Motown #1s

Although the biggest Motown hits are represented here, this collection is simply not enough of a good thing, especially since it adds in several late-period songs from the label's history.

You could argue that the glorious musical history of the Motown label – epitomized by the “Sound of Young America” glory years of 1962-1972, approximately – is simply too enormous to fit onto just one CD, even if that disc utilizes almost every second of its eighty-minute run time. Then again, not everyone can afford to spring for double-disc sets, much less that excellent four-CD box set from the early Nineties, so it’s probably a good thing that we now have this comp to fill that void. The mastering, as usual with Universal’s recent Motown reissues, is fantastic, although there haven’t been any significant improvements of late; still, it’ll be a revelation to anyone who has yet to replace those old 45s. (And Motown music, largely because of its propulsive bottom and detailed productions, only sounds better with each new remastering).

If there’s a problem with this collection, it lies in its willingness to cover the entire history of the label up until the present day – which means that after favorites like “I Want You Back,” “My Girl,” and “Ain’t Too Proud To Beg,” you also get hits of dubious quality like the Miracles’ latter-day disco groaner “Love Machine” and Debarge’s lightweight “Rhythm of the Night.” However, every song here DID make it to the top spot on either the pop or R&B chart, and it’s hard to argue with any collection that includes musical and historical landmarks like “Let’s Get It On,” “Stop! In The Name of Love,” and “The Tears Of A Clown.”