A Motown Timeline: 1966
‘HIPPIES HOLLER FOR MORE’ (THEY DO?)
Momentum.
If there’s one single word which encapsulates Motown in 1966, that’s it. The company was growing, prospering, influencing – and reshaping the music industry.
On January 3, publicist Al Abrams put out a press release citing Billboard statistics which ranked Berry Gordy’s business as the U.S. market leader in singles sales in 1965, advancing from second place in 1964 and fourth place in 1963.
The new year promised still more growth, and before the end of February, Motown had three singles in the Top 10 (by Stevie Wonder, the Supremes, the Marvelettes) of both the Billboard and Cash Box pop charts, plus another couple in the Top 30 and rapidly-rising new entries by the Four Tops, Marvin Gaye, the Isley Brothers and the Temptations. Among the album best-sellers, there were Top 50 entries for the Miracles, the Supremes, the Temptations and the Four Tops. A few weeks later, Motown logged three Top 20 titles on the Billboard Top LPs listing.
Moreover, the firm’s ambitious, new, corporate catchphrase, “The Sound of Young America,” was finding a foothold. Its use had begun towards the end of 1965 – Al Abrams is thought to have been the slogan’s originator – and then it was added to album sleeves and in trade press advertising as the new year advanced. Previously, “The Detroit Sound” had been tucked into the top back right corner of LP artwork; now “The Sound of Young America” was positioned prominently.
More importantly, the music which fuelled Motown’s continuing momentum was of the highest order. Holland/Dozier/Holland were at their most prolific and imaginative (“Reach Out I’ll Be There,” for one). Norman Whitfield was progressing creatively and commercially as never before with the Temptations, while Stevie Wonder – helped by his collaboration with songwriter Sylvia Moy – was displaying confidence and maturity, typified by “Uptight (Everything’s Alright).” After turning 16, he re-signed with Motown.
Other acts pitched in with career milestones on record – the Isleys, Jimmy Ruffin, the Elgins – and started to make headway in international markets, too, especially the United Kingdom. Wonder’s “Uptight” proved to be the first of seven Top 20 triumphs for him there during the rest of the decade, while the Four Tops’ “Reach Out” breakthrough also yielded a series of successful British concert tours, and four Top 10 albums from 1966-68.
It’s possible that the live performance demands for Motown acts in 1966, supervised by its International Talent Management, Inc. (ITMI) arm, may have delivered more dollars than hit records. The Supremes continued to appear at some of America’s top-notch nightclubs, while others criss-crossed the continent to play a variety of venues. Marvin Gaye’s dates that year, for example, ranged from Atlantic City (Wonder Gardens) to Atlanta (Pink Pussycat), from New York (Copacabana, Apollo) and Los Angeles (Whisky A’Go-Go) to Vancouver (The Cave). He even turned up at the Big Apple’s Stern Brothers to autograph Moods Of Marvin Gaye during the department store’s “back-to-campus” fashion show.
GROWING INTO THE LP BUSINESS
There was revenue from other sources, too. That summer, Motown cut a deal with the Columbia Record Club to offer five albums to the latter’s estimated 1,750,000 mail-order customers. “They were very influential because the people who bought those records were mostly white,” Motown’s then-vice president Barney Ales once told me. “That was the beginning of our formation into the LP business.” He also recalled the advance Columbia paid: $137,000, worth $1.3 million today.
“The Supremes are in!” exclaimed the record club’s brochure, offering More Hits By The Supremes to its members for $3.79. “Those three beautiful, charming, talented girls have the sound that makes the hippies holler for more.”
Berry Gordy spent money, too. In September, he acquired the assets of local competitor Golden World Records for a rumoured $1 million ($9.5 million today), including masters, recording facilities, music publishing catalogue and several artist contracts. “Despite our rivalry,” Gordy wrote in To Be Loved of Golden World’s co-owner, Joanne Jackson, “we were friends.” He added, “Joanne was one of the most beautiful girls to grow up on the Westside.”
And so it was that Motown maximised many of the opportunities promised by its momentum at the start of 1966. Across the full 12 months, it spent 30 weeks atop the Billboard R&B charts with nine singles, and 17 weeks ruling the R&B album listings. Its three Number One singles on the Billboard and Cash Box pop charts were one less than in 1965, but the greater triumph was that The Supremes A’ Go-Go became the trio’s first Number One album, in October.
Fortune magazine calculated that Motown’s gross at this point was $20 million, significantly ahead of the $12 million which had been estimated for 1965. (It’s not entirely clear whether those figures included ITMI’s income.) Gordy’s net profit improved, too, over and above the $858,000 reckoned to have been his take-home total in 1964.
“The Sound of Young America” in 1966 was that of the cash-register, ringing loud and clear.
Now, to the detail. Below is an account of ‘66, 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 those 12 months, 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 1966
January 4: The Supremes perform at the inaugural ball of re-elected Detroit mayor, James Cavanagh. At the swearing-in ceremony, the politician sets a goal of advancing it as “The City of Promise.”
January 7: Brian Holland’s appointment as vice president in charge of Motown Records’ creative evaluation is announced internally by the “Office of the President.” The trade press was notified in December.
January 8: Motown appoints Gordon Prince as sales director of the V.I.P. and Soul labels, according to Billboard. He previously worked for Detroit distributor B&H, promoting releases on Tamla when the label began in 1959.
January 12: Motown acquires 2657 West Grand Boulevard, opposite Hitsville, and it is fitted out for the artist development team. Three other buildings on the boulevard are bought later in the year.
January 14: Stevie Wonder’s first British hit, “Uptight (Everything’s Alright),” is released, one day after he plays London’s Hammersmith Odeon. A week later, Wonder appears on television’s hip Ready Steady Go! music show.
January 17: The Supremes open a two-week run at the Roostertail, later described in the Detroit Free Press as “a sentimental homecoming.”
January 26: The Mynah Birds, with unknowns Rick James and Neil Young in the band, finish recording their Motown debut, “It’s My Time.” It stays in the can for 40 years.
February 14: Motown earns Grammy nominations for “My Girl,” “Stop! In The Name Of Love” and “Shotgun,” but none is a winner when the awards are announced on March 15.
February 17: The Supremes return to New York’s Copacabana after their 1965 debut (and live album) at the nightclub.
February 24: In the U.K., Dave Godin shutters the Tamla Motown Appreciation Society, seeks fan club secretaries for eight individual acts, and broadens his Hitsville USA fanzine into Rhythm & Soul USA.
March 24: Detroit’s Schafers bakery unveils its line of Supremes bread, a one-pound, 15-ounce sliced loaf sold across the city.
April 12: At New York’s Pierre Hotel, Holland/Dozier/Holland lead the field at performing rights society BMI’s annual awards dinner, honoured for eight of their 1965 hits. Top publisher is Jobete Music, with 12 awards.
April 13: Martha & the Vandellas play London’s Flamingo club during their second, 16-date tour of the U.K.
April 23: Stevie Wonder appears at the latest Dance & Motorcyle Show held at the Marina Palace at Seal Beach, on California’s Pacific Coast Highway.
May 4: The Supremes open a ten-day run at The Cave in Vancouver. After hours, they catch a local band with Tommy Chong and Bobby Taylor in the line-up, and recommend them to the home office.
May 7: Marvin Gaye is among the Motown acts appearing at the 15th annual convention of American Women in Radio and Television at Detroit’s Statler-Hilton.
May 11: The Miracles record their vocals for “Whole Lot Of Shakin’ In My Heart (Since I Met You),” the first Detroit production by California’s Frank Wilson, who also wrote the song.
June: San Francisco record retailer Ray Dobard files a $5 million lawsuit against Motown for the Supremes’ alleged failure to appear at his new store in East Oakland, as advertised.
June 1: Motown informs staff of the re-opening of its California office, located at 6290 Sunset Boulevard, under the direction of newly-hired manager, Shelly Berger.
June 2: The Four Tops kick off a three-week stint at New York’s Basin Street East club. During the month, they visit a community centre in the Bronx. “We sang for the kids,” Obie Benson later tells Associated Press.
June 5: Chris Clark earns a full-page feature in the Detroit Free Press, where she’s dubbed “the Brunhild of the rhythm and blues scene.”
June 11: Motown plans expansion into Broadway, TV and movies, reports Billboard, with Mickey Stevenson in charge. Latter is now vice president for special projects, having relinquished his role as A&R chief to Eddie Holland.
July 4: In Detroit, Berry Gordy meets Shelly Berger, his new West Coast office manager, for the first time. Gordy later calls him “a creative, witty ex-actor.”
July 14: Songwriter Lorenzo Pack sues Motown for copyright infringement, asserting that “Baby Love” melodically plagiarised his song, “I’m Afraid.” Pack claims he had previously played a demo of the original for Jobete staffers in New York.
July 29: Stevie Wonder is among those at Hitsville who greet Peter Noone (a/k/a Herman of Herman’s Hermits) during the British pop star’s visit to Motown. Wonder plays him several new songs.
August 1: The Columbia Record Club promotes Motown albums to its mail-order customers nationwide as the result of a new, three-year deal with the label.
August 4: Marvin Gaye opens at New York’s Copacabana, and during his second weekend there, the show is recorded for a live album – although it’s not released until 2005. TV titan Ed Sullivan has a front-row seat on opening night.
August 15: Prominent music attorney Paul Marshall tells EMI execs of rumours that Motown will “go public” on the stock market early in 1967. It never occurs.
August 16: Smokey Robinson and the Miracles cut the first version of “I Heard It Through The Grapevine” at Hitsville with producer Norman Whitfield.
August 20: The Supremes, the Temptations and Stevie Wonder play the Forest Hills Music Festival in New York, before an audience of 14,000.
August 22: The first of the “Motown Mondays,” staged at the Upper Deck of Detroit’s Roostertail nightclub, features the Four Tops. Dates are set for other acts over the next seven weeks.
September 2: The Supremes arrive in Tokyo for the start of an Asian tour, including dates in Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Manila, plus a performance on board the U.S.S. Coral Sea aircraft carrier.
September 10: Billboard reports the purchase of Golden World Records by Motown, announced by Berry Gordy and Joanne Bratton. The deal includes the contracts of Edwin Starr and J.J. Barnes.
September 12: Motown VP Barney Ales visits London for business meetings as six Hitsville hits occupy the U.K. Top 50. Six weeks later, “Reach Out I’ll Be There” is Number One there.
September 29: The Supremes make their Las Vegas debut with a three-week booking at the Flamingo Hotel.
October 10: Marvin Gaye headlines New York’s Apollo, with Jr. Walker & the All Stars, the Velvelettes and the Spinners also on the bill.
October 19: The Four Tops cut vocals for “Standing In The Shadows Of Love” during Motown’s first session at the newly-acquired Golden World facility, soon to be dubbed Studio B.
October 29: Now a Motown recording artist, Edwin Starr performs at Liverpool’s Cavern club with a midnight show.
November 13: The Four Tops sell out Brian Epstein’s Saville Theatre in London with an audience including some of Britain’s brightest music stars, John Lennon and Mick Jagger among them.
November 18: The Detroit Free Press gives away 1,000 copies of Marvin Gaye’s promotional “The Teen Beat Song” 45 at the Michigan State Fair. The flip features an interview recorded with Gaye by Teen Beat writer Loraine Alterman.
November 19: Motown has nine singles on the Billboard Hot 100, including “You Keep Me Hangin’ On” at Number One.
November 26: The Marvelettes are among the acts performing twice daily during the 51st Detroit Auto Show at Cobo Hall. The event runs to December 4.
December: Longtime Motown publicist Al Abrams leaves the company and joins PR start-up New Worlds, Inc.
December 13: Barbara McNair appears at the Century Plaza in Los Angeles, in a show put together for the singer by Jobete songwriter Ron Miller.
December 16: Stevie Wonder re-signs with Motown Record Corp., and with International Talent Management, Inc. (ITMI). He turned 16 on May 13.
December 17: The Temptations’ Greatest Hits debuts on the Billboard Top LPs, going on to spend more than two years there. It is the act’s most successful album, later certified double platinum.
December 23: Motown gives 2,000 handicapped children free admission to the Motortown Revue at Detroit’s Fox Theatre. The package, which runs through January 1, stars the Temptations, Stevie Wonder, Martha & the Vandellas, Jimmy Ruffin, Chris Clark and others, with four shows every weekday.
December 31: On the Billboard R&B Top 50, the Temptations’ “(I Know) I’m Losing You” is Number One – the last of their 16 weeks at the summit this year, with four 45s. One of them, “Ain’t Too Proud To Beg,” ruled for eight weeks.
SELECTED SINGLES (by release date)
January 4: Martha & the Vandellas, “My Baby Loves Me,” Gordy 7048
January 11: Brenda Holloway, “Together ’Til The End Of Time,” Tamla 54125
January 28: The Isley Brothers, “This Old Heart Of Mine (Is Weak For You),” Tamla 54128
January 31: Marvin Gaye, “One More Heartache,” Tamla 54129
February 2: The Four Tops, “Shake Me, Wake Me (When It’s Over),” Motown 1090
February 7: The Temptations, “Get Ready,” Gordy 7049 (#1 R&B, #29 pop)
February 14: Kim Weston, “Helpless,” Gordy 7050
March 11: Frances Nero, “Keep On Lovin’ Me,” Soul 35020
March 17: Shorty Long, “Function At The Junction,” Soul 35021
March 21: Jr. Walker & the All Stars, “(I’m A) Road Runner,” Soul 35015
April 7: Tammi Terrell, “Come On And See Me,” Motown 1095
April 18: The Contours, “Just A Little Misunderstanding,” Gordy 7052
May 3: The Temptations, “Ain’t Too Proud To Beg,” Gordy 7054 (#1 R&B, #13 pop)
May 9: The Four Tops, “Loving You Is Sweeter Than Ever,” Motown 1096
June 3: Jimmy Ruffin, “What Becomes Of The Brokenhearted,” Soul 35022
June 7: Gladys Knight & the Pips, “Just Walk In My Shoes,” Soul 35023
June 28: Stevie Wonder, “Blowin’ In The Wind,” Tamla 54136 (#1 R&B, #9 pop)
July 8: Jr. Walker & the All Stars, “How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You),” Soul 35024
July 14: Chris Clark, “Love’s Gone Bad,” V.I.P. 25038
July 25: The Supremes, “You Can’t Hurry Love,” Motown 1097 (#1 R&B, #1 pop)
July 26: Marvin Gaye, “Little Darling (I Need You),” Tamla 54138
August 4: The Temptations, “Beauty Is Only Skin Deep,” Gordy 7055 (#1 R&B, #3 pop)
August 18: The Four Tops, “Reach Out I’ll Be There,” Motown 1098 (#1 R&B, #1 pop)
August 25: The Velvelettes, “These Things Will Keep Me Loving You,” Soul 35025
August 25: Brenda Holloway, “Hurt A Little Everyday,” Tamla 54137
September 9: The Elgins, “Heaven Must Have Sent You,” V.I.P. 25037
October 6: Martha & the Vandellas, “I’m Ready For Love,” Gordy 7056
October 12: The Supremes, “You Keep Me Hangin’ On,” Motown 1101 (#1 R&B, #1 pop)
October 19: The Miracles, “(Come ’Round Here) I’m The One You Need,” Tamla 54140
November 2: The Temptations, “(I Know) I’m Losing You,” Gordy 7057 (#1 R&B, #8 pop)
November 22: Stevie Wonder, “Some Day At Christmas,” Tamla 54142
November 28: The Four Tops, “Standing In The Shadows Of Love,” Motown 1102
December 2: Marvin Gaye & Kim Weston, “It Takes Two,” Tamla 54141
December 27: The Marvelettes, “The Hunter Gets Captured By The Game,” Tamla 54143
SELECTED ALBUMS (by release date)
February 18: The Marvelettes, Greatest Hits, Tamla 253
February 18: The Supremes, I Hear A Symphony, Motown 643 (#1 R&B, #8 pop)
February 18: Jr. Walker & the All Stars, Soul Session, Soul 702
May 4: Stevie Wonder, Up-Tight Everything’s Alright, Tamla 268
May 4: Martha & the Vandellas, Greatest Hits, Gordy 917
May 23: Marvin Gaye, Moods Of Marvin Gaye, Tamla 266
May 23: The Isley Brothers, This Old Heart Of Mine, Tamla 269
June 15: The Temptations, Gettin’ Ready, Gordy 918 (#1 R&B, #12 pop)
July 8: The Four Tops, On Top, Motown 647
July 18: Jr. Walker & the All Stars, Road Runner, Soul 703
August 25: Marvin Gaye & Kim Weston, Take Two, Tamla 270
August 25: The Supremes, The Supremes A’ Go-Go, Motown 649 (#1 R&B, #1 pop)
August 25: Various, A Collection Of 16 Original Big Hits Vol. 5, Motown 651
August 25: The Elgins, Darling Baby, V.I.P. 400
November 16: Smokey Robinson & the Miracles, Away We A Go-Go, Tamla 271
November 16: Stevie Wonder, Down To Earth, Tamla 272
November 16: Barbara McNair, Here I Am, Motown 644
November 16: Billy Eckstine, My Way, Motown 646
November 16: Mary Wells, Vintage Stock, Motown 653
November 16: The Four Tops, Four Tops Live!, Motown 654 (#1 R&B, #17 pop)
November 16: The Temptations, Greatest Hits, Gordy 919 (#1 R&B, #5 pop)
November 16: Martha & the Vandellas, Watchout!, Gordy 920