Welcome to the Routine Rewind series on the Diamond Dolls blog!

Diamond Dolls Performing Motown At The Merc

We will be taking a look back at some of our past routines and giving them a historical and cultural context covering things from song inspirations, artist highlights, discussing the origins of the dance styles, and more.

This month we are taking a look back at the inspiration behind our routine “Motown” choreographed by Delilah Williams to “(I Know I’m) Losing You” by The Temptations.

https://www.motownmuseum.org/artist/temptations/ — Image Source: Motown Museum

The Temptations

The Temptations were made up of five original members (known as the “Classic Five”), Otis Williams, Melvin Franklin, Elbridge “Al” Bryant, Eddie Kendricks, and Paul Williams. They got together after their former groups disbanded. Their original groups were doo-wop. They auditioned together and were signed by Motown in March of 1961.

Originally, The Temptations did not find success, and people at Motown would call them “The Hitless Temptations”. However, they went on to have numerous hits including “The Way You Do the Things You Do”, “My Girl”, “All I Need”, and “(I Know I’m) Losing You”.

They often performed medleys of their songs on the Ed Sullivan show between 1967 and 1971. Check out their first performance, which showcased one of their mashups. America was not only enamored with their catchy music, but also their smooth dance moves, originally choreographed by Paul WIlliams, and then later on by Cholly Atkins.

Information from https://www.edsullivan.com/artists/the-temptations/

What is motown?

“An irresistible force of social and cultural change, the legendary Motown catalog made its mark on not just the music industry, but society at large. With its catchy melodies and universal messages, the Motown Sound has become one of the most significant musical accomplishments and stunning success stories of the 20th century.”

“The Motown Sound jumped out of Studio A in Detroit and onto the turntables of teenagers across America. Unlike anything listeners had ever heard, Motown songs married the saintly and the secular—merging the call-and-response patterns of black gospel music with the syncopation and improvisation of the bebop movement in jazz.”

“The Motown Sound owes some of its uniqueness to the reverb effect created by pumping tracks through the label’s Echo Chamber, in the days before computers and synthesizers.”

Above excerpts quoted from https://www.motownmuseum.org/legacy/

Image:Smokey Robinson, left, with Motown founder Berry Gordy in 1981. https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/motown-stories-smokey-robinson-1096473/ — **Image:Smokey Robinson, left, with Motown founder Berry Gordy in 1981.**
**https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/motown-stories-smokey-robinson-1096473/**

History of motown

“Like most American genres, it originated and started in Detroit. In 1959, the Detroit-born Berry Gordy, originally an automobile worker and a boxer, founded his first label, Tamla Records. He was only 29 years old at the time, and he didn’t have the kind of money to build a label. He did it on an $800 loan from his family’s savings.When Berry Gordy created the company it was all about R&B music.

Merely one year later, he met with Smokey Robinson, a ten-years-younger songwriter who helped him put the foundation of Motown Sound. Another year later, Motown produced ‘Please Mr. Postman’ that The Marvelettes sang. It became the first No.1 song of Motown Sound, and a lot of songs later followed.

Then, it moved into other genres like New Jack Swing and Psychedelic Soul, sealing its iconic status as one of America’s most renowned labels.

In the music world, Motown can be identified both as a label and a music genre. It’s believed that no other record company in the music industry managed to get to the Motown Sound’s ranks.

The label helped introduce an array of famous worldwide artists, including Diana Ross, The Jackson 5, Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, and Martha & The Vandellas.The Motown Sound reached unrivaled fame, up to the point that a whole genre was based on it.
Although they started strong, Motown never reached their high ranks until well into the Sixties.”

Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
https://www.udiscovermusic.com/artist/diana-ross-the-supremes/

Throughout the decade, they produced a multitude of songs that are unrivaled to our day. The list goes long, but here’s a brief preview:

Dancing in the Street – Martha & The Vandellas

Heat Wave – Martha & The Vandellas

Where Did Our Love Go – The Supremes

Reach Out; I’ll be There – Four Tops

Get Ready – The Temptations

Stop! In the Name of Love – The Supremes

The Way You Do the Things You Do – The Temptations

Excerpts quoted from https://promusicianhub.com/what-is-motown-music/

What makes Motown, motown?

During its heyday, Motown was a hit factory. So where did they get that infectious sound? Gordy drew inspiration from his time working in the Detroit Lincoln-Mercury Plant. Everything was done in-house. From start to finish: songwriting, arranging, recording, mastering, publishing, and artist relations.

While we often think about the vocalists when it comes to Motown, there was tons of talent behind the scene as well, specifically their backing bank The Funk Brothers. This band was not a performing band, but instead was the backdrop to tons of hits throughout the years. It was made up of many musicians, local and traveling, but only 13 members are officially recognized as members of The Funk Brothers.

As far as rhythm, many Motown songs emphasized the beats two and four, also known as the backbeat.

Information from: https://reverb.com/news/video-what-makes-motown-sound-like-motown

what about the dancing?

While most people know of The Temptations, not as many know of their choreographer that helped give them their signature moves. While Paul Williams gave The Temptations their first dance moves, Cholly Atkins developed them into a well rounded performing act. Atkins grew up tap dancing, however found little success because of segregation in Hollywood. Before he worked with Motown Records, he would record tap sounds that were dubbed over white dancers.

In the Artist Development Department, they focused on growing young artists into versatile entertainers. Cholly helped numerous artists with their “vocal choreography”. “It was dancing that accommodated a singer’s need to breathe and to get back to the microphone on time. In the right spots, it could be complex — feet following the bass line as voices sang a different rhythm.”

Information from: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/13/arts/dance/temptations-sergio-trujillo.html

Image of Cholly Atkins from https://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/atkins-cholly-1913-2003/

what happened to motown?

“Around the time of the '67 Detroit riots, however, things changed, as they eventually had to. Gordy looked west, towards Los Angeles (how could such a large entertainment company as his not be involved in movies and television?). Dissatisfied with the increasing disconnect between the success of their work and the level of their pay, Holland-Dozier-Holland broke off from Motown. And while the Jackson 5 was on the rise, most of the rock-steady Motown acts of the early '60s were on the wane. In 1971, though, the label released what is arguably its grandest artistic statement, something not at all of a piece with its previous, poppy output. Marvin Gaye put out What's Going On, a thoughtful, socially conscious album whose title track Gordy famously called the worst song he had ever heard. A year later, Motown deserted Detroit for L.A.

It was arguably the last great burst of Motown creativity. Gordy, distracted by Hollywood, released two films starring Diana Ross — Mahogany and the Billie Holiday biopic Lady Sings the Blues. The 80s brought Rick James and Lionel Richie and The Big Chill — a white, yuppie film with an amazing Motown soundtrack ("Aint Too Proud To Beg" was reduced to dishwashing music). By 1988, Gordy had had enough; he sold the company to MCA, which in turn sold it to Polygram, which in turn was bought by Universal.”

Excerpts quoted from http://content.time.com/time/arts/article/0,8599,1870975,00.html