"A Love She Can Count On" is a 1963 hit single by Motown Records R&B group

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 group ...

, issued on that label's

Tamla Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ''moto ...

subsidiary label. It was taken from their album ''

The Fabulous Miracles ''The Fabulous Miracles'' is a 1963 album by The Miracles featuring the million-selling ''Grammy Hall of Fame'' hit, "You've Really Got a Hold on Me", one of the group's most popular singles. It also features the chart hits " A Love She Can Count ...

'', and was the follow-up to the group's million-selling

Grammy Hall of Fame The Grammy Hall of Fame is a hall of fame to honor musical recordings of lasting qualitative or historical significance. Inductees are selected annually by a special member committee of eminent and knowledgeable professionals from all branches of ...

inducted tune, "

You've Really Got A Hold On Me "You've Really Got a Hold on Me" is a song written by Smokey Robinson, which became a 1962 Top 10 hit single for the Miracles. One of the Miracles' most covered tunes, this million-selling song received a 1998 Grammy Hall of Fame Award. It has al ...

". The first of three singles released by The Miracles that year, this song was a Billboard Top 40 Pop Hit, peaking at number 31, and missed the Top 20 of its R&B chart by only one position, peaking at number 21. Written and produced by Miracles lead singer Smokey Robinson, "A Love She Can Count On" features the same bluesy sound and feel of "Hold On Me", featuring the gospel-inspired harmonies of Miracles members

Bobby Rogers Robert Edward Rogers (February 19, 1940 – March 3, 2013) was an American musician and tenor singer, best known as a member of Motown vocal group the Miracles from 1956 until his death. He was inducted, in 2012, as a member of the Miracles to t ...

Claudette Robinson Claudette Annette Rogers Robinson ( Rogers; born June 20, 1938) is an American singer, best known as a member of the vocal group The Miracles from 1957 to 1972. Her brother Emerson "Sonny" Rogers was a founding member of the group, which befor ...

, Pete Moore, and

Ronnie White Ronald Anthony White (April 5, 1939 – August 26, 1995), usually referred to as Ronnie White, was an American singer, best known as the co-founder of The Miracles and its only consistent original member. White was also known for bringing Stevi ...

, and, like that previous song, begins with the guitar of Miracles member

Marv Tarplin Marvin Tarplin (June 13, 1941 – September 30, 2011) was an American musician, best known as the guitarist for the Miracles from the 1950s through the early 1970s. He was one of the group's original members and co-wrote several of their bigges ...

. However, that is where the similarities end; unlike the previous hit, with its theme of being in love with someone you don't like, "A Love She Can Count On" has as its theme undying love and loyalty, with Robinson, as the song's narrator, promising eternal love and devotion: The other Miracles participate in a sing-along

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 ...

with Smokey on the song's bridge, similar to the song that, according to Smokey, inspired both this song and "Hold On Me", Sam Cooke's 1962 hit " Bring It On Home to Me". The single and album versions of this song are noticeably different, the album version of "A Love She Can Count On" featuring a bluesy piano style as was done by its predecessor "You've Really Got A Hold On Me". For the most part the piano was deleted from the single version, not being featured as prominently. It also features a completely different vocal take. '' Cash Box'' described it as "a pulsating, shuffle beat ballad romancer that the songsters carve out in groovy style." Unlike almost all other singles from The Miracles, and indeed many other songs by the group, "A Love She Can Count On" has not yet been covered by major acts. This was also the case with the B-side of the single, "I Can Take A Hint", despite the fact that it was also a chart hit, reaching number 107 on the Billboard Pop chart. "A Love She Can Count On" appears on several Miracles "Greatest Hits" collections, including their album '' Greatest Hits from the Beginning'', and their 2009 two-CD set, '' The Miracles–Depend On Me: The Early Albums'' (which features both live and studio versions). The Miracles also performed a special extended version of the song on their first live album, 1963's '' The Miracles Recorded Live on Stage''. This song was also given an extended stereo remix in 2002 for the compilation ''Ooo Baby Baby: The Anthology''.

Personnel

* Lead vocals by Smokey Robinson * Background vocals by Claudette Rogers Robinson,

Warren "Pete" Moore Warren Thomas "Pete" Moore (November 19, 1938 – November 19, 2017) was an American singer-songwriter and record producer, notable as the bass singer for Motown group the Miracles from 1955 onwards, and was one of the group's original members. H ...

and

* Guitar by

* Other instrumentation by

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 stud ...

References

External links

The Miracles- A Love She Can Count On'' - Song Review from the ''Motown Junkies'' website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Love She Can Count On The Miracles songs Songs written by Smokey Robinson Tamla Records singles 1963 singles 1963 songs Song recordings produced by Smokey Robinson