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Going to a Go-Go

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This article is about the 1965 album by the Miracles. For the single, see Going to a Go-Go (song).

Going to a Go-Go is a 1965 album by the Miracles, the first to credit the group as Smokey Robinson and the Miracles. It includes four of the Miracles' Top 20 hits: "Ooo Baby Baby", "The Tracks of My Tears", "Going to a Go-Go", and "My Girl Has Gone". It was produced by Miracles lead singer Smokey Robinson, along with Frank Wilson and William "Mickey" Stevenson.

Going to a Go-Go
Studio album by
Smokey Robinson & the Miracles
ReleasedNovember 1, 1965[1]
Recorded1963–1965
StudioHitsville USA, Detroit
GenreSoul[2]
Length33:49
LabelTamla
ProducerSmokey Robinson, Frank Wilson, William "Mickey" Stevenson
Smokey Robinson & the Miracles chronology
Greatest Hits from the Beginning
(1965) 		Going to a Go-Go
(1965) 		Away We a Go-Go
(1966)
Singles from Going to a Go-Go
  1. "Ooo Baby Baby"
    Released: March 5, 1965
  2. "The Tracks of My Tears"
    Released: June 23, 1965
  3. "My Girl Has Gone"
    Released: September 22, 1965
  4. "Going to a Go-Go"
    Released: December 6, 1965
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[3]
Record Mirror[4]

Primarily produced by Miracles lead singer Smokey Robinson, Going to a Go-Go features compositions co-written by Miracles members Robinson, Ronald White, Bobby Rogers, Pete Moore, and Marv Tarplin. In fact, with the sole exception of the song, "My Baby Changes Like The Weather", this entire album was written by The Miracles.

Going to a Go-Go was the only Miracles studio LP to chart within the Top 10 of the Billboard Top LPs chart, where it remained for 40 weeks, peaking at number 8. The LP peaked at number-one on Billboard's R&B albums chart. In 2003, the album achieved Gold Record status.[citation needed] It was ranked number 271 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time,[5] and number 273 in the 2012 revised list, and number 412 in the 2020 revised list.[6][7]

Going to a Go-Go was reissued on CD in 2002, coupled with the Miracles' Away We a Go-Go.

Composition

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Sessions for the album took place at Hitsville USA in Detroit between February 10 and September 29, 1965, but six of the twelve tracks had been recorded years earlier, in 1963 and 1964.[8] Robinson wrote or co-wrote all the tracks, apart from "My Baby Changes Like the Weather", which was written by two other Motown writers, Hal Davis and Frank Wilson. Robinson's main writing partner was his childhood friend and co-founder of the Miracles, Warren "Pete" Moore, who worked with him on seven of the album's twelve tracks. The other writers are: Miracles members Bobby Rogers, Ronald White, and Marv Tarplin, along with William "Mickey" Stevenson, a Motown songwriter and producer, who contributed to one song. Marv Tarplin, the Miracles' lead guitarist, created the evocative opening chords of "The Tracks of My Tears".[9] and the starting guitar riffs on the title song, and "My Girl Has Gone" .[10]

Release

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Going to a Go-Go was released November 1, 1965,[1] and reached number-eight on the Billboard Top LPs chart, and number-one on Billboard's R&B albums chart. It is the only Miracles studio LP to chart within the Top 10. (Another Miracles LP, Greatest Hits Vol. 2 was also a Top 10 success, but that was a compilation, not a studio album.)

The tracks "Ooo Baby Baby", "The Tracks of My Tears", "Going to a Go-Go", and "My Girl Has Gone", were released as singles, and reached the Top 20. "Choosey Beggar" charted on the Billboard Hot R&B Singles chart at number 35. "A Fork in the Road" was a strong regional hit in several areas of the country and was regularly performed as part of the Miracles' live show.

Going to a Go-Go was reissued on CD in 2002, coupled with the Miracles' Away We a Go-Go.

Track listing

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Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."The Tracks of My Tears"Warren Moore, Smokey Robinson, Marvin Tarplin2:55
2."Going to a Go-Go"Moore, Robinson, Robert Rogers, Tarplin2:46
3."Ooo Baby Baby"Moore, Robinson2:45
4."My Girl Has Gone"Moore, Robinson, Tarplin, Ronald White2:50
5."In Case You Need Love"Robinson2:47
6."Choosey Beggar"Moore, Robinson2:33
Total length:16:36
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Since You Won My Heart"Robinson, William "Mickey" Stevenson2:16
2."From Head to Toe"Robinson2:25
3."All That's Good"Moore, Robinson3:12
4."My Baby Changes Like the Weather"Hal Davis, Frank Wilson2:47
5."Let Me Have Some"Robinson, Rogers3:07
6."A Fork in the Road"Moore, Robinson, White3:26
Total length:17:13

Personnel

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Producers

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Hughes, Keith (2018). "Going To A Go-Go". Don't Forget the Motor City. Ritchie Hardin. Archived from the original on 19 December 2018. Retrieved 23 September 2019.
  2. ^ Segretto, Mike (2022). "1965". 33 1/3 Revolutions Per Minute - A Critical Trip Through the Rock LP Era, 1955–1999. Backbeat. pp. 72–73. ISBN 9781493064601.
  3. ^ Allmusic review
  4. ^ Jones, Peter; Jopling, Norman (26 February 1966). "The Miracles: Going To A Go Go" (PDF). Record Mirror. No. 259. p. 8. Archived from the original (PDF) on 1 April 2022. Retrieved 22 August 2022.
  5. ^ "News". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on March 13, 2007. Retrieved 2011-12-05.
  6. ^ "500 Greatest Albums of All Time Rolling Stone's definitive list of the 500 greatest albums of all time". Rolling Stone. 2012. Retrieved September 10, 2019.
  7. ^ "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time". Rolling Stone. 2020-09-22. Retrieved 2020-11-11.
  8. ^ Hughes, Keith (2018). "Miracles". Don't Forget the Motor City. Ritchie Hardin. Archived from the original on 24 April 2024. Retrieved 16 September 2024.
  9. ^ Richard Williams (3 October 2011). "Marv Tarplin obituary | Music | The Guardian". The Guardian. London: GMG. ISSN 0261-3077. OCLC 60623878. Retrieved 11 May 2013.
  10. ^ DVD: Smokey Robinson & The Miracles: The Definitive Performances
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