The Miracles continued to be one of the cornerstones of Motown, maybe not hitting the number one spot as often as they would have liked but still very consistent. Smokey Robinson had developed into Berry Gordy’s right-hand man, songwriting and producing for the Miracles, of course, but for other Motown artists too.
In 1964, Claudette Robinson decided to give up touring in order to raise a family. She did, however, continue to sing with the group in the studio. The Miracles released four singles during the year, all of which charted on the Pop and R&B charts. The songs were varied in style, from slow shuffle ballads to up-tempo dance songs, but none was outstanding. The album “I Like It Like That” failed to chart.
Probably the most important event of the year for the group was the release of a film by American International Pictures entitled The T.A.M.I. Show, which was filmed at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium. The film featured performances by the Miracles, the Supremes, and Marvin Gaye, plus James Brown, the Rolling Stones, the Beach Boys and several other popular acts. Perhaps surprisingly, given the talent and the reputation of those involved, the Miracles provided one of the film’s highlights with their harmonies and their choreography.
The group had a good year in 1965, with the release of four singles, all taken from a new studio album, and a compilation of all their best songs, going right back to their first single with Berry Gordy, “Got A Job”, which had been put out by End Records.
In March, Tamla released “Ooo Baby Baby”, a slow romantic ballad that took the group back into the charts, peaking at number sixteen on the Billboard Hot 100 Singles Chart and number four on the Billboard R&B Singles Chart.
The follow-up did slightly better, reaching number sixteen again on the Billboard Hot 100 Singles Chart and climbing to number two on the Billboard R&B Singles Chart. The song had been built around a guitar riff that Marv Tarplin came up with, to which Smokey Robinson and Pete Moore added some outstanding lyrics. It is probably the best record that the Miracles ever made, and yet it failed to make it into the top ten yet alone reach number one. “The Tracks of My Tears” failed to chart in the UK too, on first release. But sales carried on building, so that within two years it had sold over a million copies in the USA, becoming the Miracles’ fourth gold-certified single. It was re-released in the UK in 1969, reaching number nine on the UK Official Pop Singles Chart and earning the group a silver disc from the BPI. Some songs take their time! It was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2007, and in 2008 the United States Library of Congress chose the track for preservation as culturally, historically and aesthetically significant. The co-writers of the song, Robinson, Moore and Tarplin, were also given the Award of Merit for the song. It still sounds as good as ever.
The third of the four singles was “My Girl Has Gone”, which amazingly charted higher than “The Tracks of My Tears”, reaching number fourteen on the Billboard Hot 100 Singles Chart but only number three on the Billboard R&B Singles Chart. It has strong echoes of the earlier hit musically but lacks the sadness in the lyrics and vocals.
The final single offered a change of style. It is an up-tempo, swinging dance tune entitled “Going to a Go-Go”. Despite being very repetitive, the single was the Miracles’ most successful release of the year, reaching number eleven on the Billboard Hot 100 Singles Chart and number two on the Billboard R&B Singles Chart. It also gave its name to the album “Going to a Go-Go”, which Tamla released in November. It sold extremely well, reaching number eight on the Billboard 200 Albums Chart and number one on the Billboard Soul & R&B Albums Chart.
The compilation “Greatest Hits From The Beginning” really is just that, with twenty-two of the Miracles’ best songs on a double album, released earlier in the year in March. It also sold well, reaching number twenty-one on the Billboard 200 Albums Chart and number two on the Billboard Soul & R&B Albums Chart. The Miracles could look back on a very good year, even though the recognition for their best song was still to come.
1966 brought the Miracles a quieter year in the studio, with only two singles and one album being released by Tamla. The first single, “Whole Lot of Shakin’ in My Heart (Since I Met You)”, was written and produced by Frank Wilson. The second, “(Come ‘Round Here) I’m the One You Need”, was a Holland, Dozier, Holland song. Both charted and both are included on the album “Away We A Go-Go”, which reached number forty-one on the Billboard 200 Albums Chart and number three on the Billboard R&B Albums Chart. The album contains a curious mixture of songs, with only four songs written by Smokey Robinson and members of the Miracles. There are good songs from Ivy Jo Hunter and Stevie Wonder, and Norman Whitfield and Eddie Holland, plus cover versions of two Dionne Warwick hits and a Dusty Springfield 1966 UK number one.
The Miracles were still the leading act on the Tamla label, but now with a change of name. Following the pattern set by the Supremes, the group was now renamed Smokey Robinson & the Miracles. 1967 saw the release of one album and three singles.
The album “Make It Happen” was released in August, their ninth studio album. It features six songs by Smokey Robinson, some co-written with various members of the group, plus one co-written by Robinson with Stevie Wonder (credited as Stevie Judkins) and Hank Cosby. This last track is the outstanding song on the album, “The Tears of a Clown”, which strangely wasn’t chosen for release as a single until 1970.
Holland, Dozier, Holland contributed one song, “It’s A Good Feeling”, which is an up-tempo dance track. The Stevie Wonder team contributed three more tracks: the slow, romantic ballad “My Love For You” from Clarence Paul and Morris Broadnax, the more up-tempo “My Love Is Your Love (Forever)” from Stevie Wonder and Ivy Jo Hunter, and “After You Put Back the Pieces (I’ll Still Have A Broken Heart)” from Stevie Wonder, Clarence Paul and Morris Broadnax, the best of the ballads. The fourth track on side one is the odd one out. It is a cover of Little Anthony & the Imperials’ 1964 hit “I’m On the Outside (Looking In)”, co-written by Bobby Weinstein and Teddy Randazzo. The album was mainly recorded in Studio A with some contributions from musicians in Los Angeles. Smokey Robinson was the executive producer, with Brian Holland, Lamont Dozier and Hank Cosby producing certain tracks.
Smokey Robinson & the Miracles
Photo: Billboard Trade Ad (Wikimedia Commons)
The album sold well, reaching number twenty-eight on the Billboard 200 Albums Chart and number three on the Billboard R&B Albums Chart. The two singles taken from the album also charted on the Billboard Hot 100 and R&B Singles Charts. “The Love I Saw In You Was Just A Mirage” reached numbers twenty and ten respectively, while “More Love” peaked at numbers twenty-three and five. Overall, another good year for the group but one which lacked an outstanding hit.
Then, in October, Tamla released “I Second That Emotion”, which Smokey Robinson had recently written with Al Cleveland. It is a bouncy, singable composition that has the secret ingredient needed to make a big hit, charm. Everyone liked it and sang along. It went on to sell over a million copies, achieving the best chart position of all their singles since “Shop Around”, reaching number four on the Billboard Hot 100 Singles Chart and number one on the Billboard R&B Singles Chart. It also sold well in Canada and the UK. By the end of 1967, the group had had a very good year. The excellent guitar lines were the work of Marv Tarplin, Eddie Willis and Robert White. The song was later recorded by the Supremes and the Temptations together.
The work that the group recorded over this four year period cemented their position as one of the most reliable acts at Motown. Smokey Robinson’s talent as a songwriter meant that Motown could count on a succession of great songs, with regular outstanding hits.
