 16: The Jackson 5, “Never Can Say Goodbye,” Motown 1179 (#1 R&B, #2 pop)

March 18: R. Dean Taylor, “Gotta See Jane,” Rare Earth 5026

April 8: Diana Ross, “Reach Out I’ll Be There,” Motown 1184

April 14: Stoney & Meatloaf, “What You See Is What You Get,” Rare Earth 5027

April 15: The Supremes, “Nathan Jones,” Motown 1182

April 19: Bobby Darin, “Melodie,” Motown 1183

May 6: Gladys Knight & the Pips, “I Don’t Want To Do Wrong,” Soul 35083

May 13: The Undisputed Truth, “Smiling Faces Sometimes,” Gordy 7108

June 10: Marvin Gaye, “Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology),” Tamla 54207 (#1 R&B, #4 pop)

June 21: Rare Earth, “I Just Want To Celebrate,” Rare Earth 5031

June 22: The Jackson 5, “Maybe Tomorrow,” Motown 1186

June 22: Tom Clay, “What The World Needs Now”/”Abraham, Martin And John,” MoWest 5002

July: Valerie Simpson, “Can’t It Wait Until Tomorrow,” Tamla 54204

July 8: Jr. Walker & the All Stars, “Take Me Girl, I’m Ready,” Soul 35084

July 22: Stevie Wonder, “If You Really Love Me,” Tamla 54208

July 29: Diana Ross, “Surrender,” Motown 1188

August 30: G.C. Cameron, “Act Like A Shotgun,” MoWest 5005

September 7: The Supremes, “Touch,” Motown 1190

September 14: Martha Reeves & the Vandellas, “Bless You,” Gordy 7110

October: Marvin Gaye, “Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler),” Tamla 54209 (#1 R&B, #9 pop)

October 7: Michael Jackson, “Got To Be There,” Motown 1191

October 14: Suzee Ikeda, “Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah,” MoWest 5004

October 19: The Temptations, “Superstar (Remember How You Got Where You Are),” Gordy 7111

October 26: Smokey Robinson & the Miracles, “Satisfaction,” Tamla 54211

November 2: Thelma Houston, “I Want To Go Back There Again,” MoWest 5008

November 4: Rare Earth, “Hey Big Brother,” Rare Earth 5038

November 4: Jr. Walker & the All Stars, “Way Back Home,” Soul 35090

November 16: The Undisputed Truth, “You Make Your Own Heaven And Hell Right Here On Earth,” Gordy 7112

November 18: Gladys Knight & the Pips, “Make Me The Woman That You Go Home To,” Soul 35091

November 23: The Jackson 5, “Sugar Daddy,” Motown 1194

November 24: Stevie Wonder, “What Christmas Means To Me,” Tamla 54214

December 14: The Supremes, “Floy Joy,” Motown 1195

December 16: Martha Reeves & the Vandellas, “In And Out Of My Life,” Gordy 7113

December 28: P.J., “T.L.C. (Tender Loving Care),” Tamla 54215

SELECTED ALBUMS (by release date)

January 7: The Undisputed Truth, The Undisputed Truth, Gordy 955

February 22: Various Artists, The Motown Story – The First Decade, Motown 727-731

March 29: Diana Ross, Diana! (TV soundtrack), Motown 719

April: Brass Monkey, Brass Monkey, Rare Earth 523

April 12: The Jackson 5, Maybe Tomorrow, Motown 735 (#1 R&B, #11 pop)

April 12: Stevie Wonder, Where I’m Coming From, Tamla 308

April 12: Eddie Kendricks, All By Myself, Tamla 309

April 21: King Floyd, Heart Of The Matter, V.I.P. 407

April 22: Gladys Knight & the Pips, If I Were Your Woman, Soul 731

April 22: The Temptations, Sky’s The Limit, Gordy 957

May: Sunday Funnies, Sunday Funnies, Rare Earth 526

May 21: Marvin Gaye, What’s Going On, Tamla 310 (#1 R&B, #6 pop)

May 21: Valerie Simpson, Exposed, Tamla 311

May 28: The Supremes & the Four Tops, The Return Of The Magnificent Seven, Motown 736

May 28: The Supremes, Touch, Motown 737

June: Rare Earth, One World, Rare Earth 520

June 9: Diana Ross, Surrender, Motown 723

June 23: Edwin Starr, Involved, Gordy 956

June 23: The Undisputed Truth, The Undisputed Truth, Gordy 955

July: Tom Clay, What The World Needs Now Is Love, MoWest 103

July 12: Jr. Walker & the All Stars, Rainbow Funk, Soul 732

August 27: Smokey Robinson & the Miracles, One Dozen Roses, Tamla 312

August 27: The Four Tops, Greatest Hits Vol. 2, Motown 740

September: Stoney & Meatloaf, Stoney & Meatloaf, Rare Earth 528

September 21: Various Artists, The Key To The Kingdom, Motown 743

September 29: The Jackson 5, Goin’ Back To Indiana (TV soundtrack), Motown 742

October 21: Stevie Wonder, Stevie Wonder’s Greatest Hits Vol. 2, Tamla 313

November: Repairs, Already A Household Word, Rare Earth 532

December: Rare Earth, In Concert, Rare Earth 534

December 7: Jr. Walker & the All Stars, Moody Junior, Soul 733

December 9: Gladys Knight & the Pips, Standing Ovation, Soul 736

December 20: The Supremes & the Four Tops, Dynamite, Motown 745

December 20: The Jackson 5, Greatest Hits, Motown 741

Music notes: naturally, a timeline merits a playlist, and so here is the latest WGB compilation on Spotify. A deeper alternative, of course, would be the two CD volumes of The Complete Motown Singles series which tracked 1971, and which included recollections of the time by Scott Regan, the former Detroit radio DJ, and Harry Webber, Motown’s former art director.

West Grand Blog

A Motown Timeline: 1971