BEFORE IT WAS A HIT XLI: I Heard It Through The Grapevine. Continues next week.

BEFORE IT WAS A HIT SONG…

These songs are well known but you may not know about the earlier attempts to score a hit record with prior versions of the same song.

I Heard It Through The Grapevine

 

When Marvin Gaye released "I Heard It Through The Grapevine", it swiftly became the biggest hit to date on the Motown label. The singer's smooth vocal created one of the coolest soul recordings ever. In 1968, it climbed to #1 in both America and Britain.

While Gaye's take is the definitive version, it had already charted for fellow Motown act Gladys Knight & The Pips. Their grittier interpretation had peaked at #2 in the U.S.A. the previous year.

The original version of the song was recorded by another group on the Detroit record label's roster, Smokey Robinson & The Miracles. It was included on their 'Special Occasion' album, issued just prior to the release of The Pips' single.

Since Gaye's recording, many others have covered the composition penned by Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong, including Creedence Clearwater Revival with a 1970 remake that runs for 11 minutes.

Each new song will be added to the spotify playlist named: ‘Before It Was A Hit Song’.  You can check out the previous earlier / original versions of the hit songs you know and love.

The playlist and other Caffe` Latte` selections can be found at:

https://open.spotify.com/user/alanrosscaffelatte

spotify:user:alanrosscaffelatte