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That Day When She Needed Me
"That Day When She Needed Me" (also known as "I was a Thousand Miles Away That Day When She Needed Me"), is a 1964 R&B song by the Motown Records group The Contours, on the label's Gordy Records subsidiary imprint. Issued as the "B" side of their hit " Can You Jerk Like Me", this song broke out as a hit on its own, reaching #37 on the ''Cash Box'' R&B listings that year.(Billboard had temporarily suspended its R&B Chart in 1964.) Written, composed, and produced by Miracles lead singer Smokey Robinson, this song was different from every other tune the Contours had recorded up to that point. A unique counterpoint to the group's trademark rough, raucous delivery, "That Day" was a soft, quiet, and heart-felt ballad with a unique call and response delivery,(structured like a ''"question and answer session"''). Though the song wasn't on the "A" side, it still became a hit, making it The Contours' only charting flip-side hit. In the song, Billy Gordon, the lead singer, acts as the na ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Contours
The Contours is one of the early American soul singing groups signed to Motown Records. The group is best known for its classic chart-topping 1962 hit, "Do You Love Me", which sold over 1 million copies and became a major hit again in 1988. History Establishment and "Do You Love Me" Joe Billingslea (born November 14, 1937) and Billy Gordon founded a singing group called the Blenders in their native Detroit, Michigan in 1959. They completed the group with Billy Hoggs and Billy Rollins, who had responded to an ad placed in the local newspaper by Billingslea. The group soon added Leroy Fair (in place of Billy Rollins), and bass singer Hubert Johnson, and changed the name to "The Contours". In the fall of 1960, the group auditioned for Berry Gordy's Motown Records. Gordy turned the act down, prompting the group to pay a visit to the home of Johnson's cousin, R&B star and Gordy associate Jackie Wilson. Wilson in turn got the Contours a second audition with Gordy, at which they sang t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sylvester Potts
Sylvester Potts was a singer and composer as well as an off and on member of The Contours and a one time member of The Four Sonics. Songs that he has either composed or co-composed have been recorded by The Contours, Mamie Galore, Jimmy Ruffin and The Temptations. Personal Sylvester Potts was on January 22, 1938, and attended North Eastern High, the same school where Martha Reeves, Mary Wilson, and Bobby Rogers were educated at. Owing to his love of the music and the excitement he got from it once said he wanted to die on stage. Career 1950s In the late 1950s, Sylvester Potts was a member of a group called The Hi-Fidelities whose line up consisted of Huey Davis, Potts, Juanita Davis and Tony York. They released two singles, "Street Of Loneliness" bw Pott's own composition, "Help Murder Police" on Hi-Q 5000 in 1957, and "Last Night I Cried" bw "Just Go" on Fortune 528 in 1958. In 1959 late 1950s, Billy Gordon, Billy Hoggs, Joe Billingslea, Potts and Hubert Johnson formed The Blen ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Songs Written By Smokey Robinson
A song is a musical composition intended to be performed by the human voice. This is often done at distinct and fixed pitches (melodies) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs contain various forms, such as those including the repetition and variation of sections. Written words created specifically for music, or for which music is specifically created, are called lyrics. If a pre-existing poem is set to composed music in classical music it is an art song. Songs that are sung on repeated pitches without distinct contours and patterns that rise and fall are called chants. Songs composed in a simple style that are learned informally "by ear" are often referred to as folk songs. Songs that are composed for professional singers who sell their recordings or live shows to the mass market are called popular songs. These songs, which have broad appeal, are often composed by professional songwriters, composers, and lyricists. Art songs are composed by trained classical composers fo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Contours Songs
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the most frequently used word in the English language; studies and analyses of texts have found it to account for seven percent of all printed English-language words. It is derived from gendered articles in Old English which combined in Middle English and now has a single form used with pronouns of any gender. The word can be used with both singular and plural nouns, and with a noun that starts with any letter. This is different from many other languages, which have different forms of the definite article for different genders or numbers. Pronunciation In most dialects, "the" is pronounced as (with the voiced dental fricative followed by a schwa) when followed by a consonant sound, and as (homophone of pronoun ''thee'') when followed by a v ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1964 Songs
Events January * January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved. * January 5 - In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patriarch Athenagoras I of Constantinople meet in Jerusalem. * January 6 – A British firm, the Leyland Motor Corp., announces the sale of 450 buses to the Cuban government, challenging the United States blockade of Cuba. * January 9 – ''Martyrs' Day'': Armed clashes between United States troops and Panamanian civilians in the Panama Canal Zone precipitate a major international crisis, resulting in the deaths of 21 Panamanians and 4 U.S. soldiers. * January 11 – United States Surgeon General Luther Terry reports that smoking may be hazardous to one's health (the first such statement from the U.S. government). * January 12 ** Zanzibar Revolution: The predominantly Arab government of Zanzibar is overthrown by African nationalist rebels; a Uni ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Funk Brothers
The Funk Brothers were a group of Detroit-based session musicians who performed the backing to most Motown recordings from 1959 until the company moved to Los Angeles in 1972. Its members are considered among the most successful groups of studio musicians in music history. Among their hits are " My Girl", "I Heard It Through the Grapevine", "Baby Love", " I Was Made to Love Her", "Papa Was a Rollin' Stone", "The Tears of a Clown", "Ain't No Mountain High Enough", and "Heat Wave". Some combination of the members played on each of Motown's 100-plus U.S. R&B number one singles and 50-plus U.S. Pop number ones released from 1961 to 1972. There is no undisputed list of the members of the group. Some writers have claimed that virtually every musician who ever played on a Motown track was a "Funk Brother". There are 13 Funk Brothers identified in Paul Justman's 2002 documentary film ''Standing in the Shadows of Motown'', based on Allan Slutsky's book of the same name. These 13 memb ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sly, Slick And Wicked (not The Cleveland Band)
Sly, Slick & Wicked is an American rhythm and blues band from Cleveland, Ohio. The group was formed in 1970 by John (Sly) Wilson, Charles (Slick) Still, and Mark (Wicked) Saxton. Two years after their formation, Terry Stubbs replaced Saxton and Maurice Reedus Jr. became part of their backup musicians. Their song "Stay My Love" was a Top Ten rhythm-and-blues song in 1971, and Polydor issued a 1972 follow-up, "It's Not Easy." On the strength of these recordings, James Brown asked them to work for People Records, a sublabel of Polydor run by Brown. This made the band a part of what was called James Brown's "First Family of Soul." In 1973, John Wilson wrote the song "Sho' Nuff", which the band recorded with People Records that same year. The success of this record led Don Cornelius to sign the band to appear on Soul Train. Later, the band became part of The O'Jays' Shaker Records, creating the song "Turn On Your Lovelight" in 1974. Around 1976, the band signed with Motown. T ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hubert Johnson (musician)
Hubert Johnson (January 14, 1941 – July 11, 1981) was an American singer and performer. Johnson is best known for being one of the original members of the Motown R&B vocal group The Contours. Johnson was also the cousin of the late Jackie Wilson. Career In 1959, local Detroit musician Joe Billingslea formed a band called "The Blenders" with fellow musicians Billy Gordon and Billy Hoggs. The next year, at the recommendation of Johnson's cousin Jackie Wilson, Johnson joined the trio making it a quartet and, at the recommendation of Billingslea, the group changed their name to "The Contours". Shortly after the renaming, Berry Gordy signed the group on to his new recording company Motown. The group's first hit came with the release of the single "Do You Love Me" in 1962. The group also achieved success with the songs " Shake Sherry" and "That Day When She Needed Me" in 1963 and 1964. In 1964, within a matter of two weeks, Johnson along with Billingslea, Gordon, Hoggs and Cont ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Joe Billingslea
Joseph Billingslea, Jr. (born November 14, 1937) is an American singer and performer. He is most noted for being the lead singer and the founder of the R&B band The Contours in 1959. The Contours were best known for its 1962 hit single, "Do You Love Me". Early life Joseph Billingslea, Jr. was born on November 14, 1937 in Hamtramck, Michigan. Before his first birthday, his parents moved to Detroit where he was raised. He sang with the boys' choir while attending Chadsey High School where he graduated in 1954. After graduation, he enlisted in the United States Air Force. While stationed in the Maine, Billingslea formed a vocal group with four other airmen called the "Revere Tone Five". After receiving an honorable discharge following his four-year stint, he returned to Detroit in 1958. Career Upon his return from the air force in 1958, Billingslea was invited by an old high school friend, Billy Gordon, to join his singing group, "The Majestics". In 1958, the group disbanded, so B ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Call And Response
Call and response is a form of interaction between a speaker and an audience in which the speaker's statements ("calls") are punctuated by responses from the listeners. This form is also used in music, where it falls under the general category of antiphony. African cultures In some African cultures, call-and-response is a widespread pattern of democratic participation—in public gatherings, in the discussion of civic affairs, in religious rituals, as well as in vocal and instrumental musical expression (see call and response in music). African bondsmen and bondswomen in the Americas continued this practice over the centuries in various forms of expression—in religious observance; public gatherings; even in children's rhymes; and, most notably, in music in its multiple forms: blues, gospel, rhythm and blues, soul, jazz, hip-hop and go-go. Many work songs sung on plantations by enslaved men and women also incorporate the call and response format. African-American Women Work Son ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Can You Jerk Like Me
"Can You Jerk Like Me" (Gordy G7037) is a 1964 R&B song by Motown Records group The Contours, issued on its Gordy Records subsidiary. It charted on the Billboard Hot 100, reaching #47, and a Top 20 hit on its R&B chart, reaching #15. A single-only release, it did not appear on any original Contours studio album, as the group only had one album release during their five years on the label, 1962's " Do You Love Me (Now That I Can Dance)". (Note: It has been recently revealed that this song was recorded for a planned, but unreleased, Contours album for Motown in 1964 entitled ''The Contours: Can You Dance'' (Gordy 910). This album was released, in modified form, by the import label, Kent Records, in 2011 under the name ''Dance With The Contours'' under license from Motown Records). The song's flip side, the Smokey Robinson-written-and-produced "That Day When She Needed Me", which featured the original Contours before their departure, was also a hit, reaching #37 on the Cash Box R&B ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Miracles
The Miracles (also known as Smokey Robinson and the Miracles from 1965 to 1972) were an American vocal group that was the first successful recording act for Berry Gordy's Motown Records, and one of the most important and most influential groups in pop, rock and roll, soul and R&B music history. Referred to as Motown's "soul supergroup", the Miracles recorded 26 Top 40 Pop hits, sixteen of which reached the ''Billboard'' Top 20, seven top 10 singles, and a number one single ("The Tears of a Clown") while the Robinsons and Tarplin were members. Following the departure of Tarplin and the Robinsons, the rest of the group continued with singer Billy Griffin and managed by Martin Pichinson who helped rebuild the Miracles, they scored two final top 20 singles, "Do It Baby" and " Love Machine", a second No. 1 hit, which topped the charts before the group departed for Columbia Records in 1977, recording as a quintet with Billy's brother Donald Griffin replacing Marv Tarplin, where afte ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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