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Many of us have grown up listening to Motown, so let's discuss that today. Let us begin with (Harvey Fuqua and) The Moonglows, an R&B / DooWop group signed to Chess Records in the 1950s. Harvey Fuqua, born July 27, 1929 in Louisville Kentucky, was the nephew of Charlie Fuqua of The Ink Spots, and was married to Gwen Gordy, Berry Gordy's sister. While still in Louisville, in 1951, Harvey Fuqua, Lead and Tenor; Bobby Lester, Lead and Tenor; Pete "Alexander" Graves, Tenor; Prentiss Barnes, Bass; and Billy Johnson "William McDowell Johnson", Guitar, had formed a vocal group calling themselves "The Crazy Sounds". Later moving to Cleveland, Ohio, found themselves under the guidance of disc jockey Alan Freed. Freed had renamed them, The Moonglows, after his own nickname, Moondog". Their first release was on Freed's own Champagne label in 1953. They had then signed with the Chance label out of Chicago, then Chess Records in '54. However, Fuqua had found himself sharing the lead vocal with Bobby Lester and, in 1957, what essentially amounts to firing the original group, had brought in a new group, The Marquees. Being a member, this is where Marvin Gaye enters the picture. This "new" group he'd named, Harvey and The Moonglows. At the suggestion of Leonard Chess, Fuqua had left The Moonglows and joined Anna Records in Detroit. A label founded by Anna and Gwen Gordy in 1959. Here he would meet and marry Gwen Gordy. Releasing Barrett Strong's "Money (That's What I Want)" in 1960, of which Berry Gordy was a co-writer, Anna Records was sold to Gwen's brother, Berry. Fuqua had opened his own labels, Tri-Phi and Harvey. However, he'd soon tired of running small labels, and was given the opportunity to join Motown to head Artist Development and work as a producer. Berry Gordy Jr. was born on November 28, 1929, in Detroit, Michigan. He was the seventh of eight children. Unlike his siblings, Berry had struggled in school, but loved music. He had become interested in songwriting at age 7, but when he was kicked out of his high school music class, he'd then dropped out of school to pursue a boxing career. By the time he was twenty, he had triumphed in thirteen of nineteen professional fights. However, realizing that boxing would rapidly age him, he had returned to songwriting. This was interrupted in 1951 when he was drafted into the Army. And during a two year stint, he had earned his GED. Gordy had gotten married in 1953, then he and a friend had opened the 3-D Record Mart, a record store in Detroit specializing in Jazz records and 3-D glasses. Unfortunately, Berry with focusing on his taste in Jazz rather than the more popular Rhythm and Blues, he was forced into bankruptcy. As a result, he had taken a position on a Lincoln-Mercury factory assembly line, installing upholstery. After work, he and Billy Davis would meet and write Pop songs. Davis would later adopt the pseudonym Tyrone Carlo. He'd then contacted his Cousin, Jackie Wilson, who had recently left Billy Ward and The Dominoes. Berry with his sister Gwen and writer/producer Billy Davis had co-written Jackie's "Reet Petite" and "Lonely Teardrops". At the age of 27, Gordy had turned in his notice at Lincoln-Mercury and had dedicated himself once again to music, starting his own music publishing company, Jobete, a name derived from the names of his three eldest children, Joy, Berry and Terry. The business wasn't quite as lucrative as he'd hoped, and, borrowing $800 from his family, on January 12, 1959, had opened his own record company, Tamla. One of Tamla's labels was Motown, naming it after "The Motor City". Being so, this came to embody the entire roster of labels. Motown was incorporated on April 14, 1960. Motown had it's own distinctive sound. Gordy would record his records to sound good over a cars AM radio. If memory serves, Gordy had a very small radio transmitter where he would "test-play" a recording. Some were recorded in the basement for the reverberation effect. Motown would have regular quality control meetings, and Gordy would arrange his artists public image, style of dress, mannerisms, and of course, their choreography. How to sit, stand, and speak with elegance, and to act with refinement. Motown was smooth and polished, whereas STAX (Jim STewart and Estelle AXton) in Memphis, was raw and gritty. You can read my write up about STAX Records on the The Vinyl Grotto Radio Show page, July 4. In 1965, Motown had fifteen million dollars in sales, more than triple what it had made in 1963. In the 1960's, Motown had become the largest black owned company in America. In 1968, Berry Gordy had bought a home in Southern California and, in 1972, had moved Motown to Los Angeles. This, of course, had brought about the Mowest (Motown West) label. Gordy was once quoted as saying, ""It's a labor of love, everything I've done". Something many of us in the industry (broadcasting for me) can attest to. Okay, now for the sad part: Motown's contracts were rather stringent at times. For example, performers could be charged for studio time, and many songwriters were hired as employees, therefore unable to retain ownership of many of their songs. Gordy had defended these terms, but this understandably didn't keep some performers and writers from feeling used. This had lead to some leaving Motown in the 1970's. Because of this, and the fact that musical trends were changing, Gordy had sold Motown to MCA in 1988 for sixty one million dollars. He did, however, retain the television and movie division of Motown, as well as his publishing company, Jobete. However, in 1997, he had sold his half of Jobete to EMI Publishing for one hundred thirty two million dollars. In 1984, Motown had lost it's position as America's largest black owned company, and many African-Americans were saddened that Gordy had sold the company. However, Gordy had felt the sale was the best way to ensure Motown's survival.