Hitsville: The Making of Motown

If you like music you will like this. If you don't like Motown you won't like this. If you don't like music don't bother to watch it.

It was a brilliant documentary that gave me a greater insight to one of the greatest record labels in the world. Berry Gordy and Smokey Robinson were and are a great double act.

Documentary of the remarkable story of Berry Gordy.

Berry was the musical genius behind the formative years of Motown, he provides on screen narration with large contributions from Smokey Robinson.

As a child Berry was always interested in making money and started selling newspapers to white-folk, he did well and pulled in help from his brother to increase sales. But this backfired, you see because 1 black youth was cute but 2 started to look like a threat.

Berry briefly worked at Ford and so we see how car assembly techniques influenced his music production. Berry's skill was song writing and taking talented artists and bringing out the best from them to become superstars. We also see how Smokey Robinson was a special part of the Motown story, he had the idea of producing their own records instead of taking a tiny commission from other companies.

The 'Hitsville USA' studio looked like an ordinary house, this was where they started recording. Motown sounded different and there was a reason, the secret was recording in their echoey bathroom. The film includes historic film footage, including photos and audio clips of meetings where the music making machine 'family' would decide which singles to release.

Don't think of this as a film about black music, more about the sound of America. Deserves an Oscar in the documentary category.

Very rarely is there a film or documentary that begs for more background and material to be presented, most are in need of serious editing to eliminate needless repetition or boring monologues by so-called subject experts or narrators. (Virtually any Ken Burns doc) However, Motown Records is such an incredible story with has so much material and so many fascinating stories about the talented performers, musicians, writers, arrangers and execs who made Motown Records well deserving of it's "Hitsville USA" slogan. Loved the footage that was shown but 1:52 isn't nearly enough time to the subject give proper credit it deserves.

There have been a number of music documentaries that have covered the era in focus but I give this documentary high praise not just for presentation but on the focus of what actually drove Barry Gordy to start the Motown enterprise and to grow it.

Let me explain upfront I don't have the musical background or training required for making a truly honest assessment of the documentary but being that much of the focus is on the human element behind the music I can point out some key things.

On the entrepreneurial side, learning from failures, perseverance, belief in oneself, and having a vision is embedded in the story. Having everyone in the enterprise share that vision and understand it even more so.

I appreciate how he gives his parents credit for raising him with the values needed to be a success. Civil rights is discussed but ultimately having a vision that is color blind is shown to be more important. The diversity he brought to his enterprise and the use of everyone's talents shines through as well.

The music is great too and making wish there was a Motown collection that I can purchase or a soundtrack to the documentary with all the full songs on it.

It is a helpful watch for anyone considering starting a business regardless of field. Barry Gordy shares credit with Smoky Robinson and others but for me it was clear he was the one driving the train..

P.S. Looking forward to comments from professional in the industry as well.

Motown was the greatest assembly of musicians that the world has ever heard. Their music transcended time, cultures, generations and ethnicities. To this day it remains as some of the most popular and captivating music ever recorded. I loved watching the making of the music and especially the clips of the live performances. Little Stevie Wonder, Little Michael Jackson & The Jackson 5, Diana Ross & The Supremes, Marvin Gaye, Smokey Robinson, The Four Tops, The Temptations. The list goes on and on. Detroit will forever be known as Motown.