By Spence Finlayson

Imagine a world without Diana Ross and The Supremes, Marvin Gaye, The Temptations, Gladys Knight and The Pips, Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson, Lionel Richie, Smokey Robinson and The Miracles and The Four Tops. You have just imagined a world without Berry Gordy, Jr.

I grew up in the Bahamas in the sixties and seventies listening to the wonderful sounds of Motown, the record company that Berry Gordy founded. My favorite Motown act of course is the Tempting Temptations, who I have had the great privilege of seeing them in concert more than 10 times. As I write this chapter, I am listening to David Ruffin singing lead on the Temptations hit“ I Could Never Love Another After Loving You“ on the Classic R & B and Soul on my Cable box.

Berry Gordy and his Motown music have always been a source of inspiration for me. Berry Gordy Jr was born to a middle-class family and he shattered the color barrier in the American entertainment industry. The son of a plastering contractor in Detroit’ s inner city, Gordy rose to become one of the twentieth century’ s most stunning success stories, following a sometimes stumbling, but

Berry Gordy, Jr. Founder of Motown Records

always determined course. For me personally whenever I felt a little down for whatever reason, I would play some of my old Temptations songs that takes me back to a pleasant time in my life.

Berry Gordy was known as the black sheep of his family but he had a burning desire for greatness, a desire to

be special, a fire lit by the heroes of his youth, the legendary boxers, as well as the artists and musicians flourishing in Detroit’ s club scene, who showed him there was a way out of the ghetto. In 1957 Jackie Wilson recorded“ Reet Petite, a song Berry Gordy co-wrote with his sister Gwen and writerproducer Billy Davis, It become a modest hit, but had more success internationally, especially in the UK, where it reached the Top 10 and even later topped the chart on re-issue in 1986. Wilson recorded six more songs co-written by Gordy over the next two years, including“ Lonely Teardrops” which topped the R & B charts and got to number 7 in the pop chart.

Gordy reinvested the profits from his songwriting success into producing. In 1957, he discovered The Miracles and began building a portfolio of successful artists. In 1959, at Miracles leader William Smokey Robinson’ s encouragement, Gordy borrowed $ 800 from his family to create the R & B label Tamla Records. On January 21, 1959,“ Come To Me” by Marv Johnson was issued as Tamla 101. In 1960, Berry Gordy signed an unknown named Mary Wells who became the fledgling label’ s first star with Smoke Robinson writing her hits“ You Beat Me To The Punch,““ Two Lovers” and“ My Guy.” Gordy’ s gift for identifying and

bringing together musical talent, along with the careful management of his artists’ public image, made Motown initially a major national and then international success. Over the next decade, he signed such artists as The Supremes, Marvin Gaye, The Temptations, Jimmy Ruffin, The Contours, The Four Tops, Gladys Knight and The Pips, The Commodores, The Velvelettes, Martha and The Vandellas, Stevie Wonder and the Jackson 5.

I was so inspired by Berry Gordy, I hosted my own radio show called“ The Motown Hour“ where I played the hits by the various Motown artists and shared some background information about the writers and producers and little tidbits about the artists. Berry Gordy‘ s dream began to take shape, a hit factory, based on the principles he learned working on Detroit’ s Lincoln- Mercury assembly line, where a kid could walk in one door an unknown off the street and come out the other a polished performer. Gordy’ s standards were ferociously exacting. With determination and constant innovations, he cultivated a music that communicated basic feelings, cutting through cultural and language barriers. By the mid-60s, Motown dominated

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