Motown: The Musical

My earliest Motown memory is purchasing Stevie Wonder's "Fingertips Pt. 1" 45. And then Smokey Robinson and The Miracles' "You've Really Got a Hold on Me" was a relative's wedding theme that was played in ridiculously heavy rotation, Mary Wells dominated summer '62 and '63 block parties with "Two Lovers", "You've Beat Me to the Punch" and the iconic "My Guy" all penned and produced by Smokey. "Shotgun" sparked a dance craze at the same summer gatherings. My mother even owned the eventual Motown signature song, "MONEY", the copy she owned I believe was actually on the Detroit subsidiary, Golden World. Gradually, I began to notice that all of these singles had some relationship to each other by reading the label copy on the 45s, that said distributed and marketed by Motown Records.Then in the wondrous summer of '64, I fell in love with two songs, "Where Did Our Love Go" by The Supremes and "Walk on By" by Dionne Warwick. Earlier that year, I became enraptured by The Beatles craze as I watched their historic debut on Ed Sullivan, our Sunday evening family ritual on television.And then I saw The Supremes artwork from the "Where Did Our Love Go" single and album. I believe I also saw them first on my favorite teen dance show, The Lloyd Thaxton Show from Los Angeles. They dominated the American Bandstand Top 10 chart. By Christmas '64, I was a Bonafide Supremes fan! Between August 1964-December 1964, The Supremes had 3 #1 hits with "Come See About Me" being the 3rd and my absolute favorite. Neighbors and relatives gave me 4 copies of "Baby Love" unbeknown to them that "Come See About Me" had become my winning triumph! And then in December '64, just as The Beatles had captivated the world .......by the end of the year, The Supremes would close out the year with the same power and dominance.December '64, "The T.A.M.I. Show" hit movie theaters branding Smokey Robinson and The Miracles, Marvin Gaye and a trio of their hits by The Supremes would elevate Motown to being my "Force Behind the Power"!!!! The Four Tops "I Can't Help Myself" ably described how I felt about the Motown evolution!So after many years of diligent hard work, label visionary, Master Berry Gordy finally brings "Motown: The Musical" to Broadway. Fulfilling on the daunting tasks of capturing the numerous hits and stars the label created, it comes as little surprise that after only 3 months, the musical has grossed nearly $20 mil, against a $14 mil production costs, posting profits for all investors and producers.Insisting on writing the book himself, Mr. Gordy, may not have achieved the theatrical praise for the Playbook, but like, "Mama Mia", the Motown Songbook overrode any criticism as audiences have embraced it.Based on Mr. Gordy's love affair with his "Star", La Diva Diana Ross!, " Motown: The Musical" has been an absolute sensation. The Tony Awards nominated Ms. Valisa LeKae as La Ross and the portion performed on the show brought tears to my eyes.Like "And I Tell You I'm Not Going" from the Broadway smash about The Supremes, " Dreamgirls", Mr. Gordy penned an original showstopper, "Can I Close the Door (On Love)" sung by the character based on Mr. Gordy......the song has yet to get the overwhelming awareness it deserves. There is soooo much to love and embrace about this creative endeavor that given time, the song will hopefully find the praise it truly deserves.But the performances of Martha Reeves and the Vandellas characters "Dancing in the Streets", the to be expected characters of Michael Jackson and The Jackson 5, Stevie Wonder and Marvin Gaye have been instantly embraced.....in due time, I suspect audiences will be returning for another showing. Ms. Ross' has already seen it twice! I plan to see it numerous times as I always get lost in the music, movies, Broadway, etc. projects.......this cast album is triumphant! I hope and predict that "Motown: The Musical" will last into the next millennium! Its that good. In many ways, it captures so many moments of my personal life. In tribute to my beloved friends Alton and Charles. These two friends and I seem to be on the same page about every glorious moment and songs......it is a tribute to our lives together. For that, Motown is truly the soundtrack of my life!

I went to see this show on Broadway one afternoon in April 2013 soon after it opened. It's basically the entire history of Motown Records from its inception in the 1950s to its 25th anniversary celebration in 1983 with creator Barry Gordy as the main character. It's quite a laborious plot to manage at times, particularly in the second act when many performers of the Motown label from the 1980s (many forgettable too) take to the stage. But the great music and, more importantly, the performers who make up the cast, save "Motown: The Musical" and make it both a pleasurable and engaging theater experience. Most reviews I saw before seeing this show in April were mixed. The overall consensus was that it was good, but it could have been better.Many of the performances on this CD do a good job showcasing the original Motown sound while adding a twist here and there to surprise the listener who may have heard some of these songs a million times before. This is particularly true in the mash-up of the song "War" and Marvin Gaye's classic "What's Going On". If ever there was a musical moment that captured the confusion and frustration of the late 1960s, this is it. In fact, the arrangement of "What's Going On" here brings out more of the beauty of the lyrics and music that I personally think are somewhat lost on the original.As for the performers, look no further (although you easily could) to two prominently featured in this production. First is Valisia LeKae, who does an amazing transformation into Diana Ross. Although her role suffers from too much time spent on what I think is the pinnacle of cringe-worthy songs - "Reach Out and Touch (Somebody's Hand)" - I can hardly blame her for that. The rest of her performance is spot on in terms of her look and her voice. Also of note is Charl Brown who plays Smokey Robinson with equal ability. When Brown is shown performing "You Really Got A Hold On Me" (portrayed in the show as being performed in the racially charged 1960s South) or in arguments with Gordy, he is touching in a way that some of the other characters just are not. As of this writing, both LeKae and Brown have both been nominated for Tony Awards, and at least one of them should win as a testament to the stunning talent that makes up this cast.Still, like the show, this cast recording also suffers from not being as good as it could have been. First, it is only 45 minutes long...SERIOUSLY?! With the wealth of great music and wonderful performances that make up this production, surely at least an hour of material for this CD could have been produced. Whoever made the decision to limit this to such an unnecessary time constraint should be fired! While much of the show's highlights are here, clearly more could have been included, and more should have been.The first glaring omission is "Ball of Confusion". The first and second acts split between the "War/What's Going On" track and a performance of "Ball of Confusion" by the Temptations, yet the latter is unfortunately omitted here. Perhaps that decision was made as there are a handful of Temptations tunes already included. However, the original recording of "Ball of Confusion" doesn't quite do justice to a great song, and the Broadway upgrade with this show I think made great strides to correct that.Then there is the issue with the two Michaels. Because Michael Jackson in the show is portrayed as 12 or so years old, two actors are needed to play the part for different performances: Raymond Luke, Jr. (included here) and Jibreel Mawry (not included here). The performance I saw had Mawry in the role, and he is equally as talented. Why he was not included here is a true puzzle. For instance, there is a great medley of Jackson 5 tunes, and two different vocalists could have easily traded singing duties on it. In addition, the show also features a performance of "I'll Be There" and this could have been included with Mawry singing.Yet, these oversights can ultimately be forgiven because the incredible music and performers that make up this production are just too good to be ignored. I know they are too good because I saw this show with my mom. She grew up with this music when she was a teenager in the 1960s, and she played it a lot while I was growing up too. Taking her to see this show was a minor way for me to thank her for introducing this music to me as it has become part of my life as well. For her to say that many of the performers, particularly LeKae and Brown, looked and sounded so much like the real people she remembers from almost 50 years ago shows how right some aspects of this production truly are. "Motown: The Musical" is not a groundbreaking musical, but then it doesn't have to be; it simply has to stir up memories of good times while creating new ones. I can honestly say that, despite its shortcomings, this show did that for both of us that afternoon last April.

I never saw the show and don't know that I ever will. I can say, though, that the tunes on this soundtrack (technically a "cast recording") represent most of the best of Sixties Motown: exuberant, poppy, soulful, and for the time very cutting-edge. If the idea of a "jukebox musical" is to take us back to earlier times, this CD really fills the bill.

The vocals recorded are awful because the location of the mic to pick up the vocals must have been located far away from the performers. I did not expect to get this very amateur style recording of a Hit Broadway Show. A big waste of money!

Relive all those great Motown hits This soundtrack really takes you back. The vocals are terrific, It's classic.

Some of my sisters and a brother and better halves, attended this musical in Detroit, we went to a matinee and then to one of the houses for a casual dinner I saw this CD on n Amazon, recorded by the Broadway Cast, and ordered CD's to give as Christmas gifts to those who had gone. It was a nice way of sharing a memory of the very pleasant day we had spent together.

Wow! It's Berry Gordy, how could it miss. From the opening downbeat, to the closing upbeat, it's fantastic! The kind of music you want to blast thru-out the house and get up and dance to. Loved the Broadway show; especially the gorgeous Valisia who does such a marvelous job in Diana Ross role and Raymond who plays a young Michael Jackson (captures his personality so well). Whole cast is outstanding. Get your Motown CD now and tix ahead of time if planning a trip to NYC.

Fun to listen to - after seeing the production I am enjoying it. The case was broken.

Went to see the show at blackpool it was fantastic I would go to see it again so I bought the CD

After going to see Motown The Musical in London, thought I would purchase this CD. I just love it!! One great song after another. If you like Motown, you will love this. Remember, its from the original cast. Go & buy folks.

excellent

I saw the show in May 14. This recording inckudes all the musical items. Almost all the music is well known Motown hits. The availabilty of a DVD would be better.

Excellent cd. Loved all the songs.