Motown's biggest sellers

[luke]

https://www.thoughtco.com/. Some interesting info...Levi hated I Can’t Help Myself!

[luke]

Sorry. Link doesn’t go right to it. I tried to cancel thread but couldn’t do it. Delete wouldn’t appear. What am I doing wrong?

[luke]

I will give some of the Info. Berry wouldn’t let Tempts release War...too political apparently. Maybe you all know this stuff but some of it new to me. PS. Delete post just appeared on this post but didnt on my original post !?

[marv2]

https://www.thoughtco.com/. Some interesting info...Levi hated I Can’t Help Myself!

Doesn't seem kind of odd that most artists will say they hated a song that really put them over the top? Mary has said she hated "Where Did Our Love Go?" for the longest time. I know there have been others, I'd need to think about it.

[marv2]

Sorry. Link doesn’t go right to it. I tried to cancel thread but couldn’t do it. Delete wouldn’t appear. What am I doing wrong?

Things have changed slightly. If you click "edit post" the option to delete your post is at the very top now.

[marv2]

Is this the correct link?

https://www.thoughtco.com/top-biggest-motown-hits-of-all-time-2522631

[robb_k]

Doesn't seem kind of odd that most artists will say they hated a song that really put them over the top? Mary has said she hated "Where Did Our Love Go?" for the longest time. I know there have been others, I'd need to think about it.
13682
I'm not surprised. I didn't like "I Can't Help Myself" all that much. I like many, many of their songs better, even including a few non-Motown songs. I also like several Supremes' songs better than "Where Did Our Love Go", and Mary Wells' songs more than "My Guy", and several Martha & Vandellas' songs more than "Heatwave". No coincidence that these are all H-D-H songs. Their formula was to sell songs to mass audiences. I don't believe that The US 45 market '60s kids was the best judge of music as "art".

[marv2]

13682
I'm not surprised. I didn't like "I Can't Help Myself" all that much. I like many, many of their songs better, even including a few non-Motown songs. I also like several Supremes' songs better than "Where Did Our Love Go", and Mary Wells' songs more than "My Guy", and several Martha & Vandellas' songs more than "Heatwave". No coincidence that these are all H-D-H songs. Their formula was to sell songs to mass audiences. I don't believe that The US 45 market '60s kids was the best judge of music as "art".

Very interesting comment and right on the money! I've always said that songs that usually become very popular with the mass market and the ones with the most simplistic lyrics and a catchy hook. This was my complaint when it came to most of Lionel Richie's solo hits from the early 80s. Very simple lyrics like "I love you, do you love me..." etc LOL!

[milven]

Here is the link for Biggest Motown Hits that you mentioned in first post.

https://www.thoughtco.com/top-biggest-motown-hits-of-all-time-2522631


and another story on that site about Motown

https://www.thoughtco.com/top-biggest-motown-hits-of-all-time-2522631

[marv2]

Here is the link for Biggest Motown Hits that you mentioned in first post.

https://www.thoughtco.com/top-biggest-motown-hits-of-all-time-2522631


and another story on that site about Motown

https://www.thoughtco.com/top-biggest-motown-hits-of-all-time-2522631

That is the same link I posted above. Was there suppose to be a different list?

[Motown Eddie]

https://www.thoughtco.com/. Some interesting info...Levi hated I Can’t Help Myself!

Couldn't get the link to work but that's okay. I'm not surprised to hear that Levi Stubbs didn't like "I Can't Help Myself". He didn't like "Reach Out [[I'll Be There)" or "Bernadette" either. Of course he learned to embrace all three when they became Motown Landmarks.

[Motown Eddie]

Doesn't seem kind of odd that most artists will say they hated a song that really put them over the top? Mary has said she hated "Where Did Our Love Go?" for the longest time. I know there have been others, I'd need to think about it.

It's really not the strange to hear that an artist didn't like one of biggest hits. The Supremes didn't like 'Where Did Our Love Go'; The Temptations didn't like 'Papa Was A Rolling Stone'; Dionne Warwick didn't like 'Do You Know The Way To San Jose' or 'Then Came You'; Marvin Gaye didn't like 'Stubborn Kind Of Fellow'; and Levi Stubbs didn't like 'Reach Out', 'Bernadette' or 'I Can't Help Myself'.

[marv2]

It's really not the strange to hear that an artist didn't like one of biggest hits. The Supremes didn't like 'Where Did Our Love Go'; The Temptations didn't like 'Papa Was A Rolling Stone'; Dionne Warwick didn't like 'Do You Know The Way To San Jose' or 'Then Came You'; Marvin Gaye didn't like 'Stubborn Kind Of Fellow'; and Levi Stubbs didn't like 'Reach Out', 'Bernadette' or 'I Can't Help Myself'.

Berry Gordy did not like "What's Going On?" go figure! LOL!

[luke]

It’s all so subjective. I thought San Jose was awful and didnt like Reach Out I’ll be there or Bernadette. Loved and love Where did our Love Go and I Can’t Help Myself and Heat Wave and Then came you.

[robb_k]

Couldn't get the link to work but that's okay. I'm not surprised to hear that Levi Stubbs didn't like "I Can't Help Myself". He didn't like "Reach Out [[I'll Be There)" or "Bernadette" either. Of course he learned to embrace all three when they became Motown Landmarks.
13690
Those 3 songs are among my least favourite of their Motown hit songs. I think it is no coincidence that I agree with Levi. "Ask The Lonely", "Baby I Need Your Loving" and "Without The One You Love" are all better. I even like "Walk Away Renee" better. But, I dislike "& Rooms of Gloom" a lot more than "I Can't Help Myself".

[milven]

That is the same link I posted above. Was there suppose to be a different list?

Sorry Marv, I must have skipped over your post. Yes, I posted the same link that you posted.

[daviddh]

i think all these songs are classics