Top 10 Motown songs

Cafe Society
1

The Lendervedder Institute of Music just released a list of the top ten Motown songs of all time.

Link

  1. “I Heard it through the Grapevine,” Marvin Gaye
  2. “My Girl,” The Temptations
  3. “The Happening,” The Supremes
  4. “I Wish,” Stevie Wonder
  5. “A Place in the Sun,” Stevie Wonder
  6. “You’ve Really Got a Hold on Me,” Smokey & the Miracles
  7. “You Can’t Hurry Love,” The Supremes
  8. “Dancing in the Street,” Martha & the Vandellas
  9. “I Second that Emotion,” Smokey & the Miracles
  10. “What’s Going On,” Marvin Gaye

Thoughts? Opinions? Anything glaringly missing? What’s your top ten?

2

Could someone explain to me what My Girl has going for it, other than being slightly catchy?

It’s a nice tune, but it bores me musically.

I think I Wish is a great Stevie Wonder choice.

3

Hard to fight that list. Virtually any list would have about half of that list. “Midnight Train To Georgia”, “Tears Of A Clown”, “Sexual Healing”, “I Want You Back”, “Superstition”, “Baby Love”, “Stop! In the Name of Love”, and Respect" are glaring omissions, but it’s hard to take something off this list to put one of those on. Out of those, I’d say “Respect” goes in for “A Place In the Sun”.
I’d hate to be the guy that had to limit this list to just 10.
Edit: They wouldn’t be top ten, but it’s fun to bring them up in discussion. “War!”, “Super Freak”, “Brick House”, and Somebody’s Watching Me" are fun songs.

Double edit: I was suspicious about “Sexual Healing”. It’s not technically a Motown song. Carry on.

4

I always preferred “Nowhere to Run” by Martha & the Vandellas. I can’t say that I am madly in love with any of the songs listed.

5

Neither is “Respect.” Aretha released it on Atlantic Records and Otis Redding released it on Volt.

6

Some of those songs aren’t Motown releases. “Respect” certainly was not.

7

Bad Trevor. Ignore my ramblings, then.

8

I have a hard time not making all ten places Temptations songs, but here goes…

  1. “Papa Was a Rollin’ Stone” - Temptations
  2. “Reach Out I’ll Be There” - Four Tops
  3. “I Can’t Get Next to You” - Temptations
  4. “I Was Made to Love Her” - Stevie Wonder
  5. “You Keep Me Hangin’ On” - Supremes
  6. “Psychedelic Shack” - Temptations
  7. “Ain’t That Peculiar” - Marvin Gaye
  8. “My Whole World Ended (The Moment You Left Me)” - David Ruffin
  9. “Ooo Baby Baby” - Miracles
  10. “Love Child” - Supremes
9

“Heat Wave” for Martha and the Vandellas instead of “Dancing in the Street,”

“Where Did our Love Go” and “Come See About Me” for The Supremes instead of "You Can’t Hurry Love"and “The Happening” (which is one of their weakest).

“Uptight” by Stevie Wonder instead of “A Place in the Sun”

“War” by Edwin Starr needs a place.

Heck, you could replace all ten and not lose any quality.

10

Number one Supreme’s song: “Stop In the Name of Love”

We have to have The Jackson Five somewhere on there. I’m partial to “I’ll Be There” (just look over your shoulder, honey! oooh!)

The Temptations songs sound the same to me. But if I had to pick one, it would be “Reach Out I’ll Be There” (just look over your shoulders, honey! ooh!)

I prefer Glady’s version of “I Heard It Through the Grapevine”.

Smokie gets on the list with “Tears of the Clown” and “Second that Emotion”.

And Stevie gets… Shoot, he IS the Top 10 List. You need a separate list just for him.

11

No Reach Out? No Bernadette? No I Was Made to Love her?

Good grief, no Respect? :eek:

12

“Respect” doesn’t get any respect in a Motown thread.

psst! It’s not Motown!

13

Well, shit. :smack:

14

If you had to pick one Temptations song, it would be a Four Tops song? :stuck_out_tongue:

15

Ain’t to Proud to Beg or Papa was a Rolling Stone should replace My Girl .

16

Motown should be renamed Doh!-town.

17

Too many great tunes to condense to a list of ten. I’m not a fan of lists anyway, although I understand the sentiment.

18

Just My Imagination.

19

Ooooh, love that one. I’m a big Temptations fan, but that’s got to be in their top 5 for sure.

20

“Heat Wave” is a supremely irritating, screechy song. I just despise it and I’ll fight any attempt to include it in a “Best of Motown” list. I don’t see what people like about that song.

Sorry, I just hate “Heat Wave.” Surely there’s some Stevie we can replace it with.