Multiple Versions of Motown songs

[woodward]

There was an interesting segment of the recently published I Hear a Symphony book by Andrew Flory.

There were 7 multiple versions of Norman Whitfield's I Heard It Through the Grapevine. They are:

Miracles - 8/2/66 - Motown Sings Motown Treasures
Marvin Gaye - 2/8/67 - In The Groove plus single
Gladys Knight & Pips - 6/15/67 - Everybody Needs Love
plus single
Bobby Taylor - 12/13/67 - Bobby Taylor & Vancouvers
Temptations - 5/18/68 - Cloud Nine
Miracles - 5/21/68 [[new vocals) - Special Occasion
Undisputed Truth - 1/14/70 - The Undisputed Truth

Dates above are recording initiated. Released later.

Is anyone aware of any other song with more than seven versions? A new way to look at a songs popularity.

[masterblaster]

For Once In My Life has at least 20 versions by Motown artists alone and probably hundreds worldwide.
Many of Norman Whitfield's compositions have been done by multiple artists, particularly by The Temptations, Gladys Knight, Edwin Starr and Undisputed Truth. He never seemed to give up on a song until he got a big hit out of it and even then recorded different versions after a hit.

[johnny_raven]

FOR ONCE IN MY LIFE - I count 16 Motown artist recordings

Stevie Wonder
Jonah Jones
Barbara McNair
Joe Harnell
Diana Ross
Billy Eckstine
Connie Haines
The Four Tops
The Temptations
The Ding Dongs
Gladys Knight & The Pips
Kiki Dee
Martha & The Vandellas
The Miracles
Sammy Davis, Jr.
Soupy Sales

[johnny_raven]

17 if you count The Funk Brothers instrumental version ...

[reese]

I would suspect that YOU'VE MADE ME SO VERY HAPPY has many versions.

[johnny_raven]

I would suspect that YOU'VE MADE ME SO VERY HAPPY has many versions.

9 artists on Motown

Brenda Holloway
Joe Harnell
Diana Ross
Edwin Starr & Blinky
Little Miss Soul
Chris Clark
The Hearts Of Stone
The Miracles
Sammy Davis, Jr.

Also, The Honey Cone on Invictus

[masterblaster]

FOR ONCE IN MY LIFE - I count 16 Motown artist recordings

Stevie Wonder
Jonah Jones
Barbara McNair
Joe Harnell
Diana Ross
Billy Eckstine
Connie Haines
The Four Tops
The Temptations
The Ding Dongs
Gladys Knight & The Pips
Kiki Dee
Martha & The Vandellas
The Miracles
Sammy Davis, Jr.
Soupy Sales

There is a version by Blinky and one by DRATS with Temps but that is a live recording on TCB.

[copley]

Everybody Needs Love has 6 versions

Gladys Knight & The Pips
Miracles
Jimmy Ruffin
Mary Wells [[original)
Temptations
Velvelettes

[copley]

As for non Motown songs Feelin' Alright has 8 versions and it's not even a very good song!

Gladys Knight & The Pips
Jackson 5
Diana Ross with Jackson 5
David Ruffin
Rustix
Rare Earth
Jr Walker
Undisputed Truth

[biggestfourtops fan]

Old Love [[Let's Try It Again)

The Four Tops
Mary Wells
Martha and the Vandellas

[RanRan79]

As for non Motown songs Feelin' Alright has 8 versions and it's not even a very good song!

Says who? LOL

[RanRan79]

"What Love Has Joined Together" has been done by Mary Wells, the Miracles, the Tempts, Syreeta, and Barbara McNair. I knew about the first four but not Barbara. Are there any others? [[Syreeta's version is probably my favorite.)

[Motown Eddie]

Here's a song that got around Motown a lot; "Gonna Keep On Tryin' Till I Win Your Love".

versions by,
Marvin Gaye
The Temptations [[twice-for Cloud Nine in 1969 & Sky's The Limit in 1971)
Edwin Starr
Jimmy Ruffin
The Undisputed Truth

[Motown Eddie]

Another Motown song that got multiple versions; "Gonna Give Her All The Love I Got".

versions by,
Marvin Gaye
Jimmy Ruffin
R. Dean Taylor
Earl Van Dyke
The Temptations

[Motown Eddie]

And I can't forget this one; "Money [[That's What I Want)"

Barrett Strong
The Miracles
The Supremes
Jr. Walker & the All Stars
Mary Wells
Hattie Littles
Amos Milburn
Earl Van Dyke
Popcorn Wylie [[Richard Wylie & His Band)
Blinkie

[sansradio]

There is a version by Blinky and one by DRATS with Temps but that is a live recording on TCB.

The TCB live recording is just The Tempts, no DRATS.

[TomatoTom123]

And I can't forget this one; "Money [[That's What I Want)"

Barrett Strong
The Miracles
The Supremes
Jr. Walker & the All Stars
Mary Wells
Hattie Littles
Amos Milburn
Earl Van Dyke
Popcorn Wylie [[Richard Wylie & His Band)
Blinkie

Don’t forget Mandré!

[copley]

Says who? LOL

Says I. Just my opinion of course.

[mysterysinger]

"Reach Out, I'll Be There"
Four Tops x3 [[incl live recording and an Italian version)
Thelma Houston
Joe Harnell
The Impact Of Brass
Jackson 5
Diana Ross
San Remo Golden Strings
Sunday Funnies

[Mark Desjardines]

Which all goes to prove, you can't keep a good song down!

[TomatoTom123]

I love those oft-recorded Norman Whitfield tracks...

“Ain’t No Sun Since You’ve Been Gone”
- The Temptations
- Chuck Jackson
- Gladys Knight & The Pips [[twice)
- The Supremes
- The Undisputed Truth

“Don’t Let Him/Her Take Your Love From Me”
- Gladys Knight & The Pips
- The Temptations
- Jimmy Ruffin
- The Four Tops
- The Undisputed Truth

“Too Busy Thinking About My Baby”
- The Temptations
- Jimmy Ruffin [[Jimmy also did an alternate version of the song called “I Know How To Love Her”!)
- The Monitors
- Marvin Gaye

“Lonely, Lonely Man/Girl Am I”
- The Velvelettes
- The Temptations
- Jimmy Ruffin
- Chuck Jackson

“I Know Better”
- The Marvelettes
- Barbara McNair
- Gladys Knight & The Pips

“Don’t You Miss Me A Little Bit, Baby?”
- Jimmy Ruffin
- Gladys Knight & The Pips
- Marvin Gaye

“That’s The Way Love Is”
- The Isley Brothers
- Gladys Knight & The Pips
- Marvin Gaye

“Save My Love For A Rainy Day”
- The Temptations
- Marv Johnson
- The Undisputed Truth

“Since I’ve Lost You”
- Jimmy Ruffin
- The Velvelettes
- Gladys Knight & The Pips
- The Temptations
- The Undisputed Truth

“The End Of Our Road”
- Gladys Knight & The Pips
- Jonah Jones [[would love to hear this version!)
- Marvin Gaye
- The Temptations

“Friendship Train”
- Gladys Knight & The Pips
- The Temptations
- The Undisputed Truth

“Ball Of Confusion [[That’s What The World Is Today)”
- The Temptations
- Edwin Starr
- The Undisputed Truth

“You Need Love Like I Do [[Don’t You?)”
- Gladys Knight & The Pips
- The Temptations
- The Jackson Five

“Superstar [[Remember How You Got Where You Are)”
- The Temptations
- The Undisputed Truth
- David Ruffin

“Smiling Faces Sometimes”
- The Temptations
- The Undisputed Truth
- David Ruffin

“Funky Music Sho Nuff Turns Me On”
- Edwin Starr
- The Temptations
- Yvonne Fair

“It Should Have Been Me”
- Kim Weston
- Gladys Knight & The Pips
- Yvonne Fair

[RanRan79]

Says I. Just my opinion of course.

Of course!

[RanRan79]

Don't forget "Who's Lovin You".

Miracles
Supremes
J5
Tempts
Brenda Holloway

[biggestfourtops fan]

As for non Motown songs Feelin' Alright has 8 versions and it's not even a very good song!

Gladys Knight & The Pips
Jackson 5
Diana Ross with Jackson 5
David Ruffin
Rustix
Rare Earth
Jr Walker
Undisputed Truth

I don't care for that song at all either.

[mysterysinger]

"I Wanna Be Where You Are" only has 3 versions listed on DFTMC and these were 2 live recordings by the J5 and Michael's solo version of course.

Purely down to the cut-off point for DFTMC, but there are other versions -

Thelma Houston
Jose Feliciano [[English and Spanish versions)
Leon Ware
Marvin Gaye
Willie Hutch
Jason Weaver

Has become a bit of a Motown standard. Not to mention e.g. Beyonce, Zulema and Joe Longthorne versions which don't count lol.

[Motown Eddie]

Don’t forget Mandré!

Hi Tom; Didn't know about Mandre's version of "Money" [[I've never heard any of his albums on Motown). So that's one more Motown version of that classic song.

[TomatoTom123]

“That’s The Way Love Is”
- The Isley Brothers
- Gladys Knight & The Pips
- Marvin Gaye

Forgot The Temptations’ version!

How could I?

[TomatoTom123]

Hi Tom; Didn't know about Mandre's version of "Money" [[I've never heard any of his albums on Motown). So that's one more Motown version of that classic song.

Hey Eddie, yea, Mandré’s stuff is pretty wild and funky! His genre/style isn’t the ‘Motown Sound’ but it’s interesting to see, with him being a signed to the label, there are still connections to what definitely is classic Motown.

[144man]

Forgot The Temptations’ version!

How could I?

That's because you young people, by virtue of being able to look up everything on the internet, have never learned how to train your minds to remember things, whereas we old folks all have perfect memories and never, ever forget anything

[Motown Eddie]

Hey Eddie, yea, Mandré’s stuff is pretty wild and funky! His genre/style isn’t the ‘Motown Sound’ but it’s interesting to see, with him being a signed to the label, there are still connections to what definitely is classic Motown.

Hi Tom; Just listened to the clip of Mandre's version of "Money". Didn't really like it but as you said, there are links to Classic Motown [[or as Motown would've sounded like in the late '70s) since he was on the label.

[TomatoTom123]

Hi Tom; Just listened to the clip of Mandre's version of "Money". Didn't really like it but as you said, there are links to Classic Motown [[or as Motown would've sounded like in the late '70s) since he was on the label.

Hey Eddie, yea, I’m not quite sure about his version either... it’s kinda grown on me though. Can’t compare to the original, of course, which is just a classic!

I’m trying to think of a Mandré song that is relatively ‘normal’... hmm, there isn’t one really... lol

Try this one Eddie, it’s slow and kinda Stevie-ish...

[TomatoTom123]

That's because you young people, by virtue of being able to look up everything on the internet, have never learned how to train your minds to remember things, whereas we old folks all have perfect memories and never, ever forget anything

Oh yes, of course, that’s why I forgot, thanks for explaining 144man