Motown Around the World: The Classic Singles

Motown Around the World: The Classic Singles presents Motown stars singing in German, Italian, Spanish and French! Motown Records made international inroads in the mid-1960s, and by the end of the decade the company's stars - from Stevie Wonder to the Temptations, the Supremes to the Four Tops, Edwin Starr to Martha & the Vandellas - would release Italian, German and Spanish language versions of several of their classic hits, plus five new songs created especially for the local market. Those singles became instant collector's items. Now, for the first time, all of Motown's classic-era foreign language singles - and four rare French recordings by the Velvelettes - are collected on Motown Around the World: The Classic Singles, a 38-track, limited edition 2xCD set that also includes two foreign language singles from the late '70s-early '80s: Spanish versions of "Being With You" by Smokey Robinson and "Let Get Serious" by Jermaine Jackson, the latter in a super-rare long version. It's an exceptional treat to hear the hits "My Girl," "You Can't Hurry Love," "What Becomes of the Brokenhearted," "For Once in My Life," "I Can't Help Myself" and so many more sung by their originators in Italian, or German, or Spanish. (Stevie Wonder has eleven songs in Italian and Spanish by himself!) Motown Around the World: The Classic Singles is presented in an attractive package with a 24-page booklet that replicates the look of an international passport. Inside are rare photos of Motown stars in settings around the world, reproductions of the original single sleeves, a 9.5" x 14" sticker sheet, detailed annotations and an essay by Dr. Andrew Flory.