Berry

berry gordy at his motown studio

Happy Birthday Motown!

Motown Records, one of the most influential record labels in the history of popular music, is marking its 50th anniversary.
Originally called Tamla, the label was founded by songwriter and businessman Berry Gordy in the US city of Detroit.
He started the label in 1959 from a studio in his cellar with an $800 loan.

Mr Gordy changed the label's name to Motown in honour of the city's dominant position in the then-thriving US auto industry.
In its heyday, Berry Gordy likened the label's promoting of black artists to an automobile assembly line that transformed plain metal frames into gleaming motorcars.

While the label had its political moments, it was the crossover appeal of its optimistic, upbeat sound that perhaps did most to help break down racial barriers.

[bbc]


Ας μην αρχίσω να αναφέρω τι καλλιτέχνες είχε η εταρεία, και τι επίδραση είχε στη μουσική παγκοσμίως. Θα πω μόνο πως ο Berry Gordy ήταν (και είναι) icon για μένα. Αν και:

"Today the automobile plants use robots and computers to make their cars. I'm more interested in Ford's robots than Gordy's music."
Juan Atkins