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Tamla T 54044 (AA), June 1961
b/w Broken Hearted
(Written by Smokey Robinson)
Motown’s first double-sided hit, the original flip of Tamla T 54044 earned the distinction of becoming the first Motown record to move from B-side to double A-side status.
Unlike the notional A-side, Broken Hearted, which was very much a product of the latest recording sessions for the Miracles’ second LP Cookin’ With The Miracles (though the single version of Broken Hearted is different from the one which eventually turned up on the album), showcasing the group’s newfound maturity and developing sound, Mighty Good Lovin’ was apparently never intended to be anything more than a throwaway B-side. Ironic, then, that this raucous, danceable R&B rocker should turn out to eclipse the syrupy but earnest balladry of the original A-side.
Right from the off, this is something different, opening with a pounding, dirty guitar riff that immediately grabs your ear and makes you pay attention, before breaking into a three-quarter tempo R&B/rock crossover featuring Smokey wailing at the top of his voice (in volume and range), the closest thing the Miracles ever recorded to their mega-hit Shop Around.
Except that it’s probably a better song than Shop Around. It’s certainly more sophisticated, built around that central guitar riff which never lets up, instead finding itself augmented by vicious, exhilarating bursts of sax and horns, and a great backing-vocal performance from the rest of the Miracles which frees Smokey to do his thing to full effect.
So, yeah, it’s a fine record. It’s not a Miracles classic, not by Smokey’s rarified standards, and it’s not without its problems – it’s a trifle repetitive, and (most uncharacteristically for its writer and lead singer) it doesn’t really go anywhere having made such an explosive start – but it’s plenty of fun nonetheless.
It wouldn’t be the last time Motown would misjudge the relative strengths of a pair of Miracles sides and see a B-side healthily outperform the nominal A-side on the radio and in the charts; the beautiful You’ve Really Got A Hold On Me, one of the Miracles’ best-loved recordings, started out as the flip side of the rather less well-known Happy Landing in November 1962.
MOTOWN JUNKIES VERDICT
(I’ve had MY say, now it’s your turn. Agree? Disagree? Leave a comment, or click the thumbs at the bottom there. Dissent is encouraged!)
You’re reading Motown Junkies, an attempt to review every Motown A- and B-side ever released. Click on the “previous” and “next” buttons below to go back and forth through the catalogue, or visit the Master Index for a full list of reviews so far.
(Or maybe you’re only interested in Smokey Robinson & the Miracles? Click for more.)
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| The Miracles “Broken Hearted” |
Mable John “No Love” |
Motown Junkies 
Nice song, but was not a single release to my ears. The flip side was better
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I’m out in left here….or everybody else is. This period of the Miracles, from Ain’t It Baby to Mighty Good Loving and on had the same formula and it worked. Smokey knew what he created even if QC, or whoever, dictated MGL as the B side. Motown had a number of creative peaks and they were all super, but this was the first one….the Sound of Young America.
The guitar riff, the giant pauses, the pleading, the drumming,the fading end. Listen to it again. Maybe you had to be there. Looking back from now one has had the experience of the Temps, funk, disco, etc. What had we had? Rock and roll, Connie Stevens, Alvin and the Chipmunks, some good doowop and early RnB. This marked the birth of a new era…the Motown Sound.
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You’ve just put everything in context for me Steve. = )
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IMO this song was not as good as “Shop Around” but to think this song was not an A-Side originally is something. Yet, I can understand why Berry & the other powers that be at Motown would have opted for “Broken Hearted” to be the A-side. It had pop appeal which equaled money & exposure.
I liked “Mighty” from the beginning to the end. It’s danceable, sexy and dirty. Not to mention I love hearing Smokey sing at the top of his range! I love the “Well” Smokey let’s out around 1:19 and the “Baby” at 2:10. Good stuff!
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I dont recall Broken Hearted ever getting airplay in San Francisco, nor should it have!
Hahaa. In fact as much as i loved the Miracles hits the flip sides left a bad taste in my ears!
Isnt it obvious MGL was the intended A side? Its the same formula that brought them to the dance!
Respect!
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Steve R, if you don’t mind me asking, what is your favorite Miracles song???
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Hahahaa!! Which is your favorite child? Get it?
I really like or appreciate their singles fairly equally from Way Over There all the way to ’67 or so.
Two periods do stand out though….the early period (Way Over There, Ain’t It Baby, and Mighty Good Lovin’). The other is much later (Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On…, Come Around Here, and my fav).
If you put a gun to my head to pick ONE, it would have to be My Girl Is Gone. Did nt I say I marched to a different drummer? This song has it all…..no sense in listing its attributes. One should listen and if they don’t get it, well they should find their own drummer.
How about you M’Lady?
Steve R
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LOL! Yes I do GET IT. My all-time favorite Motown group is The Supremes so I do understand how a question like “which song is your favorite?” can sound absurd lol. While “My Girl Has Gone” is great song which Tarplin guitar nearly steals Smokey’s spotlight my all time favorite Miracle song would be “Bad Girl”. Smokey’s falsetto really soars and I love the lyrics. Phenomenal song!
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I’ve never known anybody who knew Bad Girl when it came out. It was before Tamla and only charted #93 !!!!
I want to impress on you back in those early days a Miracles song was just another song you’ve never heard of….no Smokey Robinson, no Motown Records, etc.
It took me a few years to piece together the pieces….the Motown family pieces.
Steve R
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LOL. Out of all Miracles songs that’s the one I like the most….yeah I’ve gathered from being on the blog that the Miracles and Motown for this matter were nothing special in those early years lol.
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We heard “Bad Girl” in Chicago. It wasn’t a major hit, but I bought it new (Chess printing, of course). I didn’t get the Motown one till later. I liked The Miracles before Tamla, and The Temptations before Gordy, and The Flamingos before Checker and The Moonglows before Chess. Al Benson used to play a lot of low-charting and non-charting records (especially Chicago records, but also some Detroit and St. Louis records.
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That’s cool, Robb. Right there in the middle of all those fresh soulful sounds. You were very fortunate.
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Interesting Robb!
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Arguably one of the worst tracks in the Miracles’ catalog. I’ve never found much to enjoy in this track and find the flip side to be much better. My rating = 4/10
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I’m a huge Smokey fan but more into his later and solo work, so this song escaped me. But I was just watching the 2017 movie Hidden Figures and heard Smokey singing in early Miracles stlye in the background. Looked up the song and it’s Might Good Loving. So happy that Smokey and Miracles got love in the movie. Thanks for your review of the song. #LoveSmokey.
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I don’t think you can judge (or rate) a song validly without considering the issue date….the context. “Mighty…..” was in that first string of faster-tempo songs, including Ain’t It Baby, so it fit right in perfectly. When issued I would have given it a 10, Smoke was drivin’ it home!! Today, in the context of ALL their releases I might give it a 7. Thx
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