The Miracles are an American rhythm and blues group, notable as the first successful act for Berry Gordy's Motown Record Corporation. Their 1960 song, "Shop Around" became Motown's first million-selling hit record, and the group went on to become one of Motown's "signature acts" of the 1960s, and one of the most important and influential groups in music history. Formed in 1955 by William "Smokey" Robinson, Warren "Pete" Moore and Ronald "Ronnie" White, the most consistent lineup of the act was that of Robinson, White, Moore, Bobby Rogers, Claudette Robinson and Marvin "Marv" Tarplin.
Referred to as Motown's "soul supergroup", The Miracles are multiple Grammy Hall of Fame Inductees, and inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, The Doo-Wop Hall of Fame,The Vocal Group Hall of Fame, and received a star on The Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2009. They have charted over 50 hit singles between 1959 and 1978,including 26 Top Ten ''Billboard'' R&B; Hits, with 4 R&B; # 1's. Sixteen of their songs reached the Top Twenty of the Billboard ''Hot 100'', with 7 songs reaching the Top Ten, and two,1970's ''The Tears of A Clown'', and 1975's ''Love Machine'' reaching number one.
Some of their biggest and most enduring hits included "Shop Around","You've Really Got a Hold on Me","Who's Lovin' You", "Mickey's Monkey", "I Second That Emotion" "Ooo Baby Baby",the multiple-award-winning "The Tracks of My Tears","Going to a Go-Go","(Come 'Round Here) I'm the One You Need", "If You Can Want", "Baby, Baby Don't Cry", "More Love", " "The Tears of a Clown" "Do It Baby" , and "Love Machine".
In 2004, and again in 2011, ''Rolling Stone'' magazine ranked Smokey Robinson & the Miracles #32 on their list of "The Immortals: The 100 Greatest Artists of All Time." They are also ranked in the Top 100 Artists of All Time in Billboard Magazine's and VH-1's 1998 lists, and are 1997 winners of The Rhythm and Blues Foundation's prestigious ''Pioneer Award''.
The Miracles were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on April 14, 2012.
History
1955-1959: Origins
Detroit teenagers
William Robinson,
Pete Moore and
Ronald White were longtime childhood friends and began singing together while in fifth grade. In 1955, Robinson, nicknamed "Smokey" by his uncle; Moore, and White started a
doo-wop vocal group they named ''The Five Chimes'' while attending Northwestern High School. Singers Clarence Dawson and James Grice completed the original lineup. Within a year or two, Dawson and Grice would be replaced by singing cousins Emerson and
Bobby Rogers, leading to the group's first name change to ''The Matadors''. Robinson and Rogers were born in the same hospital on the same month, date and year but didn't actually meet until fifteen years later.
This lineup continued until 1958 when Emerson Rogers was drafted. He was eventually replaced by his sister Claudette Rogers, who within a year, would be dating Robinson. Also in 1958, the Miracles added guitarist Marv Tarplin, who had originally been the accompanist for another rising Detroit vocal group calling themselves The Primettes (later The Supremes) . The members of the Primettes allowed the Miracles to recruit Tarplin in exchange for Smokey securing them an audition with Motown. Tarplin opted to remain as a member of The Miracles. The addition of Tarplin was the random element that made The Miracles' "classic lineup" complete.
That year, the Matadors set an audition for Jackie Wilson's manager, Nat Tarnopol, aspiring to sign with Wilson's label, Brunswick. However, Tarnopol turned them down dismissing them as a poor man's version of The Platters due to their four male, one female lineup. Shortly afterwards, the group ran into one of Wilson's main songwriters during the period, Berry Gordy. After seeing a dozen of songs Robinson had written and having been impressed by their own vocals, Gordy agreed to manage the group and he began mentoring Robinson on composition. Later on in 1958, Gordy and a colleague, Billy Davis, composed the group's first professional recording, "Got a Job" as an answer song to The Silhouettes' "Get a Job", later arranging a deal between them and End Records. As it was advised to them prior to signing, the group changed their name. Seeing as ''The Matadors'' had a masculine approach and due to the addition of a female vocalist, they changed it to ''The Miracles''. In 1959, with Gordy collaborating, the Miracles released the ballad, "Bad Girl", on a deal with Chess Records. The record became their first national charting single on the ''Billboard Hot 100'' and the group supported themselves by constantly touring, becoming a popular draw.
Frustrated by low financial returns due to the group's practice of selling their masters to various labels, Robinson suggested Gordy start his own record label. Thus, in 1959, Gordy founded Tamla Records (later Motown), and signed The Miracles as one of his first acts. Robinson would later served as vice president of the company.
1960-1968: Success
After Motown went national in early 1960, the Miracles issued the first Motown-released single, "Way Over There". This song also charted on the ''Billboard Hot 100'' at # 94. However, in late 1960, the group released the song, "
Shop Around",backed with "
Who's Lovin' You" which became the group's first smash hit, reaching number-one on the R&B; charts (#2, Pop), and was the first Motown single to sell well over a million copies. Both sides of this record became standards for R&B; and rock musicians alike for several decades afterwards. As a result of this success, The Miracles became the first-ever Motown act to appear on Dick Clark's ''
American Bandstand'' on December 27, 1960.
The Miracles followed "Shop Around" with several top forty chart hits, including "I'll Try Something New", "A Love She Can Count On", and "What's So Good About Goodbye". In 1962, however, the group would have another huge hit single with the ballad, "You've Really Got a Hold on Me", which reached the Billboard Pop Top Ten, and #1 R&B.; A year after that, the group had another Top Ten hit with the catchy dance number, "Mickey's Monkey", which was one of the few Miracles tunes to not be written by Robinson, but by rising Motown songwriting and producing team, Holland-Dozier-Holland. The Miracles' success paved the way for all future Motown stars, and catapulted them to the position of Motown's top-selling act, making them headliners at the first series of the nationwide package Motortown Revue shows, that started around late 1962. The group's exciting live performances earned them the nickname ''"The Showstoppers"''. Commenting to ''Rolling Stone Magazine'', Bob Seger said: "I used to go to the Motown Revues, and The Miracles ''always'' closed the show. They were ''that'' good, and everybody knew it". The Miracles had become a national sensation, and by 1963, word of their influence began to spread abroad.
Although the influx of overseas artists comprising the British Invasion caused the end of many American artists' recording careers,they had very little effect on the Miracles,who continued having hit records throughout this period.In fact, many of the British Invasion acts were influenced by Motown acts, mainly The Miracles. Members of The Beatles later admitted that the group played a huge influence in their music. The effects of this influence became even more pronounced when The Hollies, The Zombies, The Who, and The Rolling Stones all began recording covers of Miracles' hits.
By 1963, Smokey Robinson was not only viewed as one of the label's heartthrobs due to screaming crowds whenever the group would perform, but he was also establishing himself offstage as one of the label's premier songwriters and producers, with assistance from the other members of his group.In addition to penning their own material, Miracles Robinson, White, Rogers,Tarplin, and Moore wrote for many of their labelmates as well. Motown hits written, but not recorded, by members of the Miracles include songs for the Temptations ("The Way You Do The Things You Do", "My Girl","Don't Look Back", "Since I Lost My Baby","It's Growing", "Get Ready","My Baby"), Mary Wells ("My Guy", "The One Who Really Loves You","What Love Has Joined Together" "Two Lovers"), Marvin Gaye ("I'll Be Doggone", "Ain't That Peculiar"), The Marvelettes ("Don't Mess With Bill", "My Baby Must Be a Magician)", The Contours ("First I Look at the Purse), and Brenda Holloway ("When I'm Gone").Unlike other Motown artists, whose songs were written by staff songwriters, the Miracles were one of the few Motown acts that composed their own songs,adding to the group's already impressive reputation.
Despite their success, the Miracles were beset with a number of personal problems during the early and mid-1960s. During the first Motor Town Revue tour, Smokey Robinson caught the Asian Flu, requiring Claudette Robinson to take over his role as lead singer until he recovered. In addition, Pete Moore was drafted into the US Army, and remained away from the group for over a year. In early 1964, Claudette decided to retire from the road and remain at home in Detroit. From this point on, Claudette did not tour with the Miracles or appear in any official group photographs or on television, although she continued to sing on their recordings until 1972.
After Claudette Robinson's departure, The remaining Miracles appeared in The T.A.M.I. Show, a 1964 concert film, released by American International Pictures. that included performances by numerous popular rock and roll and R&B; musicians from the United States and England,and filmed and recorded live at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium on October 28 and 29, 1964. This film also included performances by fellow Motown artists The Supremes and Marvin Gaye,along with Chuck Berry , The Beach Boys , The Rolling Stones , and James Brown and The Famous Flames.The Miracles' performance was one of the show's highlights, called " athletically electrifying" by critics. Hit singles released during that year included That's What Love Is Made Of , and I Like It Like That.
In 1965, the group released their landmark hit album, ''Going to a Go-Go'', which launched four top twenty hit singles including the title track, "Ooo Baby Baby", "The Tracks of My Tears" and "My Girl Has Gone" .This album received the ''Rolling Stone Magazine'' award as one of ''"The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time"''. The following year, they had another hit with the Holland-Dozier-Holland composition, "(Come 'Round Here) I'm The One You Need". Around this time, the group was starting to be billed as ''Smokey Robinson & The Miracles'' on several of their albums. The name change didn't appear on their singles until the release of "The Love I Saw in You Was Just a Mirage", a Top 20 hit released in 1967.On that song's flipside is the tune''"Come Spy With Me"''. The Miracles sang the original theme to the 1967 20th Century Fox film of the same name. The group continued to have more hits as the 1960s continued including the million-selling Top 10 hit, "I Second That Emotion", released in late 1967 but a hit the following year, in 1968. Other hits during this time included "More Love", If You Can Want","Special Occasion" , Here I Go Again" and "Yester Love".
1969–1972: Final years with Smokey Robinson
By the mid-to-late 1960s, despite continuing to have hit singles, the Miracles, like most of Motown's earlier stars, found themselves competing with the label's younger acts and several upstarts. Smokey Robinson had grown tired of the road by 1969. According to Robinson he felt his performances were causing a separation between him and Claudette Robinson, whom he had married at nineteen, adding on to the strain of having children. Robinson also felt he needed to do more work behind the scenes than in front and wanted to continue to write for others while also serving his duties as vice president of Motown. Robinson had told his band mates he had wanted to leave as late as 1969 and was set to exit the group the following year. However,about this time,the group's 1969 recording of ''Baby Baby Don't Cry'' hit the Billboard national Pop Top 10,and after Motown decided to release a previously-recorded 1967 song, "The Tears of a Clown", in early 1970, the song became an unexpected # 1 smash hit in the United Kingdom. This success prompted Motown to release the song in the United States .The tune duplicated it's U.K. success, reaching number-one on the Billboard Hot 100,becoming the first number-one pop single of the Miracles' careers, and their biggest hit to date. Due to this, Robinson decided to stay with the Miracles for another couple of years. That year, Smokey Robinson hosted his own variety special on ABC-TV titled ''The Smokey Robinson Show'', which starred the Miracles,and guest starred The Temptations, Stevie Wonder, and The Supremes .
In early 1971, the group scored what would be their final top twenty single with "I Don't Blame You at All". By 1972, Smokey Robinson once again announced a retirement from the Miracles and the group went on a six-month farewell tour together with Robinson. For the group's final show with Robinson in Washington, D.C., Claudette Robinson rejoined them onstage for the first time since 1964. Afterwards, the Robinsons and, eventually Marv Tarplin, would depart from the Miracles for good. The remaining Miracles refrained from touring and recording for 1 year before re-emerging.
1973-1977: Recordings with Billy Griffin and final hit recordings
Singer
Billy Griffin was already handpicked as the Miracles' newest lead vocalist after Robinson announced him following the end of his final show with the group. Griffin's first television performance with the Miracles would occur in July 1973 on
NBC's ''
The Midnight Special'' when Robinson, who was hosting the show, introduced him. Following Griffin's arrival and Robinson's departure, Claudette Robinson retired from show business to raise her and Smokey's young children, Berry and Tamla. Before recording could begin on the Miracles' first Griffin release, Marv Tarplin also wanted out of the Miracles because he had missed working with Smokey, later joining him to help him on his first solo album, simply titled ''
Smokey''. Billy Griffin's brother Donald Griffin replaced Tarplin as the group's lead guitarist. After several changes, the rechristened Miracles released the album, ''
Renaissance'', in 1973. The album included the
Marvin Gaye composition, "I Love You Secretly".
In 1974, the group scored their first million-selling hit in four years with the funk-oriented single, "Do It Baby". Then in 1976, the group scored their biggest hit to date with the disco hit, "Love Machine", which was the first single from their platinum-selling album, ''City of Angels''. "Love Machine" ended up being the Miracles' final hit single with Motown. In 1977, eighteen years after they first signed with Motown, the group left for a deal with Columbia Records, releasing the album, ''Love Crazy'', which featured the socially conscious single, "Spy for Brotherhood". However, due to protests from the FBI, the song was pulled from the airwaves. The group failed to have any hit recordings during the Columbia years and left the label shortly afterwards the following year.
1978-present: Later years, The Walk of Fame, and Rock Hall of Fame induction
Following their exit from Columbia Records, Pete Moore retired from performing to concentrate his efforts on songwriting. Billy Griffin would continue his solo career and also focus his efforts on songwriting. To replace them, Ronnie White and Bobby Rogers later recruited Dave Finley and the late Carl Cotton. This lineup continued until 1986 when Moore announced his retirement from the group leaving Ronald White as the only original member of the group from its early origins. Most of the original Miracles with the exception of White, who took time to bury his first wife who had died from breast cancer, reunited at ''
Motown 25'' in 1983. After a period of drug abuse and depression, Smokey Robinson would make a late 1980s comeback with the records, "
Just to See Her" and "
One Heartbeat". However, he and Claudette Robinson later divorced after more than twenty-five years in marriage. After the release of an 35th anniversary commemorative box set, original Miracles Ronnie White and Bobby Rogers reunited the group recruiting Finley and former
Shalamar vocalist Sidney Justin to sing alongside them. This lineup continued until 1995 when White, the remaining original member from the group's very early years, died of
leukemia, leading the rest of the group to carry on as a trio.
In 1987, Smokey Robinson was inducted to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a solo artist, which confused many, as the length of years used to induct an artist was over twenty-five years.Although The Miracles as a ''group'' qualified for induction, Robinson as a ''solo'' artist did not, as Robinson's first solo recordings were released in 1973, thus, only 14 years had elapsed from the date of his first solo release, and 1987, the year he was inducted. With this induction, the Hall of Fame had only included Robinson and not his fellow ex-Miracles members. Robinson would later say he was shocked and stunned at the decision to only have him inducted and not his former groupmates, saying later he campaigned for the group to be inducted. Robinson would say later that he expressed "regret" that the rest of the Miracles weren't inducted with him.
In December 2010, Goldmine, the famous oldies music magazine, in its continuing series on "Artists Who Should be in The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, But Are Not", focused on The Miracles, Marvelettes, and Mary Wells. About The Miracles, author Phill Marder stated :"If the Supremes got in with Diana Ross and the Vandellas made it in with Martha Reeves and the three other Tops made it in with Levi Stubbs, how could the Miracles, who were much more important, not get in with Smokey?" Little Anthony and The Imperials, on their 2009 induction into the RRHOF, mentioned The Miracles as well.
Between 1995 and 2001, the Miracles didn't have a featured forth vocalist, which ended when Tee Turner joined them in 2001. The group continued to perform as late as 2011 but have reportedly stopped due to Bobby Rogers' own health troubles. Around the same time Motown was celebrating their 50th anniversary, (2009) the Miracles were awarded a star on The Hollywood Walk of Fame. Billy Griffin received his star, as well as Miracles guitarist Marv Tarplin, though he was not present. The original lineup of the group has constantly been revered by several critics in rock magazines and have received numerous awards for their contributions to the music industry. One of their most honored songs, "The Tracks of My Tears", was included in the Library of Congress' National Recording Registry because of its "culturally, historically and aesthetically significance" in 2008. It was also chosen as one of the ''Top 10 Best Songs of All Time'' by a panel of 20 top industry songwriters and producers including Hal David, Paul McCartney, Brian Wilson, Jerry Leiber, and others as reported to Britain's ''Mojo'' music magazine, and was also winner of "The Award Of Merit" from The American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP) for the song's writers, Miracles members Pete Moore, Marv Tarplin and Smokey Robinson. In addition,The Tracks of My Tears has been ranked by the ''RIAA'' and The National Endowment for the Arts at #127 in its list of the ''Songs of the Century'' - the 365 Greatest Songs of the 20th Century.
Every member of The Miracles (with the exception of Claudette) has been a winner of the prestigious BMI award for Songwriting. Famed bandleader/arranger/producer Quincy Jones referred to The Miracles as "The Beethovens of The 20th Century", due to their prolific songwriting talents, and huge body of composed hit records. Their songs, "Going to a Go-Go", "The Tracks of My Tears" and "You've Really Got a Hold on Me" were on the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's list of ''"The 500 Songs That Helped Shape Rock and Roll"''. Today, the Miracles consists of Bobby Rogers, Dave Finley, Tee Turner and Mark Scott. Claudette Rogers sometimes performs with them upon special request. The group have been inducted into both the Vocal Group Hall of Fame and the Doo-Wop Hall of Fame. ''Goldmine'' magazine listed the Miracles as one of the ''"The 20 Greatest Doo-Wop Groups of All Time"''. In 2006, they were also inducted to the Michigan Rock and Roll Legends Hall of Fame, two years later, "Tracks of My Tears" was voted as a "Legendary Michigan Song".
In 2006, Woodbridge Estates, an exclusive residential development in The City of Detroit, named their community park "Miracles Park" and one of its streets "Miracles Boulevard", in recognition of the legendary Motown group's importance to the city, and as a tribute to their many accomplishments in the music industry. Also in 2006,Universal Music Group,in conjunction with Motown Records, released ''Smokey Robinson and The Miracles: The Definitive Performances (1963–1987)'', the first-ever video retrospective of The Miracles' music and career, featuring brand-new interviews with original Miracles Bobby Rogers, Smokey Robinson, and Pete Moore, discussing the group's history, and detailed stories behind the creation of their greatest hits. The following year, in 2007, Smokey Robinson, Bobby Rogers, Pete Moore and Claudette Rogers reunited in Detroit to celebrate the group's 50th anniversary and performed in a tribute to Motown founder Berry Gordy.
In March 2009, The Miracles were awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame ., During the ceremony, both Stevie Wonder and Berry Gordy paid tribute to the group, with Wonder tearfully stating "without the Miracles, there would be no Stevie Wonder. I was discovered by the late Ronnie White of The Miracles. I owe everything that I have to The Miracles". Gordy stated, "Without the Miracles, Motown would not be the Motown it is today."
Then in 2012, 26 years after not being inducted, a special sub-committee of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame finally decided to address the issue of deserving pioneering groups that were not inducted in the Hall's early years, when their front men were inducted. The result of this led to the Miracles being one of six groups to be inducted. Original members Claudette Rogers-Robinson, Bobby Rogers, Ronald White, Marv Tarplin and Pete Moore were retroactively and automatically inducted to the Hall without a need for nomination and voting, under the premise that the ''entire group'' should have been inducted with Smokey Robinson back in 1987. In an interview for ''The Cleveland Plain Dealer'' on April 3, 2012, Miracle Pete Moore commented on The Miracles' 1987 Rock Hall of Fame snub:
"It was a slap in the face, very disappointing," said Moore, who co-wrote many of the Miracles hits. "We are the premiere group of Motown. We were there before there was a Motown. We set the pace for all the other artists to come after us. We were a little older, and the other artists looked up to us. How could we not be in there?"
Moore went on to say:
""When Terry Stewart [Rock Hall president and CEO] called and told me we were to be inducted, he was apologetic," Moore said. "He said it should have been done years ago, everybody knew it. He said they received many, many calls over the years from angry (Miracles) fans."
The ''Digital Dream Door'' website, in commenting on the Miracles' induction, had this to say:
"Of all the oversights in 27 years of the Rock 'n' Roll Hall Of Fame, none was more outrageous than the exclusion of the Miracles when Smokey Robinson alone got in during Year Two of the Hall's existence. Not even eligible as a solo performer yet by the Hall's own rules, Smokey was honored while the group he fronted, whose name his did not even appear separately from until 1967, were left out altogether". "The Miracles, it should go without saying, were the heartbeat of Motown in the 1960s, one of the best vocal groups ever formed and owners of some of the greatest records rock has ever produced. With their induction the Hall has remedied its most shameful chapter and the biggest miracle is it took this long to do it".
By this time, Marv Tarplin, like Ronnie White, had died just months before, on September 30, 2011. Billy Griffin, Smokey Robinson's replacement lead vocalist, was not included in the induction. The Miracles' induction was added alongside that of Smokey Robinson, so that, as of 2012, all of the original Miracles would then be inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Cover versions and influence
The Miracles, Motown's first group, are the most covered Motown group of all time. Their music and songs have influenced artists all over the world – in every major musical genre – over the last 50 years. Almost all of their hits were self-written, making them unique among Motown acts. Many of the Miracles' songs have been major hits or important recordings for other artists. Among these are:
"Going to a Go-Go" – The Rolling Stones, Phil Collins, The Hags, and Secret Affair.
"I Second That Emotion" – Japan, Michael McDonald, Kiki Dee, The Manhattan Transfer, Jerry Garcia, Diana Ross & the Supremes with the Temptations, 10db, Tammy Wynette, José Feliciano,Emilie, Stuck In The Middle, Thelma Jones.
"(Come 'Round Here) I'm The One You Need " – The Jackson 5, The Cowsills, The GP's
"If You Can Want" – The Dirtbombs, Barbara McNair, Chazz Dixon.
"Nowhere To Go- Kanye West (as the basis of his song "About An Angel"), Beanie Sigel (as "Got Nowhere"), Freeway
"Much Better Off" – J Dilla.
"You've Got The Love I Need" -J Dilla, Raekwon.
"A Legend In Its Own Time" – J Dilla (as an exercept of his song "One Eleven").
"Oh Be My Love"- Barbara Lewis, The Supremes, Barbara McNair.
"I Don't Blame You At All"- Rosetta Hightower.
"Mighty Good Lovin"-Edwin Starr, Chris Clark.
"You're So Fine and Sweet"- The Undertakers.
"I Like It Like That" (Miracles song)- Bobby Vee, Mitch Ryder & the Detroit Wheels.
"Would I Love You"-Len Barry.
"Happy Landing"- The Temptations.
"Special Occasion- Jim Gilstrap.
"I'll Try Something New" – Diana Ross & The Supremes with The Temptations, Barbara McNair, A Taste of Honey, Spyder Turner (as an excerpt from his cover of "Stand By Me")
"My Girl Has Gone" – Etienne Daho, Bobby Taylor, Edwyn Collins, Ken Parker.
"Yester Love" – Gerald Wilson & His Orchestra.
"The Love I Saw In You Was Just a Mirage" –
The Jackson 5,
Vance Gilbert,
The Uniques
"Love Machine" – Wham!, Thelma Houston
"Determination" – The Contours.
Choosey Beggar – Chazz Dixon, Debby Boone.
"I've Been Good To You" – Marshall Crenshaw, Brenda Holloway, Joe Meek, The Temptones, Ray, Goodman & Brown (The Moments), The Ones, The Temptations.
"Mickey's Monkey" – Mother's Finest, Martha and the Vandellas, The Supremes, The Hollies, The Young Rascals, John Mellencamp, Lou Christie, Cannibal & the Headhunters, The C.A.Quintet, The Defenders, Chris Catena, The Sugar Beats, The Mac Truque.
"More Love" – Kim Carnes, Paul Young, Barbara McNair, Mica Paris, The 5th Dimension, Rick Webb, Foster Sylvers.
"Ooo Baby Baby" – Linda Ronstadt, Brenda Holloway, Shalamar, Ruby Turner, Sylvester, Spirit Traveler, Five Stairsteps, Zapp, Laura Nyro, Ella Fitzgerald, Honey Cone, Human Nature, Fingazz
"Shop Around" – Captain & Tennille, Don Bryant, The Astronauts, The Allusions, and Georgie Fame, Neil Merryweather and Lynn Carey, among numerous others.
"The Tears of a Clown" – La Toya Jackson, The Beat, The Rocking Chairs, The Re-Bops, Nnenna Freelon, The Flying Pickets, Caligula, Human Nature, Enuff Z'Nuff, Eumir Deodato, Brian Ray, Marc Cohn, Phil Collins.
"The Tracks of My Tears " – Linda Ronstadt, Aretha Franklin, Johnny Rivers, Gladys Knight & the Pips, Mongo Santamaría, Martha and the Vandellas, Bryan Ferry, Björns Vänner (as Ser Jag Ut Att Må Bra?), Dolly Parton, Boyz II Men, Human Nature, among many others
"Darling Dear" – The Jackson Five.
"Who's Loving You" – The Jackson 5, En Vogue, Terence Trent D'Arby, Brenda Holloway, The Supremes, The Temptations, Honey Cone, Stevie B., Archie Bell & the Drells, Nikka Costa.
" You've Really Got a Hold on Me" – Percy Sledge, Barbara McNair, The Beatles, The Temptations, The Supremes, The Zombies, Aidan Smith, Sonny & Cher, Mickey Gilley, Eddie Money, Cyndi Lauper, The Bobs, Greg Brown, Small Faces, Bobby McFerrin, Derrick Harriott, and She & Him among many others.
"I Gotta Dance to Keep From Crying" – The Who, Jimmy James.
"From Head to Toe" – Elvis Costello, Chris Clark
"A Fork in the Road " – Rebbie Jackson
"Way Over There" – The Royal Counts, The Temptations, Edwin Starr, The Marvelettes, New Man, Eddie Adams Jr.
"(You Can't Let the Boy Overpower) The Man In You" – Chuck Jackson
"What's So Good About Goodbye" – Giant Sunflower, The Temptations, Quix*O*Tic
"More, More, More of Your Love" – Bob Brady & the Con Chords
"Doggone Right" – Bobby Davis.
"After All" – The Supremes, The Marvelettes.
"Swept For You Baby" – The Sylvers, The Blenders, The Tamlins (as ''Sweat For You Baby'').
"The Hurt is Over" – The DT's
"Whatever Makes You Happy"- Jacki Gore, Steve Washington.
"Save Me" – The Undertones
"(You Can) Depend On Me" – The Temptations, The Supremes, Mary Wells, Brenda Holloway, Barbara Mason.
"Baby Baby Don't Cry" – Gerald Wilson and His Orchestra, Projekt.
"Can You Love a Poor Boy" – Bobby Vee, Softones, Gil Bernal, Ronnie Walker.
"Bad Girl" – Dazz Band.
"That's What Love Is Made Of" – Michael Jackson, Bobby Vee, Choker Campbell, The Magicians.
"We've Come Too Far To End It Now"-The Escorts
"Here I Go Again" – Chazz Dixon, Carey Bell, A.J. De Bravo, Little Willie G., Oran "Juice" Jones.
"Point It Out"' – The Supremes and The Temptations.
"Got A Job" – The Marcels
"Whole Lotta Shakin' In My Heart (Since I Met You)" – The Hellacopters, Marv Johnson.
"Give Me Just Another Day" – Young Jeezy (as the basis for his song, "Mr 17.5")
"Do It Baby"- Jimmy Ponder, Red Holt (of Young-Holt Unlimited).
"Who's Gonna Take The Blame" – Capone N. Noreaga (as the basis of their song "Live On Live Long").
"Come On Do The Jerk" - The Righteous Brothers
References: Allmusic, The Covers Project, Second Hand Songs, "Who Sampled" website.
Awards, legacy, and recognition
Every member of The Miracles (except Claudette) has been awarded the
BMI award for songwriting.
Berry Gordy's Motown Record Corporation's signature act; their first Group, and their first million selling act was The Miracles.Their groundbreaking success paved the way for all future Motown stars.
Without The Miracles there would be no Motown, quoted Berry Gordy, March 20, 2009 @ Miracles HWOF Ceremony.
Without The Miracles there would be no Stevie Wonder, quoted Stevie Wonder, March 20, 2009 @ Miracles HWOF Ceremony.
The Miracles Day, dedicated in Hollywood, California, March 20, 2009.
Gold & Platinum Record (Single & Album) Awards (Sales of more than 500,000 or 1,000,000 units)
Worldwide over 40 Million records sold.
''Motown'' DVD The Miracles:''The Definitive Performances (1963–1987)'' awarded Certified Gold status by the RIAA.
Twenty six of The Miracles single releases reached the Top Ten Billboard R&B; Charts
Four of The Miracles' songs reached #1 on Billboard R&B; Charts
Sixteen releases of The Miracles' recordings reached Billboards Hot 100's Pop Top 20 List with 7 Pop Top Tens.
Two Miracles songs,the multi-million sellers Tears of a Clown, and "Love Machine", reach #1 on ''Billboard'' Pop chart. A third song, their 1st million-seller Shop Around, reached #1 on Cash Box Pop chart. It was also the Motown label's first ''Billboard'' #1 R&B; Hit.
Four-time inductees Grammy Hall of Fame. (As of 2012, the Miracles have more Grammy Hall Of Fame inducted songs than any other Motown group).
Doo-Wop Hall of Fame Inductees.
Triple induction Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's "500 Best" song list.
Double recipient of the prestigious "Heroes and Legends" Award.
Winner- Rhythm and Blues Foundation's Pioneer Award
Vocal Group Hall of Fame Induction & Award
Spirit of Detroit Award
Rolling Stone Magazine named The Miracles #32 in its list of "The Immortals": The 50 Greatest Rock n' Roll Artists" of All Time (the highest ranking Motown group on the listing).
Billboard Magazine lists The Miracles among The 100 Greatest Artists of all Time (#71).
VH-1 lists The Miracles among The 100 Greatest Artists of all Time (#61).
Under the terms of the National Recording Preservation Act of 2000, the Library's National Recording Preservation Board announced The Miracles' million seller, "Tracks of My Tears" being "culturally, historically, and aesthetically significant" to preserve for all time in the United States Library of Congress.
Miracles Boulevard and Miracles Park named after the group, Detroit, Michigan (Woodbridge Estates)
Governor of the State of Michigan, Certificate of Tribute and recognition of The Miracles and their importance to the state of Michigan and the city of Detroit for tremendous accomplishments in the music industry.
Mayor of Detroit Proclamation for a Lifetime of history making accomplishments in music.
Resolution Award, the Detroit City Council gave the Highest Honor they can present to The Miracles for 5 decades of unchallenged achievements in the music industry.
City of Beverly Hills, California, Beverly Hills Mayor & City Council Proclamation recognizing The Miracles contributions to the music industry and American Culture.
Miracles members Pete Moore, Marv Tarplin, and Smokey Robinson are winners of 'The Award Of Merit' from The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP), for composing "The Tracks Of My Tears".
The Miracles received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on March 20, 2009.
The Miracles were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on February 9, 2012.
Bob Dylan called Smokey Robinson "America's greatest living poet".
Members
William "Smokey" Robinson, Jr. (1955–1972)
Ronald "Ronnie" White (1955–1983; 1993–1995)
Warren "Pete" Moore (1955–1978)
Clarence Dawson (1955–1956)
James Grice (1955–1956)
Emerson "Sonny" Rogers (1956–1958)
Robert "Bobby" Rogers (1956–1983; 1993–present)
Claudette Rogers (1958–1973; 2005–present)
Marvin "Marv" Tarplin (1958–1973)
William "Billy" Griffin (1972–1978; late 1990s)
Donald Griffin (1973–1978)
David "Dave" Finley (1978–1983; 1993–present)
Carl Cotton (1978–1983)
Sidney Justin (1993–2005)
Tee Turner (2001–present)
Mark Scott (2005–present)
Alphonse Franklin (June–December 2008, fill-in for Mark Scott)
Discography
Top Twenty US and UK singles
1960: "Shop Around" (US: #2)
1962: "You've Really Got a Hold on Me" (US #8)
1963: "Mickey's Monkey" (US #8)
1965: "Ooo Baby Baby" (US: #16)
1965: "The Tracks of My Tears" (US #16, UK #9)
1965: "My Girl Has Gone" (US #14)
1965: "Going to a Go-Go" (US #11)
1966: "(Come 'Round Here) I'm The One You Need" (US #17, UK #13)
1967: "The Love I Saw in You Was Just a Mirage" (US #20)
1967: "I Second That Emotion" (US #4)
1968: "If You Can Want" (US: #11)
1969: "Baby, Baby Don't Cry" (US #8)
1970: "The Tears of a Clown" (US #1, UK: #1)
1971: "I Don't Blame You At All" (US #18, UK #11)
1974: "Do It Baby" (US #13)
1976: "Love Machine – Pt. I"(US #1, UK #3)
Top Forty albums
1965: ''Greatest Hits from the Beginning'' (US #21)
1965: ''Going to a Go-Go'' (US #8)
1967: ''Make It Happen'' (US #28)
1968: ''Greatest Hits, Vol. 2'' (US #7)
1969: ''Time Out For Smokey Robinson & the Miracles'' (US #25)
1975: ''City of Angels'' (US #33)
Videography
VHS
''Shindig- Motor City Magic'' Rhino/ABC-1991
''Ready Steady Go- Special Edition: The Sounds Of Motown''-1985
''That Was Rock: The T.A.M.I/T.N.T Shows''- Media Home Entertainment-1984
'' Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever''
''The Soul Experience''- USA Home Video (VHS & DVD) – 1985
''The History Of Rock and Roll: The Sounds of Soul-Time Life/Warner Bros/Quincy Jones Productions-(VHS & DVD) 1985
DVD
''Smokey Robinson & The Miracles: The Definitive Performances (1963-1987)'' Motown/Universal (2006–RIAA Certified Gold)
The T.A.M.I. Show (1964)
''Ed Sullivan's Rock & Roll Classics''
''Red, White, and Rock'' (PBS special-VHS & DVD)
''Soul Spectacular: 40 Years Of R&B;'' (PBS Special-VHS & DVD)
''Music Scene – The Best of 1969–70'' (DVD & VHS)
''Motortown Gold on The Ed Sullivan Show'' – SOFA Entertainment – 2005
''The Best of Music Scene – The Best of 1969–70'' – 2005
Awards and achievements
100 Greatest Artists of All Time
The Miracles are on three "100 Greatest Artists of All Time" lists:
''Rolling Stone'''s list at #32.
VH-1's list at #61. (1998 list)
''Billboard'''s list at #71.
Grammy Hall of Fame
The Miracles are four-time inductees into the
Grammy Hall of Fame. As of 2012, The Miracles have more Grammy Hall of Fame inducted songs than any other Motown group:
{| class=wikitable
|-
| colspan="5" style="text-align:center;"| Grammy Hall of Fame Awards-The Miracles:
|-
! Year Recorded
! Title
! Genre
! Year Inducted
|- align=center
| 1962
| "You've Really Got a Hold on Me"
| Traditional R&B; (Single)
| 1998
|- align=center
| 1965
| "The Tracks Of My Tears"
| Traditional R&B; (Single)
| 2007
|- align=center
| 1970
| "The Tears of a Clown"
| Pop (Single)
| 2002
|- align=center
| 1960
| "Shop Around"
| Traditional R&B; (Single)
| 2006
|}
Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time
The Miracles have three songs in ''Rolling Stone's'' "
500 Greatest Songs Of All Time":
1965: "Ooo Baby Baby" - #262 (incorrectly credited solely to Smokey Robinson)
1965: "The Tracks Of My Tears" - #50
1960: "Shop Around" - #495
The Miracles' 1965 album, ''Going to a Go-Go'', from which two of these songs were taken, also made #271 on ''Rolling Stone's'' list of "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time".
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll
The Miracles have three songs on
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll list:
1965: "Going to a Go-Go"
1965: "The Tracks of My Tears"
1962: "You've Really Got a Hold on Me"
The Miracles' "Hall of Fame" Awards
Grammy Hall Of Fame
Vocal Group Hall Of Fame
Doo-Wop Hall Of Fame
Michigan Rock and Roll Legends Hall of Fame
The People's Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame
Hollywood Walk Of Fame
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
References
Further reading
Smokey Robinson in-depth interview by Pete Lewis, 'Blues & Soul' December 1992 (reprinted February 2009)
External links
The Miracles' history in pictures-Soulwalking U.K. website
The Miracles' page on ''Facebook''
Miracle Pete Moore's corporate website: WBMM Enterprises
The Miracles' Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction page
Claudette Robinson's official website
The Miracles' Facebook Page by Claudette Robinson
Marv Tarplin of ''The Miracles'' Tribute Site
The Miracles' ''Vocal Group Hall of Fame'' site
The Miracles-Hearing is Believing-From the "Soully Oldies" website
''Gonna Take Some Miracles'' by Rick Allen
Miracles Bio and Discography
''History of Rock'' page on ''The Miracles''
The Miracles' ''Hollywood Walk of Fame'' page- from ''The Los Angeles Times''- 2009
Category:Musical groups established in 1955
Category:American rhythm and blues musical groups
Category:Disco groups
Category:Motown artists
Category:American soul musical groups
Category:Musical groups from Detroit, Michigan
Category:Doo-wop groups
Category:Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees
Category:American vocal groups
Category:African American musical groups
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