An album dedicated to those under 30

The first album, Motown, was such a success and there are lots more of the same stuff where the songs came from, the classic Motown catalogue, of course. So what is to stop blue-eyed soul crooner Michael McDonald from doing his take on another batch of Motown songs.

Formerly with the Doobie Brothers and most recognizable as the man behind the monster hit What a Fool Believes, McDonald launched a new phase in his career when he ventured into the nostalgia circuit and recorded Motown, as a tribute to the Detroit label of the ‘60s. Sweet, spicy, soulful Motown songs as conceived by the volatile Berry Gordy Jr., kept American pop music alive during the British Invasion. Can you imagine a trio of young spindly girls from the ghetto standing up against the Beatles and winning?

No way, you say, but that was what Motown’s Supremes did then. They did not always win but they sure gave the boys from Liverpool a very good fight at the charts and are to this day considered the biggest girl group of all time. Aside from the Supremes, Motown also had hits by Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, the Jackson Five, Smoky Robinson and the Miracles, the Temptations, the Four Tops, the Commodores, plus solo spin-offs like Michael Jackson, Diana Ross, Lionel Richie and so many others. A lot of them have already been covered several times over through the years but not in as loving a manner as Michael McDonald did.

The reason can be found in the liner notes he has written for Motown Two. "Some of the happiest moments I can recall, I’ve spent during the making of these two Motown recordings. The fact that the music speaks for itself and could only be a labor of love, is one thing. More importantly, some of the people I love the most have shared the joy of making this project with me. Some I met in the beginning of this recording and some have been a part of my life for a long time. All of us feel privileged to have the honor of joining in what could only be thought of as a celebration of these songs, their composers, producers, original artists and performers. All we can hope is that we leave the listener with some appreciation of our respect and love of this music that we’ve all come to know as Motown."

It is no easy task redoing Motown. The originals remain famous nearly 50 years later and because of the high quality of the recordings, they are indeed landmarks by themselves. But McDonald’s distinctive vocals manage to put a raspy rock tinge to these classics that make for a truly enjoyable collection. Love the duet of Stop, Look, Listen (To Your Heart) with Toni Braxton. It is the kind that makes the listener stop whatever he is doing, take a look at the credits, ask who is this girl and then listen again with all his might.

The other cuts included in Motown Two are You’re All I Need to Get By, I Was Made to Love Her, Reach Out I’ll be There, Baby I Need Your Lovin’, Loving You is Sweeter than Ever, Tracks of My Tears, What’s Goin’ On, I Second That Emotion, After the Dance, Nowhere to Run, Tuesday Heartbreak, Mercy Mercy Me and Baby I’m for Real.

Then he ends his "thank you’s" with these words: "This album is dedicated to all the people under 30 who didn’t have the opportunity to experience the excitement and wonder that was the Motown era."

I hope that like what Brit rocker Rod Stewart has been doing with Gershwin tunes and other ballads in a series of album, McDonald will also continue to record more Motown songs in the future. Let us all promise to wait for Motown Three and Motown Four etc., etc., etc.

While doing so, you might want to listen to the original Motown recordings that are now available in the Gold series from Universal. The two-disc set has loads of goodies like Neither One of Us (Wants to be the First to Say Goodbye) by Gladys Knight & the Pips, What Becomes of the Broken Hearted by Jimmy Ruffin, Fingertips Pt. 2 by Little Stevie Wonder, Reach Out I’ll be There by the Four Tops, I Can’t Help Myself (Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch) by the Four Tops, Ain’t Too Proud to Beg by The Temptations, Dancing in the Streets by Martha & the Vandellas, plus others.