8.1 WORKSHEET 8

Welcome to the 8th worksheet. This time, we focus on soul music.

First, download and print Worksheet 8:

HIS:ROCK WORKSHEET 8.pdf Download HIS:ROCK WORKSHEET 8.pdf

Or copy and print here:

SOUL MUSIC. This week we look at soul music. This exciting style grew out of R&B. To me, Ray Charles was the pioneer of soul music. There was an explosion of soul music in the 60s.

MOTOWN

During that decade, there were 2 geographic and stylistic centers for soul music. One was Detroit, Michigan, home of Motown Records. Motown was called such, because the automobile industry was centered in Detroit (hence Detroit = Motor City = Motown).  Motown was created by Berry Gordy, who had a great vision for his company. He was going to produce music that appealed to ALL people, not just one group, and it worked. Some of our greatest recordings came from Motown. Watch these 2 clips about Motown and Berry Gordy:

MOTOWN - HOW IT BEGAN Links to an external site.

BERRY GORDY ON MOTOWN Links to an external site.

The Temptations. The most successful male Motown group was the Temptations.

First on our Music Journal (#72) entries is "My Girl," by the Temptations. This was written by Smokey Robinson, who had an earlier hit by singer Mary Wells, called "My Guy." There is a great picture on the 2nd page of your worksheet of Smokey Robinson rehearsing backstage with the Temptations, on "My Girl." When Smokey heard Temptation David Ruffin sing a particular song, he was inspired by the sound of his voice to write "My Girl" especially for him.  In this video, you can see Smokey Robinson, with headphones, behind singer David Ruffin.  The song remains a pop classic even today. Journal:

72. MY GIRL - TEMPTATIONS Links to an external site.

As you can see, the Temptations were also known for their choreographic dance moves. Berry Gordy hired a dance instructor for all the Motown groups.

JUST FOR FUN: Here is "My Girl" with the instruments faded out, with just the voices. Interesting to hear!

MY GIRL - VOICES ONLY Links to an external site.

The Four Tops. The Four Tops began as an a cappella group in Detroit, singing on street corners. They ended up being a very successful singing group for Motown Records. Journal:

73. I CAN'T HELP MYSELF - FOUR TOPS Links to an external site.

Smokey Robinson. A major star, not only as a songwriter, but as a performer and producer. He had many hits in all these categories, and had hits in 4 decades!

Here is a short clip about Smokey's background:

SMOKEY ROBINSON - GROWING UP IN DETROIT Links to an external site.

One amazing thing I get from that clip is how so many talented people were in that same neighborhood!

The story behind one of Smokey's hits, "I Second That Emotion:"

"I second that motion" is a common phrase heard at meetings in America where policy is being determined. It's what Motown producer Al Cleveland meant to say when he was on a shopping trip with Smokey Robinson.

As Robinson recalls in his 1989 autobiography, he and Cleveland went to a Detroit department store called Hudson's to do Christmas shopping in December 1967. Smokey's wife, Claudette, had recently given birth to twins that didn't survive the premature birth, and he was looking to get her a gift. At the jewelry counter, Smokey picked out some pearls and asked Al what he thought. "I second that emotion" was his reply, and later that afternoon the pair wrote a song around the misspoken phrase. 

And here is, for the journal:

74. I SECOND THAT EMOTION - SMOKEY ROBINSON Links to an external site.

This song is often the subject of discussions on songwriting.

Smokey had a worldwide influence, even to the Beatles! Watch this clip:

SMOKEY ROBINSON AND THE BEATLES Links to an external site.

The Supremes. The most successful female Motown group was the Supremes. They started out as the Primettes, and it took awhile for them to make it on the charts, but when they did, they did it explosively. Here is a short look at the group:

HOW THE SUPREMES GOT STARTED Links to an external site.

For our journal:

75. COME SEE ABOUT ME - THE SUPREMES Links to an external site.

Marvin Gaye was also a major Motown star. He actually got started as a drummer for other artists.  Many hits, like the one here. Unfortunately, he was murdered by his own father. He was fatally shot by his father, Marvin Gay Sr., on April 1, 1984, at their house in the West Adams district of Los Angeles, California. Gaye was shot twice following an altercation with his father after he intervened in an argument between his parents. Here is a short clip of that story:

MARVIN GAYE SHOT AND KILLED BY HIS FATHER Links to an external site.

Journal:

76. TOO BUSY THINKING ABOUT MY BABY - MARVIN GAYE Links to an external site.

Stevie Wonder. Stevie Wonder is a one of a kind artist, kind of like Ray Charles.

wiki : "Stevland Hardaway Morris, born May 13, 1950, in Saginaw, Michigan, known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American singer, songwriter, musician and record producer. A prominent figure in popular music, he is one of the most successful songwriters and musicians in the history of music."

Here is a short bio of him:

STEVIE WONDER BIOGRAPHY Links to an external site.

In 1963, the single "Fingertips,"  was a number-one hit on the charts when Wonder was aged 12, making him the youngest artist ever to top the charts. It was also the first live recording to hit #1 in the US, and it has quite a story behind it.

What Key? Stevie Wonder, just 12 years old, was part of a Motown package tour called "The Motortown Revue," and was thrilling crowds with his high-energy performances. On March 10, 1963, the Revue came to the Regal Theatre in Chicago, where Wonder's performance was recorded. On this night, he played a highly improvised version of his song "Fingertips," which went on for about 10 minutes as the crowd went absolutely nuts and the stage manager, concerned because the show was running late, tried to get him off so the next act could perform. Wonder fed off the crowd and kept going, even doing a little bit of "Mary Had a Little Lamb" on his harmonica. When Wonder ends the song (about 2:05 in), the band starts to clear the stage, and the band for the next act, The Marvelettes, hustles on. At this point, Wonder starts playing again, at which point (2:23) you can hear the Marvelettes bass player Joe Swift ask "What key?" and the performance picks up again with a little encore played by at least some members of the new band.

One of the biggest glitches on a hit record! Journal:

77. FINGERTIPS - STEVIE WONDER Links to an external site.

Stevie grew up, and got funkier. Here is how "Superstition" was written. 

wiki: "British guitarist Jeff Beck was an admirer of Wonder's music, and Wonder was informed of this prior to the Talking Book album sessions. Though at this point he was virtually playing all of the instruments on his songs by himself, Wonder preferred to let other guitarists play on his records, and he liked the idea of a collaboration with Beck. An agreement was quickly made for Beck to become involved in the sessions that became the Talking Book album, in return for Wonder writing him a song.

Between the album sessions, Beck came up with the opening drum beat. Wonder told Beck to keep playing while he improvised over the top of it. He improvised most of the song, including the riff, on the spot. Beck and Wonder created a rough demo for the song that day."

Here it is (journal):

78. SUPERSTITION - STEVIE WONDER Links to an external site.

JUST FOR FUN: Here is Jeff Beck joining Stevie Wonder on stage for "Superstition"

SUPERSTITION - JEFF BECK & STEVIE WONDER Links to an external site.

MEMPHIS / SOUTHERN SOUL

As we stated at the beginning, there were 2 centers for soul music in the 60s.  We already discussed Motown. The second location was called Memphis Soul, or sometimes Southern Soul, because there was great music being made throughout the South. Kind of like the Brill Building being a real place, but also representative of other office buildings putting out good pop songs. There was a record company in Memphis called Stax, that put out many great soul hits. Many of these artists had the same backup group for their recordings: Booker T and the MGs.

We have heard this group before. Remember "Green Onions?" Here is a clip about Stax Records and that group:

STAX RECORDS and BOOKER T & the MGs Links to an external site.

The biggest star to come out of the Memphis soul scene was Otis Redding. 

His biggest hit was "Dock Of The Bay." Here it is for our music journal:

79. DOCK OF THE BAY - OTIS REDDING Links to an external site.

Another great artist from the Memphis scene was Wilson Pickett.

His breakout hit was "In The Midnight Hour," which was co-written by Pickett and guitarist Steve Cropper (of the MGs) For many, this was a quintessential Southern Soul recording. Journal:

80. IN THE MIDNIGHT HOUR - WILSON PICKETT Links to an external site.

JUST FOR FUN: If you play the guitar, you will enjoy Steve Cropper describing how he wrote "In The Midnight Hour."

STEVE CROPPER WRITING IN THE MIDNIGHT HOUR Links to an external site.

Wilson Pickett also recorded one of the more interesting Beatle covers: "Hey Jude," which featured a blistering guitar solo by Duane Allman.

Sam and Dave made up a wild singing duo from Stax Records - journal:

81. I THANK YOU - SAM AND DAVE Links to an external site.

JUST FOR FUN: Here are Sam & Dave doing "I Thank You" live - worth seeing! The horn players are a crackup!

I THANK YOU, LIVE - SAM & DAVE Links to an external site.

Interesting fact: Sam & Dave could not stand each other offstage (remember the Everly Brothers?) That eventually led to them breaking up permanently.

Now let's move on to the next section.