ipl-logo

Motown Research Paper

944 Words4 Pages

This label I’m most intrigued with is a subsidiary of Universal Music group known as Motown Records. Founded by Berry Gordy, the label was originally known as Tamla Records, but it changed its’ name after suggestions from the Ford assembly line. Now the title Motown fits the city that it was established in, Detroit, Michigan which is also known as the Motor City. Motown Records and its’ artists were influential in the integration of popular music and added soul and culture that had not been seen before. Significance can be found in the fact Motown Records wasn’t simply trying to achieve commercial success, but trying to tell their story and affect the community. A family loan of $800 is all it took for Berry Gordy to turn his dream into …show more content…

Before it became Hitsville USA, there were some modifications that Berry Gordy had to make. Gordy turned the garage into a recording studio and converted the kitchen into a control room. Gordy also lived on the second floor of the house. The first group signed to Motown records was the Miracles who’s most notable member was Smokey Robinson. The first hit however, that was released by Motown Records was “Come to Me” by Marv Johnson. By the mid 60s, Motown owned several houses in the same neighborhood as Hitsville …show more content…

His blindness has not limited his musical genius. In fact he’s well known for his keyboard and harmonica playing. In my opinion he’s one of the most versatile musicians ever. He has expanded into many different genres including jazz, country, and reggae. If you want to hear a different sound out of every track, then Stevie Wonder is the musician to listen to. Stevie Wonder’s most successful album is “Songs in the Key of Life” which features songs like “Sir Duke” and “Isn’t She Lovely” and song about his newborn daughter. Along with this album, “Hotter Than July” is also one of my favorite albums. Stevie Wonder also has 22 grammys which show his mainstream popularity. Despite that fact that Motown has been bought by Universal, Stevie Wonder has been signed to Motown Records for his entire career which is very rare in the music industry especially when considering how hot of a commodity he was and still

Show More
Related
675 Words | 3 Pages

FAME’s rhythm section moved to Tennessee and the beats of FAME Studios had also moved with them, leaving them without music and beats. The solution to this problem was the emergence of a new rhythm group from Muscle Shoals, AL, called the Swampers. This new rhythm group had a different sound to their music, which helped FAME expand. The Swampers “swampy” sound to their music came from a combination of country, rhythm, and blues. The Swampers were formed particular for FAME Studios and made many hits in FAME up until 1969.

Read More
1316 Words | 6 Pages

The Beastie Boys. Need I say more? When most think of the rambunctious rap group from that came straight out of the 1980’s, they think about girls, partying, crude humor and maybe some music in between. Although The Beastie Boys as a group did a few things that had never been done before in music history. Thats pretty incredible considering nobody expected something so revolutionary to come from three middle class white jewish kids from New York.

Read More
430 Words | 2 Pages

He wrote dozens of hit singles and was a lead singer of his own band known as the Miracles. He was also a vice president of Motown from the 60s to the 80s. Brian Holland, Lamont Dozier and Edward Holland Jr.; who had previously been Motown recording artists, were responsible for some of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed hits of Motown’s mid-Sixties Golden Age. They wrote all of the big singles for bands such as Supremes, For To[ps and many more. Brian and Lamont generally wrote the music and produced it, Eddie usually wrote the lyrics.

Read More
467 Words | 2 Pages

The Four Tops popularly sang hits like I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch) and Reach Out I'll be There. The Supremes released groovy tunes such as Baby Love and Come See About Me. As they garnered crossover appeal, the Jackson Five successfully released hits like I'll Be There

Read More
1400 Words | 6 Pages

Marian Smith Holmes said, “Motown combined elements of blues, gospel, swing, and pop with a thumping backbeat for a new dance music that was instantly recognizable” (Smithsonian.com). The creation of what would become known as the “Motown sound” led to a whole new style of music that could only truly be classified as the motown sound. This music was a mixture of a little bit of everything, so it gave everyone an excuse to listen to it. This style of music made a way for white people to better understand black culture and to be able to adjust to it. Due to this change in the knowledge that white people knew, it led to a way for them to socialize and accept black people easier.

Read More
316 Words | 2 Pages

The “Muscle Shoals Sound” has been recognizable from the years of W.C. Handy, a Florence man that was among the first to ever popularize the blues sound more than seventy years ago to recent Grammy winner Jason Isbell; as well as everyone in between who adds or has added to the area’s prestigious “sound.” Muscle Shoals National Heritage Area (2016) states that more than a dozen record companies have opened in the Shoals area since Tune Records opened in the 1950’s and became the first record company in Alabama, but the majority of the music attention is due to Rick Hall, founder of FAME studios in Florence in 1959. According to FAME (2016) and the city of Muscle Shoals (2016), the studio moved to Muscle Shoals in 1961 and quickly Muscle Shoals became known as “The hit recording capital of the world.” Artists such as Aretha Franklin, Otis Redding, The Rolling Stones, and Lynyrd Skynryd are among the shortlists that have recorded in the Shoals area. FAME’s website (2016), states that FAME record company has been involved in the recording or publishing for over 350 million copies worldwide over the past 50 years.

Read More
972 Words | 4 Pages

Motown was a transformative sound that arrived just at the height of the civil rights movement. Such success coming from a black business and black artists forced the rest of America to reexamine their racial prejudices that they still clung to. It seemed that it’s founder, Berry Gordy, knew from the start that Motown was something special when he hung a sign that read “Hitsville USA” above the recording studio’s headquarters. The success was almost instant for most Motown artists with song after song becoming number one hits on major music charts. However, the success was not easy, as it took strenuous amounts of work to mold the artist’s looks and sounds into something that would popularize them among the white population.

Read More
922 Words | 4 Pages

Motown Motown didn’t just make great music, they made an impact in the civil right movement. Though you can’t see the impact as much as you see the impact of Martin Luther King Jr. or Malcolm X, they did play a role in the movement. Motown was started by Berry Gordy in 1959. He didn’t only care about making money through his music, he wanted to help out in the movement of civil rights.

Read More
231 Words | 1 Pages

What sets Stevie Wonder apart is the deep personal touch in his music. His songs are a reflection of his own experiences and emotions, which has allowed him to connect with listeners in a meaningful and profound way. He has also been a prominent figure in the Civil Rights Movement

Read More
1236 Words | 5 Pages

He made his debut as a recording artist when he was only 11 years old. Stevie Wonder had a number of songs that reached number one on the mainstream and R&B charts during the course of the following decade. Some of these songs include Superstition, You Are the Sunshine of My Life, and Higher Ground. The decade of the 1980s saw him continue to produce hit songs, such as I Just Called to Say I Love You and Part-Time Lover.

Read More
593 Words | 3 Pages

It seems, looking back, as if a whole Rubik’s cube of circumstances was clicking into place when Stevie turned 21.” (Lodder 70). At the age of 21, everything in Stevie’s life was looking bright. Later after Stevie’s birthday he independently recorded two albums and he also signed a contract with Motown Records (newworldencyclopedia.org). Stevie Wonder was very selfless.

Read More
2035 Words | 9 Pages

The music here has much more meaning than any other music out there. Musicians back then worked really hard to get music to where it is today. Without all of the jazz, blues, and soul, music would not be where it is today. Music has always been the roots of this city and it will never change. Memphis has definitely placed a mark on the world that no other city of state could compare

Read More
1286 Words | 6 Pages

Wonder knew that he would love it there and that it would have been quite satisfying (Brown 13). Another way Wonder had overcame his disability and obstacles was by playing music at a very young age, when he was two years old he would be in the kitchen hitting pots and pans together (“Stevie Wonder”). Also when he turned eight years old Wonder played the piano, harmonica, and drums (Sanford 12). When Wonder turned eleven, he played piano and the harmonica for entertainment at his church (“Stevie Wonder”). The last and final way Wonder overcame his obstacles was by getting a job.

Read More
599 Words | 3 Pages

Later in that same year, Steinberg organized a concert. A former group of Shakur’s “Strictly Dope” performed there and got their first record deal. Tupac started recording in 1987 but his professional career did not start until the 1990’s. He debuted his rapping skills in the Digital Underground “Same Song” for the soundtrack of the film “ Nothing but Trouble”.

Read More
1118 Words | 5 Pages

Style File Preparation So for the styles exam we were given two options and they were Motown and Singer Songwriter, after listening to both tracks numerous times I felt that the Motown track was definitely the better one for me, typically I love the style of classic rock and the motown track was much closer to my comfort zone than the singer songwriter track I thought. The first time I listened to the motown track I could hear certain songs that I know such as "The Ronettes be my baby" in the intro and they would have been classed as R&B, Pop and Rock and Roll which is why I thought it was quite close to home for me. To get ready for the motown track I did some research on some of the artists in the genre such as Marvin Gaye, The Supremes and the Jackson Five, and what I mean by research is their vocal traits and how some differed from others, just listening to some of their vocals I could get an idea of how I

Read More

More about Motown Research Paper

Related Topics

Open Document