Motown

Growing up in the 70s and 80s, I was lucky to be exposed to music of the day and recent past. Specifically, R&B. It was a time where black musicians and performers were breaking out of their shells shrouded in doubt to reach for that road leading to fame. It was within their grasp...

The music of yesterday held a certain authenticity in the fact that it wasn't masked with voice affects or thrown together with synthesized instruments. It was pure, creative magic. This in no way discredits contemporary musicians and their creativity. Technology will happen, music production will change over time. It's expected to.

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Motown or Hitsville USA was a Powerhouse record company. Like all businesses, it had it's start at the bottom but soon blossomed into the most successful black-owned business for decades.

Berry Gordy III - A.K.A Berry Jr. (pictured below) was the founder of Motown records. Born in Detroit MI on November 28th, 1929, Berry had an interesting family tree. His grandfather was the son of a white plantation owner named, James Thomas Gordy. James owned and had inappropriate sexual relations with a young, black, female slave named Esther Johnson.

Interracial or not, the child (Berry I) born in wedlock, still became a slave and worked on the plantation. James Thomas Gordy had legitimate children with his wife and is also the grandfather of past US president, Jimmy Carter. Which makes the 39th president and Berry Gordy Jr. 2nd cousins.

It wasn't until after Berry signed and collaborated with William (Smokey) Robinson that the record label took off and soared to the stars. There was no looking back. Smokey is known for his satisfyingly smooth and expressive tenor singing voice that girls screamed for at his concerts.

In 1960 Berry co-composed and released the smash hit "Shop Around." Sung and performed by The Miracles, (Headed by Smokey Robinson) It was Motown's first million-selling, hit record. It catapulted, no, skyrocketed them all onto the musical map, quickly becoming household names. The song can still be heard on various radio stations 64 years later.

'Shop Around' 1960

Berry set his expectations high at an early age. Wanting to get rich quick, he dropped out of high school in the eleventh grade to pursue a boxing career. He boxed professionally until being drafted into the US Army in 1951. In 1952, he served as a Chaplin's assistant and played the organ during the troop's church services.

In 1959, Berry made the most important decision of his life. He created Motown records, originally called Tamla records. Over the years he collaborated with many artists in the industry to produce 240 of the 15,000 songs, all listed in the Jobete production catalog which was the name of his production company. He signed acts like The Jackson 5, Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, The Four Tops, and Gladys Night & the Pips. This impressive list goes on and on. By the end of his career, he was accredited as being a record, film, and TV producer as well as a song writer and film director.

"Gordy's gift for identifying and bringing together musical talent, along with the careful management of his artists' public image, made Motown a major national and then international success." (Wiki)

Gladys Knight and the Pips - They were just another success story coming out of Motown. Gladys' vocals were mature, soulful and quickly gained her attention.

'I heard it Through the Grapevine' was recorded by 3 different artists including Marvin Gaye and The Miracles. In 1967 Gladys Knight & The Pips' version was the first to be released. It didn't take long for it to top the charts.

I Heard it Through the Grapevine performed on Soul Train

In some cases, all good things must come to an end...

Although the record label continued to crank out hits, it had seen its best years come and go but not until an amazing array of talent filtered through its doors.

Berry sold his shares of Motown for 61 million dollars to MCA and Boston Ventures on June 28th, 1988. A few years later, Polygram bought the Motown catalogue for 330 million. Not bad for a man who only had a GED. And it all started from an $800.00 loan from his sister to construct his first recording studio. His entire life is a true testament of the power of what dreams can do once realized and pursued.

Berry has been given many accolades and awards throughout the years, including being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988.

In 1993 he received the CBC Lifetime Achievement Award. He was inducted into the Junior Achievement U.S. Business Hall of Fame in 1998 and the Michigan Rock and Roll Legends Hall of Fame in 2009.

When Gordy received the Songwriters Hall of Fame's Pioneer Award on June 13, 2013, he was the first living individual to receive the honor.

In 2014, Gordy received the key to the city from Mike Duggan on October 22, 2014,

In 2016, Gordy received the National Medal of Arts from President Obama for "helping to create a trailblazing new sound in American music. As a record producer and songwriter, he helped build Motown, launching the music careers of countless legendary artists. His unique sound helped shape our Nation's story."

Berry Gordy Square in Los Angeles was designated by the City Council at intersection of Sunset Boulevard and Argyle where the office of Motown was located.

In 2021, he was awarded the Kennedy Center Honors alongside Bette Midler, Joni Mitchell, Justino Díaz, and Lorne Michaels.

In 2022, he was inducted into the Black Music & Entertainment Walk of Fame.

In 2022, he was awarded with an honorary doctorate from the University of Michigan.

Berry is still with us today and will celebrate his 95th birthday this year. He has 8 siblings who were all a part of Motown at one time or another. He also has 8 children with several different women. Most of which are currently following in his footsteps and have found their way into the music business. He even has well-known grandkids out there making a name for themselves. You can look up his complete family tree on the internet where you'll find family ties with Beyonce and Marvin Gaye.

We will always look up to Berry as the Black Hero who took an idea, nurtured it, brought it to the next level and watched it climb into the stratosphere. Thank you, Mr Gordy for helping the black culture celebrate heritage through the amazing art of music and film.

I will leave you with another big hit out of Motown. It's relevance, unfortunately rings true to this day.

"War" Edwinn Star, 1969.

Resources and References: Wikipedia.