"Love Machine" is a 1975 single recorded by

Motown 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 ...

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 ...

, taken from their album '' City of Angels''. The song was a #1 Pop smash on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, and the biggest-selling hit single of The Miracles' career. This single was one of two ''Billboard'' Hot 100 Top 20 hits recorded by The Miracles with Billy Griffin as lead vocalist; the other is 1973's " Do It Baby". Griffin had replaced Miracles founder

Smokey Robinson William "Smokey" Robinson Jr. (born February 19, 1940) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and former record executive director. He was the founder and front man of the Motown vocal group the Miracles, for which he was also chief ...

as lead singer in 1972. The song features a growling vocal by Miracle

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 ...

, with group

baritone A baritone is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the bass and the tenor voice-types. The term originates from the Greek (), meaning "heavy sounding". Composers typically write music for this voice in the ...

Ronnie White repeating "yeah, baby" throughout the song.

Background

Engineered and mixed by

Kevin Beamish Kevin Keith Beamish is an American record producer, sound engineer, songwriter and mixer. Born in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, he became a naturalized American citizen at the age of nine. Classically trained on woodwind instruments, he secured a rec ...

, "Love Machine" was produced by Freddie Perren, a former member of The Corporation brain trust in charge of the early Jackson 5 hits. It was written by Billy Griffin and his Miracles group-mate, original Miracle Pete Moore, with whom he wrote the rest of the ''City of Angels'' tracks as well. The song's lyrics, delivered over a

disco Disco is a genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the 1970s from the United States' urban nightlife scene. Its sound is typified by four-on-the-floor beats, syncopated basslines, string sections, brass and horns, electric p ...

beat, compare a lover to an electronic device such as a computer or a robot. The seven-minute song was split into two parts for its release as a single, with "Part 1" receiving most notoriety. "Love Machine" was the only two-part single of the Miracles' career. "Love Machine" was a multi-million selling Platinum single, and a number-one smash hit on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100, the best-selling single of the Miracles' career, having sold over 4.5 million copies. The single went to #5 on the

Hot Soul Singles The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by ''Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 p ...

chart, and went to #20 on ''

Record World ''Record World'' magazine was one of the three main music industry trade magazines in the United States, along with '' Billboard'' and '' Cashbox''. It was founded in 1946 under the name ''Music Vendor'', but in 1964 it was changed to ''Record W ...

s National Disco file Top 20 chart. It was also a Top 10 hit in the UK, peaking at number three on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

Personnel

* Lead vocals by Billy Griffin * Background vocals by

, Ronnie White and Pete Moore * Growling by Bobby Rogers * "Yeah, baby" vocals by Ronnie White * Instrumentation by various

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...

studio musicians

Chart positions

All-time charts

"Love Machine", to which Griffin and co-writer Miracle Pete Moore retained publishing rights through their publishing company Grimora Music (instead of Motown's music publishing company, Jobete), is the most-used song in Motown history and has generated more than $15 million in revenues.

Use in media

The term "love machine" was popularized in 1969 by Jacqueline Susann's best-selling

novel A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itself ...

of the same title. The Miracles' "Love Machine" has since been used in many different commercials, motion pictures and television shows, including: * Jesse Katsopolis and friends sang the song in the 1988 episode of the ABC TV series ''

Full House ''Full House'' is an American television Situation comedy, sitcom created by Jeff Franklin for American Broadcasting Company, ABC. The show is about widowed father Danny Tanner who enlists his brother-in-law Jesse Katsopolis and childhood best ...

'' episode, "The Seven-Month Itch" (Part 2) * The first 30 seconds of the song was featured in a couple of

Denny's Denny's (also known as Denny's Diner on some of the locations' signage) is an American table service diner-style restaurant chain. It operates over 1,700 restaurants in many countries. Description Originally opened as a coffee shop under t ...

restaurant television commercials in the 1980s, depicting a mother hen and her chicks dancing to this tune for their Grand Slam Breakfasts. * The 1995 Disney film '' Heavyweights'' * The 1997 crime film ''

Donnie Brasco Joseph Dominick Pistone (born September 17, 1939), is an American former FBI agent who worked undercover as Donnie Brasco between September 1976 and July 1981, as part of an infiltration primarily into the Bonanno crime family, and to a lesser ...

'' * The 1998 disco film '' 54'' * The 2000 film '' Coyote Ugly'', the scene of the wedding of Violet's friend (played by

Melanie Lynskey Melanie Jayne Lynskey ( ; born 16 May 1977) is a New Zealand actress widely known for her portrayals of complex women in several independent films and television shows and also known for her command of American dialects. Lynskey is the recipi ...

). * The 2002 film ''

The New Guy ''The New Guy'' is a 2002 American teen comedy film directed by Ed Decter, written by David Kendall and starring DJ Qualls and Eliza Dushku. The film tells the story of high school loser Dizzy Harrison (Qualls) who gets himself expelled so t ...

'' * Around 2004, the hotel chain Travelodge started to use the song with the brand's mascot bear dancing. * The movie trailer for the 2000 animated film '' Chicken Run'' * The TV spot for the 2001 Pixar film '' Monsters, Inc.'' * A new version of the song also appears in the 2013 Disney film, ''

Planes Plane(s) most often refers to: * Aero- or airplane, a powered, fixed-wing aircraft * Plane (geometry), a flat, 2-dimensional surface Plane or planes may also refer to: Biology * Plane (tree) or ''Platanus'', wetland native plant * ''Planes' ...

'', where the Mexican airplane El Chupacabra attempts to impress the Canadian Rochelle with it. His use of the original version fails, but when he changes it to a slow serenade, it works. * The 1999 episode of '' Ally McBeal'', "Love's Illusions". * The 2001 episode of ''

Futurama ''Futurama'' is an American animated science fiction sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series follows the adventures of the professional slacker Philip J. Fry, who is cryogenically preserved for 1000 years ...

'', "I Dated a Robot". * The 2002 episode of ''

My Wife and Kids ''My Wife and Kids'' is an American sitcom that ran on ABC from March 28, 2001, to May 17, 2005. The series was produced by Touchstone Television. It starred Damon Wayans as Michael Kyle, the patriarch of an African-American family. Wayans and ve ...

'', "Jr.'s Dating Dilemma". * "Love Machine" was the name of a sentient computer virus in the 2009 film '' Summer Wars'' * The chorus of the song was used in the ''

Friends ''Friends'' is an American television sitcom created by David Crane and Marta Kauffman, which aired on NBC from September 22, 1994, to May 6, 2004, lasting ten seasons. With an ensemble cast starring Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Li ...

'' episode "The One Where Paul's the Man"

References

External links

See The MIRACLES perform "Love Machine" LIVE on YouTube
{{authority control Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles Cashbox number-one singles 1975 singles The Miracles songs Thelma Houston songs Disco songs Motown singles Tamla Records singles Songs written by Warren "Pete" Moore Songs written by Billy Griffin Song recordings produced by Freddie Perren 1975 songs Wham! songs