Vandellas Questions: Heatwave to Dancing

Another topic question has brought me here:

With the success of "Heatwave" as a single, Motown hurriedly threw an LP together to ride the wave of success. The LP itself however was all [[mostly?) cover songs, and no other singles were released.

Heatwave [[single) was released on July 10, 1963.....it would be over a year, not until July 31, 1964 until their next single "Dancing ITS" would be released.

Why so long between singles? Why didn't Motown try and strike while the iron was hot?

Furthermore, while the "Heatwave" LP was a rush job, it would be another year and a half until their next LP "Dance Party" was released.

Did Motown drop the ball? I realize the Supremes were HOT and the focus of attention went to them, but there's no denying a #4 Pop and #1 R&B hit didn't deserve some sort of timely followup.

I think you will find that After Heatwave, MR&TV had 3 singles before DITS.
Quicksand
Livewire
In my lonely room

and Quicksand was almost as big as Heatwave on both the Soul and Pop charts. Livewire & In My Lonely Room just missed the Top 40. I think if In My Lonely Room had come out after Quicksand it would have hit big. Livewire was just too fast to dance to.

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Originally Posted by snakepit

I think you will find that After Heatwave, MR&TV had 3 singles before DITS.
Quicksand
Livewire
In my lonely room

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I very much stand corrected. Thank you!

Which leads then to: why weren't these 1964 singles included on the 1965 "Dance Party" album, instead of the 1966 "GH" album?

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Originally Posted by marybrewster

I very much stand corrected. Thank you!

Which leads then to: why weren't these 1964 singles included on the 1965 "Dance Party" album, instead of the 1966 "GH" album?

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No answer for that one, except possibly they were somewhat old by the time the DANCE PARTY album was released. And LIVE WIRE and IN MY LONELY ROOM hadn't performed as well as the earlier singles. Also, the DANCE PARTY album had a bit of a concept, with most of the songs being about dancing or at least being danceable. These songs didn't fit.

I think another question might be why wasn't DANCE PARTY released right after DANCING IN THE STREET? The album might have done better if it had been released earlier. As it was, it seemed to keep being delayed. Originally it was titled WILD ONE. But when that single didn't do as well as expected, it was delayed again until NOWHERE TO RUN hit, and then it was released as DANCE PARTY.

In retrospect, Motown was really off the mark in how they released Martha & The Vandellas' music. If they had released the "Heat Wave" album in mid-November of 1963 as their first LP, not second, they would have had an album with three hit singles: "Come And Get These Memories," "Heat Wave," and "Quicksand." Skip some of the more generic covers for "Time Changes Things" and "Someday, Someway," then throw in "Darling, I Hum Our Song," "There He Is At My Door," and "A Love Like Yours Don't Come Knockin' Everyday," and you have the makings of a really strong debut album on your hands.

As for "Dance Party," that should have been released in late 1964 and included "In My Lonely Room," which is a great track, even if it didn't do well as a single.

So easy to think of all these things over fifty years later.

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Originally Posted by snakepit

I think you will find that After Heatwave, MR&TV had 3 singles before DITS.
Quicksand
Livewire
In my lonely room

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That's right! "Quicksand" was really popular too.

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Originally Posted by Thornton

In retrospect, Motown was really off the mark in how they released Martha & The Vandellas' music. If they had released the "Heat Wave" album in mid-November of 1963 as their first LP, not second, they would have had an album with three hit singles: "Come And Get These Memories," "Heat Wave," and "Quicksand." Skip some of the more generic covers for "Time Changes Things" and "Someday, Someway," then throw in "Darling, I Hum Our Song," "There He Is At My Door," and "A Love Like Yours Don't Come Knockin' Everyday," and you have the makings of a really strong debut album on your hands.

As for "Dance Party," that should have been released in late 1964 and included "In My Lonely Room," which is a great track, even if it didn't do well as a single.

So easy to think of all these things over fifty years later.

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Well it may not make a lot of sense now,but a lot of record companies withheld releasing new albums after the Kennedy assassination in Nov. 1963 for a bit.

if I am not mistaken, [[and it was a really long time ago, I could be wrong) I think my brother had a Roulette assorted hits LP with Quicksand by MRATV on it...was it farmed out for a comp LP? I love Live Wire....it is a bit manic, but it percs! In My Lonely Room I am not that familiar wth...it was left off the 2 LP Anthology..I did get the abridged Dance Party LP on Pickwick...both that and the Supremes Baby Love [[9 cuts from WDOLG? LP) had wonderful, clear, LOUD fidelity.

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Originally Posted by Thornton

In retrospect, Motown was really off the mark ......Skip some of the more generic covers......and you have the makings of a really strong debut album on your hands.

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Well it wasn't just Motown - it was the norm to put a couple of hits/original songs on an album plus a bunch of covers just like the Beatles did until "the album' as a concept took off in the late 60s.

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Originally Posted by gman

if I am not mistaken, [[and it was a really long time ago, I could be wrong) I think my brother had a Roulette assorted hits LP with Quicksand by MRATV on it...was it farmed out for a comp LP?

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You're not mistaken ...
https://www.discogs.com/Various-20-O...elease/4313229

"In My Lonely Room" was big enough in Philadelphia to inspire "Candy & the Kisses "The 81".

I still think that both "Dace Party" and "Mobile Lil the Dancing Witch" would have made stronger singles than "Wild One".

The album releases of Martha & The Vandellas was as odd as The Marvelettes. Both groups seemed to have hit spells where albums weren't released as one would have thought. Always puzzled me why Quicksand, Live Wire, Lonely Room couldn't have formed the foundation of an album. If "Heatwave" generated an album, "Dancing In The Streets" should have been an automatic album-starter as well.

It surprised me to find "Nowhere To Run" lumped in with "Dancing" and "Wild One" on the same album. Strange, strange, strange.

I have noticed though, 1964 was a weird year in general for Motown albums. Marvin Gaye and Stevie Wonder had album releases, but they both were theme albums of sorts, not based on any hits. The Marvelettes didn't get an album. Martha and The Vandellas didn't get an album. The Miracles HAD an album that was withdrawn.

On the other hand, 1964 ended up being a banner year for artists who were either new to the company [[Brenda Holloway, Four Tops) had been struggling [[The Temptations, The Supremes) and a longtime hitmaker who broke through to a whole new level of stardom [[Mary Wells).

I would love an Expanded Edition of Dance Party. There were alot of songs recorded between the release of the Heat Wave album and Dance Party.