chris_b Posted January 13, 2009 Share Posted January 13, 2009 On Radio 2 last night there was a program about Motown and an interview with Eddy Holland, of Holland Dozier Holland fame. These guys wrote 22 straight numbers 1 hits and wrote the soundtrack to the life of several generations. He said Motown was business and when he went home he listened to The Beach Boys and Bob Dylan for pleasure. Wow, that stopped me dead!! His favourite Motown track wasn't even one of his! It was Dancing In The Street written by William Stevenson, Ivy Jo Hunter and Marvin Gaye. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dr.funk Posted January 13, 2009 Share Posted January 13, 2009 I was listening to this on iplayer this morning, very interesting. There have been a lot of good programmes on recently to mark motowns anniversary. One thing I am slightly confused about is James Jamerson, as I understood it he was one of the main bass players on all Motowns releases but he got no mention where as a few other bass players did? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Funk Posted January 13, 2009 Share Posted January 13, 2009 It'd be a bit weird if his favourite music in the world to listen to was his own - and even if that was true, it'd come across as obnoxiously arrogant to say so in public! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldGit Posted January 13, 2009 Share Posted January 13, 2009 They hinted that the "unseen geniuses" would be the subject of next week's programme. I suspect The Funk Brothers will be in that one ... and Carole Kaye ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cantdosleepy Posted January 13, 2009 Share Posted January 13, 2009 Motown Fact: It's ace. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bilbo Posted January 13, 2009 Share Posted January 13, 2009 Carol Kaye plays all my basslines. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_b Posted January 13, 2009 Author Share Posted January 13, 2009 [quote name='The Funk' post='378971' date='Jan 13 2009, 01:23 PM']....It'd be a bit weird if his favourite music in the world to listen to was his own - and even if that was true, it'd come across as obnoxiously arrogant to say so in public!....[/quote] I'm not surprised that he preferred other music, it's just I would have expected, maybe some Jazz or really anything other than The Beach Boys!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yorks5stringer Posted January 13, 2009 Share Posted January 13, 2009 Yes I heard one of the programmes the other night, someone was saying how they tried to disguise the fact Motown was a black record label. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WHUFC BASS Posted January 13, 2009 Share Posted January 13, 2009 [quote name='The Funk' post='378971' date='Jan 13 2009, 01:23 PM']It'd be a bit weird if his favourite music in the world to listen to was his own - and even if that was true, it'd come across as obnoxiously arrogant to say so in public![/quote] You obviously haven't heard of Rob Halford of Judas Priest - he only listens to his own band's music. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Funk Posted January 13, 2009 Share Posted January 13, 2009 [quote name='WHUFC BASS' post='379097' date='Jan 13 2009, 02:57 PM']You obviously haven't heard of Rob Halford of Judas Priest - he only listens to his own band's music.[/quote] Does he listen to it backwards and then kill himself afterwards? I was going to say I'm quite familiar with Rob Halford but I didn't want anyone to get the wrong idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cantdosleepy Posted January 13, 2009 Share Posted January 13, 2009 All your bass are belong to Carol Kaye. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WHUFC BASS Posted January 13, 2009 Share Posted January 13, 2009 [quote name='The Funk' post='379109' date='Jan 13 2009, 03:03 PM']Does he listen to it backwards and then kill himself afterwards? I was going to say I'm quite familiar with Rob Halford but I didn't want anyone to get the wrong idea. [/quote] LOL! Yeah, apparently if you play their music backwards you can hear the words "Do It". I don't know which is funnier, the people who claimed that this was actually a valid reason to go court over this or the courts for taking the claim seriously - only in America! LOL! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YouMa Posted January 13, 2009 Share Posted January 13, 2009 "Do it" did this mean he wanted all his fans to go out and buy gay leather bondage gear and grow a moustache? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
casapete Posted January 13, 2009 Share Posted January 13, 2009 [quote name='chris_b' post='379017' date='Jan 13 2009, 01:52 PM']I'm not surprised that he preferred other music, it's just I would have expected, maybe some Jazz or really anything other than The Beach Boys!![/quote] Beach Boys stuff was truly groundbreaking during the golden era of Motown, so completely feasible for contempory musicians to be checking them out. A lot of their stuff has great basslines (some played by Carol Kaye I believe), and still sound amazing today - Good Vibrations,God Only Knows,Darlin, California Girls etc etc. A testimony to the sheer genius of Brian Wilson. (If you get chance to see Brian in concert then do-his 11 piece band is amazing!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickeyboro Posted January 13, 2009 Share Posted January 13, 2009 I sat in the Festival hall at eye level with Brian a few years ago. The lights are still on these days but no-one's home! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_b Posted January 13, 2009 Author Share Posted January 13, 2009 [quote name='casapete' post='379210' date='Jan 13 2009, 03:47 PM']....A lot of their stuff has great basslines (some played by Carol Kaye I believe)....[/quote] All played by Carol Kaye. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beerdragon Posted January 13, 2009 Share Posted January 13, 2009 A nice Motown site. [url="http://www.freep.com/article/99999999/ENT04/90111018/1039&template=theme&theme=MOTOWN012009"]http://www.freep.com/article/99999999/ENT0...me=MOTOWN012009[/url] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
casapete Posted January 14, 2009 Share Posted January 14, 2009 [quote name='chris_b' post='379217' date='Jan 13 2009, 03:51 PM']All played by Carol Kaye.[/quote] There was some dispute about 'Good Vibrations' I believe. Lyle Ritz (part of the 'Wrecking Crew' in LA, and probably better known for his ukelele playing!)) has claimed it was him on the session, although it usually seems credited to Carol Kaye. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 14, 2009 Share Posted January 14, 2009 [quote name='YouMa' post='379207' date='Jan 13 2009, 03:45 PM']"Do it" did this mean he wanted all his fans to go out and buy gay leather bondage gear and grow a moustache?[/quote] Glad to see you've taken no chances! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cytania Posted January 15, 2009 Share Posted January 15, 2009 "Yes I heard one of the programmes the other night, someone was saying how they tried to disguise the fact Motown was a black record label." The docos try to establish Motown's place in it's own era but really a whole programme is needed on race and American music. A real eye opener if you can find it is '1001 Album Covers' which actually covers the late 50s extensively and often shows how a disc started with a black group on the cover then 'crossed over' with a text only or generic teen image cover. It really spells out how scared white America was of 'race music'. Motown's sound and presentation wasn't too different from doowop but if you contrast them with wild men like Bod Diddley, Screamin Jay Hawkins, Little Richard or Chuck Berry, well you can see how they moulded and manicured their acts. Actually DooWop music was often very comic and caricatured, wailing falsettos and deep bass voices. Motown records were generally fairly serious (yet not as hysterically dramatic as a Shadow Morton, Phil Spector or Lieber and Stoller productions) and tended to have rounded to-the-point vocals without the hokiness or rawness of earlier 'chitlin circuit' acts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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