Smokey Robinson
If you're looking for the all-time number-one purveyor of mainstream romantic soul,Smokey Robinsonmay well be the man, in the face of some towering competition. With the Miracles in the 1960s, he paced dozens of tuneful Motown hits with his beautiful high tenor. As a solo performer from the 1970s onward, he was one of the staples of urban contemporary music. But his singing gifts, as notable as they are, comprise only one of his hats: he's also one of pop's best and most prolific songwriters. As a songwriter and producer, he was the most important musical component to Motown's early success, not only on the hits by the Miracles, but for numerous other acts as well (especially Mary Wells and the Temptations).
Robinsonfirst crossed paths with Motown founder Berry Gordy, Jr. in the late '50s in Detroit. In retrospect, this may have been the most important meeting in both men's lives. Robinson needed a mentor and an outlet for his budding talents as a singer and songwriter; the ambitious Gordy needed someone with multi-faceted musical vision. Gordy encouraged and polished Robinson's songwriting in particular in the early days, in which the Miracles were one of many acts bridging the doo-wop and early soul eras.
Before solidifying their relationship with the embryonic Motown operation, the Miracles issued a few singles on the End and Chess labels, the most successful of which was "Got a Job." There was no national action for the Miracles until "Shop Around" in late 1960. Gordy withdrew the original single in favor of a faster, more fully produced version of the song; it made number two, doing much not only to establish the Miracles, but to establish the Motown label itself. The song also heralded many of the important elements of the Motown sound, with its gospel-ish interplay between lead and backup vocals, its rhythmic groove, and its blend of R&B and pop.
WhileRobinsonis most often thought of as a romantic balladeer, the Miracles were also capable of grinding out some excellent up-tempo party tunes, particularly in their early days. "Mickey's Monkey" (which the group gave an athletically electrifying performance of in the 1964 T.A.M.I. Show movie), a 1963 Top Ten hit, is the most famous of these; there was also "Going to a Go-Go" and smaller hits like "I Gotta Dance to Keep From Crying." The 1962 Top Ten hit "You've Really Got a Hold on Me," however, was the key cut in forming Robinson's romantic persona, with its pleading, soaring vocals, exquisite melody, and carefully crafted lyrics. Bob Dylan was impressed enough by Robinson's facility for imaginative wordplay to dub him "America's greatest living poet" (a phrase which has possibly become the most quoted example of one rock giant praising another).
Surveying Robinson's achievements during the 1960s, one wonders if the man ever slept. While the Miracles were never Motown's biggest act at any given time, they were one of its very most consistent, entering the Top 40 25 times over the course of the decade. "I Second That Emotion," "The Love I Saw in You Was Just a Mirage," "The Tracks of My Tears," "Ooo Baby Baby," and "Baby, Baby Don't Cry" were some of their biggest singles, and usually represented Motown at its most sophisticated and urbane. Robinson also was extremely active at Motown as a songwriter and producer for other acts. The number one singles "My Guy" (Mary Wells) and "My Girl" (Temptations) were each Robinson songs and productions (the latter with fellow Miracle Ronnie White), and Robinson also did some excellent work with the Marvelettes and Marvin Gaye. He also toured with the Miracles, and started a family with the Miracles' female singer, Claudette Rogers, whom he married in 1964. Rogers stopped touring with the group in the mid-'60s, although she continued to sing on their records.
Starting in 1967, the billing on Miracles releases was changed to Smokey Robinson & the Miracles, presaging Robinson's solo career. The group continued to spin out hits until the early '70s, however, getting their only number one in 1970 with the upbeat "The Tears of a Clown" (which had actually been recorded back in 1966). Robinson left the group to go on his own in 1972; the Miracles continued without him with limited success, although they had a number one hit in 1976 with "Love Machine, Pt. 1."
Robinson had been made a vice president at Motown near the beginning of his career in 1961. He recorded frequently as a solo artist for Motown in the '70s and '80s, in a considerably mellower vein than his Miracles work, in keeping with the general shift of Motown and soul toward urban contemporary. Robinson, in fact, provided that genre with one of its catch phrases with the title of his 1975 album, A Quiet Storm. "Cruisin'" (1979) and "Being With You" (1981) were his biggest solo hits, although artistically and commercially his solo era wasn't nearly as successful as his music with the Miracles.
Smokey Robinson & The Miracles
Smokey Robinson和他领军的组合The Miracles是6、70年代重要的黑人灵歌，他们的作品都已收录在这套《环球大师珍藏系列》里。
忘了是哪一年，伟大的民谣歌手Bob Dylan曾经这样评价Smokey Robinson：美国活着的最伟大的诗人。的确，作为美国当代最有影响力的诗人，Robinson为整个流行音乐创作了一系列相当精制的歌词和旋律。同时，他也是这些作品最有表现力的歌手之一，并且他还是一位非常出色的制作人。作为一名60年代最有影响力的灵歌音乐家之一，Smokey Robinson将40年代和50年代黑人演唱组特有的甜美假声唱法进行了精练，同The Miracles（奇迹）演唱组一道，他将这一演唱风格演变为流行音乐一个特有的派别，比如他与奇迹演唱组的代表歌曲之一“I Don't Blame You At All（不全怪你）”。
Smokey Robinson 1940年2月出生于底特律，15岁的时候和几个伙伴儿组成了The Miracles演唱组，演唱组的第一首重要的热门歌曲就是下面我们听到的这首“Shop Around（四处购物）”，这是一首快节奏的作品，同时也体现出Robinson越来越出色的驾驭文字的技巧。这首歌曲1960年在美国排行榜上获得了第2名，随后他们便迎来了黄金时代，推出了一系列的热门歌曲。
下面这首歌曲“Tracks Of My Tears（泪痕）”被看作是Smokey Robinson & The Miracles最伟大的一首单曲，是Robinson缓慢华丽和柔和的爱情歌曲的代表作品，其中吉他手Marvin Tarplin舒缓流畅的演奏和Robinson忧郁忏悔的演唱以及深思熟虑的措词完美的结合在一起。其实作为吉他手，Marvin Tarplin对The Miracles的贡献一直被忽视了，除了他令人难以忘怀的吉他间奏和节奏演奏之外，他还为The Miracles创作了很多出色的歌曲，在Robinson清新热情的制作处理下，The Miracles在60年代中期获得了事业上的一次飞跃，而此时Smokey Robinson的演唱风格也完全成熟了。
到了1967年，也许是年龄上的缘故，Smokey Robinson的作品丧失了青春的朝气，但具有了一种新的深度，在纯真的格调消逝后，Smokey Robinson & The Miracles并未从此一蹶不振。他们1967年录制的这首歌曲“The Tears Of A Clown（小丑的眼泪）”1970年在英国获得了成功，这一成功促使他们在美国发行了这首歌，并最终成为The Miracles第一首排行榜的冠军歌曲。仔细聆听这首歌，Robinson大部分歌词的风格也展现在你眼前，由于专注于微笑背后的忧伤，他大部分动人的歌曲都着眼于内心的痛苦。
1972年，经过一系列的告别演出，Smokey Robinson离开了The Miracles开始个人的发展，他独特的演唱风格被70年代那些“蓝眼睛的白人灵歌歌手”广泛模仿，当他成为一位个人音乐家之初，Robinson继续发展着这一风格，树立起了亲切热情的男子汉形象。作为一位具有影响力的作曲家和表演者，Smokey Robinson完善了黑人灵歌的流行风格，尤其是他的歌词，充满了令人信服的比喻以及精制的双关语，一直被评论家们广为称赞。在他的制作技巧方面，Robinson培养起了自己浪漫的印象主义风格，也为自己的歌曲大大增色。