Eddie kendricks greatest hits11/9/2023 When I got to be older my number one singing idol was Jackie Wilson. There was singing in my house at all times. The first voice I ever really remember hearing was Sarah Vaughan’s, and I heard people like Billy Eckstine, Frank Sinatra, Patti Page, Sammy Davis and people like that. Singing cowboys aside, who were the first singers you listened to? And when I got to the age of about 12 they just dropped the Joe off and I’ve been Smokey ever since. Whenever anybody else asked me what my name was I used to tell them it was Smokey Joe ( laughs). And he had a cowboy name for me, Smokey Joe. I loved cowboys, especially the ones who sang. He started taking me from when I was two or three years old to see cowboy movies. Given such a starry history, a brief straw poll in the MOJO office ascertained that, the writer aside, no one knew how William Robinson came by his nickname – that warm, floaty voice perhaps? Many of those classics have been covered by white pop and rock acts from You’ve Really Got A Hold On Me on 1963’s With The Beatles onwards Joining founder Berry Gordy virtually from the start, Robinson was a hit songwriter, producer and artist whose ear for a phrase enabled him to spin lyrics of gold, and with his beautifully delicate high tenor gave the melodies wings, be it investing conversational turns of phrase like, “I’m just about, at the end of my rope,” with a real emotional ache in Ooo Baby, B aby, this writer’s favourite Smokey confection – well, today, anyway – or writing any number of perfect songs for The Temptations, Marvin Gaye, Mary Wells, The Marvelettes, pretty much the entire Motown roster. He’s always been a friendly and open talker, despite some facts seeming to change over the years for reasons, one surmises, of natural diplomacy.īorn in 1940 into a preposterously febrile hotbed of Detroit musical talent, William Robinson exemplified the artistic excellence of Motown, the most totemic black-owned company of the 20th century. The head of tight black curls remains, a gold chain hangs around his neck, but most striking are the eyes – large, opaque, pale green irises that seem to both look inside you and disguise what he might be thinking.ĭown the decades this writer has interviewed Robinson four or five times from the mid ’70s to late last year for the MOJO 20th anniversary. He’s looking fit, dressed in black sweater, black slacks, black slip-on shoes. As part of MOJO’s 30th birthday celebrations you can read the interview in full.ĭURING A BRIEF LONDON STOP-OVER, en route to perform at Edinburgh Castle in celebration of the start of the Commonwealth Games, Smokey Robinson is taking time out to promote his new album of duets. “I want people to sing my songs for ever,” he told Geoff Brown. In 2014 MOJO sat down with Smokey to hear his story. Then death and divorce pushed him to the edge, but music pulled him back. ISBN 978-0-8223-8511-0.Smokey Robinson’s exquisitely crafted songs and singing of infinite style helped create Motown. Love Saves the Day: A History of American Dance Music Culture, 1970-1979. : CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list ( link) ^ Spanos, David Browne,Mankaprr Conteh,Jon Dolan,Kory Grow,Keith Harris,Christian Hoard,Elias Leight,Angie Martoccio,Jason Newman,Rob Sheffield,Hank Shteamer,Brittany Browne, David Conteh, Mankaprr Dolan, Jon Grow, Kory Harris, Keith Hoard, Christian Leight, Elias Martoccio, Angie ().Hot Stuff: Disco and the Remaking of American Culture.
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