VA - Hitsville USA - The Motown Singles Collection Vol. 1 (4CD set) (1

Motown
did so many things well in the '60s and early '70s that this overview
of the label's smashes (and some lesser-known classics) practically
demands four CDs. It gets them, too, filling them with single mixes of
more than 100 tracks. That the running order begins with Barrett
Strong's statement of purpose "Money (That's What I Want)" and ends with
Marvin Gaye's statement of concern "Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)" says a
lot about how far the company moved in its golden decade--but no more
so than what the same two cuts' differences in sound get across. The
company was able to blend the smooth and the harsh in ways that few
other pop entities have ever mastered, thereby getting over not only to
the feet and the wallet, but to the heart.

The years 1959 - 1971,
when Motown was located in Detroit, is considered the golden era of the
label. Motown charted over 350 singles during this time and it would
probably take at least 10 cds to do this period justice. This
collection, Motown's most extensive at the time of its release in 1992,
is comprised of four cds. Of the 104 singles included here, only two
didn't chart: Syreeta's "I Can't Give Back The Love I Feel For You" and
Shorty Long's original version of "Devil With The Blue Dress On." The
inclusion of Carolyn Crawford's rare and gorgeous "My Smile Is Just A
Frown (Turned Upside Down)" was worth the cost of the set alone for the
serious Motown collector. It and the Syreeta single were appearing on cd
for the first time (both have been included on other Motown
compilations since then). Motown went for a wide variety of artists (36)
instead of just choosing the obvious hits by the major artists as
previous collections had done. Of the major artists, the nine selections
each by the Miracles and the Temptations are a good representation of
their best work during this period. The Diana Ross-led Supremes,
however, are strongly neglected, with only four singles included here.
Especially key omissions in a historical set such as this is their first
and last number ones: "Where Did Our Love Go" and "Someday We'll Be
Together." Meanwhile, all three 1970-1971 hits by the Jean Terrell-led
Supremes are found here. The selection of Martha and the Vandellas'
"Love (Makes Me Do Foolish Things)" over "I'm Ready For Love" and "Honey
Chile" doesn't work for me, while Shorty Long's only bonafide hit, the
novelty "Here Comes The Judge" is left off at the expense of the non-hit
"Function At The Junction" and "Devil With The Blue Dress On." These
digitally remastered singles are all in crisp mono, as they were
originally mixed for radio. Many of them (such as the Supremes' "You
Can't Hurry Love" and the Temptations' "Cloud Nine" are dramatically
different from the versions heard on "oldies" radio today. The singles
are sequenced for the most part in release date order. Most of the major
hits from the 1959 - 1963 period are included on the set: Barrett
Strong's "Money," the Miracles' "Shop Around", the Marvelettes' "Please
Mr. Postman, and the Contours' "Do You Love Me", for instance. In 1964,
Motown became a true hit factory (the Supremes, Temptations, and Four
Tops all had their first major hits that year) and it is here that the
omissions on the set start to become more pronounced. There is just too
much great music from 1964 through 1971 from Motown to fit onto only
four discs (actually three, since the first disc is dedicated to the
1959 - 1963 period). The 68-page booklet is a nice accompaniment to the
discs. While the biographies aren't that extensive, it is hard to find
even what is listed here on the more obscure artists like Carolyn
Crawford and the Monitors. A thorough track listing provides the
artist's name, songwriters, publishers, producers, release date, label
number, and peak chart position in Billboard (pop and r&b) for each
single. Best of all is the listing - by instrument and year - of the
names of the incredible musicians who played on the Motown recordings.
Motown never put musician credits on any of the albums it released
during this period and it is great to see them finally given their due
on a major collection. Motown subsequently released a four-disc box set
companion collection (in stereo) covering 1972 - 1992. It is a shame
that they never released an additional box set (or two) on the 1959 -
1971 period. This retrospective is a great introduction to the magic of
Motown, but it is far from the complete story.

Tracklist:

CD1:
01.Money (That's What I Want) (2:38)
02.Shop Around (2:51)
03.Please Mr. Postman (2:31)
04.Jamie (2:25)
05.The One Who Really Loves You (2:29)
06.Do You Love Me (2:54)
07.Beechwood 4-5789 (2:14)
08.You Beat Me To The Punch (2:45)
09.Stubborn Kind Of Fellow (2:45)
10.Two Lovers (2:48)
11.You've Really Got A Hold On Me (2:59)
12.Come And Get These Memories (2:26)
13.Pride And Joy (2:08)
14.Fingertips - Part 2 (3:12)
15.(Love Is Like A) Heat Wave (2:48)
16.Mickey's Monkey (2:47)
17.Leaving Here (2:34)
18.The Way You Do The Things You Do (2:42)
19.My Guy (2:50)
20.Devil With The Blue Dress (3:14)
21.Every Little Bit Hurts (3:00)
22.Baby I Need Your Loving (2:46)
23.Dancing In The Street (2:41)
24.My Smile Is Just A Frown (Turned Upside Down) (3:04)
25.Needle In A Haystack (2:32)
26.Baby Love (2:38)
27.Come See About Me (2:42)
28.How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You) (2:59)

CD2:
01.My Girl (2:58)
02.He Was Really Sayin' Somethin' (2:33)
03.Ask The Lonely (2:48)
04.Shotgun (3:01)
05.Nowhere To Run (2:59)
06.When I'm Gone (2:10)
07.OOO Baby Baby (2:45)
08.I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch) (2:46)
09.First I Look At The Purse (3:06)
10.The Tracks Of My Tears (3:03)
11.It's The Same Old Song (2:46)
12.Love (Makes Me Do Foolish Things) (2:57)
13.Take Me In Your Arms (Rock Me A Little While) (2:58)
14.Uptight (Everything's Alright) (2:55)
15.Don't Mess With Bill (2:51)
16.Darling Baby (2:37)
17.This Old Heart Of Mine (Is Weak For You) (2:47)
18.Greetings (This Is Uncle Sam) (3:04)
19.Function At The Junction (2:50)
20.(I'm A) Roadrunner (2:49)
21.Ain't Too Proud To Beg (2:34)
22.What Becomes Of The Brokenhearted (3:03)
23.How Sweet It Is ( To Be Loved By You) (3:03)
24.Love's Gone Bad (2:24)
25.You Can't Hurry Love (2:52)
26.Beauty Is Only Skin Deep (2:24)
27.Heaven Must Have Sent You (2:33)

CD3:
01.Reach Out I'll Be There (3:01)
02.(I Know) I'm Losing You (2:28)
03.Standing In The Shadows Of Love (2:39)
04.It Takes Two (3:00)
05.The Hunter Gets Captured By The Game (2:52)
06.Jimmy Mack (2:54)
07.Bernadette (3:03)
08.Ain't No Mountain High Enough (2:29)
09.More Love (2:50)
10.I Heard It Through The Grapevine (2:56)
11.I Second That Emotion (2:43)
12.I Wish It Would Rain (2:54)
13.I Can't Give Back The Love I Feel For You (2:40)
14.Does Your Mama Know About Me (2:49)
15.Ain't Nothing Like The Real Thing (2:19)
16.Love Child (3:03)
17.For Once In My Life (2:52)
18.Cloud Nine (3:38)
19.I Heard It Through The Grapevine (3:15)
20.Baby, Baby Don't Cry (3:59)
21.Twenty-Five Miles (3:22)
22.My Whole World Ended (The Moment You Left Me) (3:30)
23.What Does It Take (To Win Your Love) (2:31)
24.I Can't Get Next To You (2:56)
25.Baby I'm For Real (3:21)
26.Up The Ladder To The Roof (3:17)

CD4:
01.I Want You Back (3:01)
02.The Bells (2:57)
03.Get Ready (2:50)
04.ABC (2:59)
05.Ball Of Confusion (That's What The World Is Today) (4:05)
06.The Love You Save (3:06)
07.Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours (2:49)
08.War (3:29)
09.It's A Shame (3:09)
10.Ain't No Mountain High Enough (3:32)
11.Still Water (Love) (3:16)
12.I'll Be There (3:45)
13.The Tears Of A Clown (3:07)
14.Stoned Love (3:02)
15.If I Were Your Woman (3:14)
16.Just My Imagination (Running Away With Me) (3:53)
17.What's Going On (3:57)
18.Never Can Say Goodbye (3:02)
19.Nathan Jones (3:05)
20.I Don't Want To Do Wrong (3:24)
21.Smiling Faces Sometimes (3:17)
22.Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology) (2:31)
23.I Just Want To Celebrate (2:53)