The Miracles



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JANICE'S BLUES ALLEY PRESENTS
The Miracles



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The Miracles



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Scoring over 40 hits in the R&B Top 40 charts, The Miracles started out as the Five Chimes in the mid-'50s while the members were still in high school. The Detroit vocal group consisted of William "Smokey" Robinson, Warren "Pete" Moore, Clarence "Humble" Dawson, Donald Wicker and James "Rat" Grice. Not too long after the group formed, Wicker and Grice left and were replaced by cousins Emerson "Sonny" Rogers and Bobby Rogers, who both sang tenor and baritonist Ronnie White was in Dawson's place. The vocal quintet then changed their name to the Matadors, and in 1956 Claudette Rogers joined the band after her brother Sonny Rogers was drafted.

The Matadors auditioned for Jackie Wilson's manager, Nat Tarnapol, in 1956. Although Tarnapol wasn't interested, finding the group too similar to the Platters, Jackie Wilson's songwriter Berry Gordy, Jr. was, and he soon began producing the band, who now went by the name the Miracles. Gordy produced their first single, "Get a Job," which was issued by the NY label End Records in 1958. After one more release on this label, the Miracles recorded their first song for Gordy's new Motown/Tamla label, 1959's "Bad Girl" (which was issued nationally on the Chess label). Next came the first hit for both the group and the label, 1960's "Shop Around," which reached #1 on the R&B charts and #2 Pop. The next song by the Miracles to hit the #1 R&B spot and reach the Pop Top 10 came two years later with "You've Really Got a Hold on Me." Smokey and Claudette got married in 1963, and she retired from the group a year later.

The band's last big hit before they changed their name from the Miracles was "Going To a Go-Go" (1966), which climbed into the Top 5 on the R&B charts, and the Pop Top 20. Later that year, "I'm the One You Need" reached the Top 20. After this, the group's name changed to Smokey Robinson & the Miracles and they scored two more #1 songs: "I Second That Emotion" (1967) and "The Tears of a Clown" (1970). Smokey left the group to pursue a solo career in 1972 and 20-year-old Billy Griffin was brought in to replace the lead singer. Once again the Miracles, the band scored several more hits, including "Do It Baby" and "Don't Cha Love It," which both reached the R&B Top 10. The Miracles experienced a big success in early '76 with "Love Machine (Part 1)", which reached #1 on the pop charts. The multi-million selling single came off of their second album without Smokey, 1975's City of Angels, and stayed on the charts for over six months, making it the longest-running hit the band ever had. Their final album on the Motown label, Power to the Music, followed.

After this, the Miracles added a new member, Billy Griffin's brother Don, and the band switched over to Columbia Records. Their first CBS release was Love Crazy (1977), which contained a single, "Spy for the Brotherhood," that was pulled off the record after complaints from the FBI. The group's last charting single, "Mean Machine," made the R&B Top 100 in 1978. Billy Griffin pursued a solo career, and Warren "Pete" Moore became a record producer in Detroit. In the late '80s, Bobby Rogers started the New Miracles, and in 1990 the Miracles (including Billy Griffin and Claudette Robinson) reunited to re-record "Love Machine" for the UK Motorcity label. -- Joslyn Layne


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LINKSYEARTITLE
1961 Hi, We're the Miracles
1962 I'll Try Something New
1962 Cookin' with the Miracles
1962 Shop Around
1963 The Fabulous Miracles
1963 The Miracles on Stage [live]
1963 Christmas with the Miracles [Motown]
1963 Doin' Mickey's Monkey
1964 I Like It Like That
1965 Going to a Go-Go
1966 Away We A-Go-Go
1967 Make It Happen
1968 Special Occasion
1969 Time Out for Smokey Robinson & the Miracles
1969 Four in Blue
1969 Live!
1970 What Love Has...Joined Together
1970 Season for Miracles
1970 The Tears of a Clown
1970 A Pocket Full of Miracles
1971 Smokey & the Miracles
1971 From the Beginning
1971 One Dozen Roses
1972 1957-1972 [live]
1972 Flying High Together
1973 Renaissance
1974 Do It Baby
1975 City of Angels
1975 Don't Cha Love It
1976 The Power of Music
1977 The Miracles
1977 Love Crazy
1979 The Best Of Smokey Robinson & The Miracles
2001 A Soulful Christmas
2001 Christmas with the Miracles [BCI]


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1961 Hi, We're the Miracles

01. Who's Lovin' You
02. Depend on Me
03. Heart Like Mine
04. Shop Around
05. Won't You Take Me Back?
06. Cause I Love You
07. Your Love
08. After All
09. Way over There
10. Money (That's What I Want)
11. Don't Leave Me



1962 I'll Try Something New

01. I'll Try Something New
02. What's So Good About Goodbye?
03. He Don't Care About Me
04. A Love That Can Never Be
05. I've Been Good to You
06. Speak Low
07. On the Street Where You Live
08. If Your Mother Only Knew
09. I've Got You Under My Skin
10. This I Swear, I Promise


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1962 Cookin' with the Miracles

1962 Shop Around

1963 The Fabulous Miracles

1963 The Miracles on Stage [live]

1963 Christmas with the Miracles [Motown]

01. Santa Claus Is Coming to Town
02. Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!
03. Winter Wonderland
04. Christmas Everyday
05. I'll Be Home for Christmas
06. The Christmas Song
07. White Christmas
08. Silver Bells
09. Noel
10. O Holy Night


1963 Doin' Mickey's Monkey

01. Mickey's Monkey
02. Dance What You Wanna
03. The Wah-Watusi
04. The Twist
05. Dancin' Holiday
06. Land of 1000 Dances
07. I Gotta Dance to Keep from Crying
08. The Monkey Time
09. The Groovey Thing
10. Twist and Shout
11. Do You Love Me



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1964 I Like It Like That

1965 Going to a Go-Go

01. The Tracks of My Tears
02. Going to a Go-Go
03. Ooo Baby Baby
04. My Girl Has Gone
05. In Case You Need Love
06. Choosey Beggar
07. Since You Won My Heart
08. From Head to Toe
09. All That's Good
10. My Baby Changes Like the Weather
11. Let Me Have Some
12. A Fork in the Road


1966 Away We A-Go-Go

1967 Make It Happen

1968 Special Occasion

1969 Time Out for Smokey Robinson & the Miracles

1969 Four in Blue

1969 Live!

1970 What Love Has...Joined Together

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1970 Season for Miracles

01. Deck the Halls/Bring a Torch, Jeannette,...
02. God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen
03. I Can Tell When Christmas Is Near
04. I Believe in Christmas Eve
05. The Christmas Song
06. Jingle Bells
07. It's Christmas Time
08. Go Tell It on the Mountain
09. Away in a Manger/Coventry Carol
10. Peace on Earth (Good Will Toward Men)
11. The Day That Love Began
12. A Child Is Waiting


1970 The Tears of a Clown

01. The Soulful Shack
02. The Love I Saw in You Was Just a Mirage
03. My Love for You
04. I'm on the Outside (Looking In)
05. Don't Think It's Me
06. My Love for You
07. More Love
08. After You Put Back the Pieces
09. It's a Good Feeling
10. You Must Be Love
11. Dancing's Alright
12. The Tears of a Clown


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1970 A Pocket Full of Miracles

1971 Smokey & the Miracles

1971 From the Beginning

1971 One Dozen Roses

1972 1957-1972 [live]

1972 Flying High Together

1973 Renaissance

1974 Do It Baby

1975 City of Angels

1975 Don't Cha Love It

1976 The Power of Music

1977 The Miracles

1977 Love Crazy

01. Love Crazy Intro
02. Love Crazy
03. Love Crazy Overture
04. Too Young
05. Spy for Brotherhood
06. A Better Way to Live
07. Woman
08. The Bird Must Fly Away
09. I Can Touch the Sky



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1979 The Best Of Smokey Robinson & The Miracles

01. Shop Around
02. Bad Girl
03. What's So Good About Good-Bye
04. I'll Try Something New
05. You've Really Got A Hold On Me
06. Mickey's Monkey
07. That's What Love Is Made Of
08. I Like It Like That
09. My Girl Has Gone
10. Going To A Go-Go
11. Ooh Baby Baby
12. (come 'round here) I'm The One You Need
13. The Love I Saw In You Was Just A Mirage
14. More Love
15. I Second That Emotion
16. The Tracks Of My Tears
17. If You Can Want
18. Baby, Baby Don't Cry
19. Special Occasion
20. The Tears Of A Clown


2001 A Soulful Christmas

01. The Christmas Song
02. We Three Kings
03. The Little Drummer Boy
04. O Holy Night
05. Let It Snow
06. Feliz Navidad
07. My Favorite Time of the Year
08. Silent Night
09. Silver Bells
10. Frosty the Snowman
11. Finally Christmas
12. Jingle Bells
13. White Christmas
14. We Wish You a Merry Christmas/Auld Lang Syne


2001 Christmas with the Miracles [BCI]

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