Please Mr. Postman (album)
Encyclopedia
Please Mr. Postman is the 1961 debut LP from Motown
girl group The Marvelettes
and the sixth album ever released by the company. The focal track is the number-one hit single, "Please Mr. Postman
". It notably features cover versions of label mates The Miracles
' "Way Over There
and "I Want a Guy
", which was the debut single for fellow Motown girl group The Supremes
the same year, and their cover had served as the b-side to "Twistin' Postman
" the less successful follow-up to "Please Mr. Postman." Although the original version by The Supremes flopped, The Marvelettes' cover became a regional hit.
Other songs on the album include "Oh I Apologize", produced by Smokey Robinson
, who would produce much of the group's later material, and "Angel," an early lead for Wanda Young
who would later take Gladys Horton
's place as the group's main lead singer.
Please Mr. Postman received mainly negative reviews as it was believed to have been "too rushed" so that the focal track's success could be capitalized. All of the tracks from the album can be found on the Hip-O Select
deluxe compilation CD
Forever: The Complete Motown Albums.
Motown Records
Motown is a record label originally founded by Berry Gordy, Jr. and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation in Detroit, Michigan, United States, on April 14, 1960. The name, a portmanteau of motor and town, is also a nickname for Detroit...
girl group The Marvelettes
The Marvelettes
The Marvelettes were an American singing girl group on the Tamla label. Motown's first successful female vocal group, the Marvelettes are most notable for recording the company's first #1 Pop hit, "Please Mr...
and the sixth album ever released by the company. The focal track is the number-one hit single, "Please Mr. Postman
Please Mr. Postman
"Please Mr. Postman" is the debut single by The Marvelettes for the Tamla label, notable as the first Motown song to reach the number-one position on the Billboard Hot 100 pop singles chart. The single achieved this position in late 1961; it hit number one on the R&B chart as well. "Please Mr...
". It notably features cover versions of label mates The Miracles
The Miracles
The Miracles are an American rhythm and blues group from Detroit, Michigan, notable as the first successful group act for Berry Gordy's Motown Record Corporation . Their single "Shop Around" was Motown's first million-selling hit record, and the group went on to become one of Motown's signature...
' "Way Over There
Way Over There
"Way Over There" is a 1960 Motown soul song and single, written by William "Smokey" Robinson, produced by Berry Gordy, and first performed by The Miracles for the Tamla label. It was one of The Miracles' earliest charting singles, reaching #94 on the Billboard Pop chart. Motown president Berry...
and "I Want a Guy
I Want a Guy
"I Want a Guy" is a song written by Berry Gordy and was the debuting single for Motown girl group The Supremes in 1961. It was also recorded by The Marvelettes...
", which was the debut single for fellow Motown girl group The Supremes
The Supremes
The Supremes, an American female singing group, were the premier act of Motown Records during the 1960s.Originally founded as The Primettes in Detroit, Michigan, in 1959, The Supremes' repertoire included doo-wop, pop, soul, Broadway show tunes, psychedelic soul, and disco...
the same year, and their cover had served as the b-side to "Twistin' Postman
Twistin' Postman
"Twistin' Postman" is a song recorded by Motown singing group The Marvelettes, who released it in 1961, and was the follow-up to their smash debut single, "Please Mr. Postman". Much like that song, it is led by original Marvelette Gladys Horton, and is partially based on the then-current Twist...
" the less successful follow-up to "Please Mr. Postman." Although the original version by The Supremes flopped, The Marvelettes' cover became a regional hit.
Other songs on the album include "Oh I Apologize", produced by Smokey Robinson
Smokey Robinson
William "Smokey" Robinson, Jr. is an American R&B singer-songwriter, record producer, and former record executive. Robinson is one of the primary figures associated with Motown, second only to the company's founder, Berry Gordy...
, who would produce much of the group's later material, and "Angel," an early lead for Wanda Young
Wanda Young
Wanda Young is an American singer, famous for being the member and later lead singer of the popular Motown all-female singing group The Marvelettes.-Biography:Wanda was born in 1943 and raised in the western Detroit suburb of Inkster, Michigan...
who would later take Gladys Horton
Gladys Horton
Gladys Catherine Horton was an American R&B and pop singer, famous for being the founder and lead singer of the popular Motown all-female vocal group The Marvelettes.-Biography:...
's place as the group's main lead singer.
Please Mr. Postman received mainly negative reviews as it was believed to have been "too rushed" so that the focal track's success could be capitalized. All of the tracks from the album can be found on the Hip-O Select
Hip-O Records
Hip-O Records is a record label, currently part of Universal Music Group, which specializes in reissues and compilations. Their Hip-O Select label is currently in the midst of releasing the Complete Motown Singles, a series of fourteen box sets which include both sides of every 45 from Motown...
deluxe compilation CD
Compact Disc
The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...
Forever: The Complete Motown Albums.
Side 1
- "Angel" (Sonny Sanders, Robert Bateman)
- "I Want a GuyI Want a Guy"I Want a Guy" is a song written by Berry Gordy and was the debuting single for Motown girl group The Supremes in 1961. It was also recorded by The Marvelettes...
" (Brian HollandBrian HollandBrian Holland is an American songwriter and record producer, best known as a member of Holland–Dozier–Holland. That songwriting and production team that was responsible for much of the Motown sound and numerous hit records by artists such as Martha and the Vandellas, The Supremes, The Four Tops,...
, Freddie Gorman, Berry GordyBerry GordyBerry Gordy, Jr. is an American record producer, and the founder of the Motown record label, as well as its many subsidiaries.-Early years:...
) - "Please Mr. PostmanPlease Mr. Postman"Please Mr. Postman" is the debut single by The Marvelettes for the Tamla label, notable as the first Motown song to reach the number-one position on the Billboard Hot 100 pop singles chart. The single achieved this position in late 1961; it hit number one on the R&B chart as well. "Please Mr...
" (Georgia Dobbins, William Garrett, Freddie Gorman, Brian Holland, Robert Bateman) - "So Long Baby" (Robert Bateman)
- "I Know How It Feels" (Janie BradfordJanie BradfordJanie Bradford is an American songwriter, most known for her tenure with Motown. With Berry Gordy, she co-wrote "Money ", originally recorded by Barrett Strong and used by The Beatles on their second album With The Beatles...
, Robert Bateman, Richard Wylie)
Side 2
- "Way Over ThereWay Over There"Way Over There" is a 1960 Motown soul song and single, written by William "Smokey" Robinson, produced by Berry Gordy, and first performed by The Miracles for the Tamla label. It was one of The Miracles' earliest charting singles, reaching #94 on the Billboard Pop chart. Motown president Berry...
" (Berry Gordy, William RobinsonSmokey RobinsonWilliam "Smokey" Robinson, Jr. is an American R&B singer-songwriter, record producer, and former record executive. Robinson is one of the primary figures associated with Motown, second only to the company's founder, Berry Gordy...
) - "Happy Days" (Berry Gordy)
- "You Don't Want Me No More" (Berry Gordy)
- "All The Love I Got" (Berry Gordy, Janie Bradford)
- "Whisper" (Berry Gordy, Marv JohnsonMarv JohnsonMarv Johnson was an American R&B and soul singer, most notable for performing on the first record to be issued from what became Motown.-Biography:...
) - "Oh I Apologize" (Berry Gordy, William Robinson)
Personnel
- Gladys HortonGladys HortonGladys Catherine Horton was an American R&B and pop singer, famous for being the founder and lead singer of the popular Motown all-female vocal group The Marvelettes.-Biography:...
- Lead and background vocals - Wanda YoungWanda YoungWanda Young is an American singer, famous for being the member and later lead singer of the popular Motown all-female singing group The Marvelettes.-Biography:Wanda was born in 1943 and raised in the western Detroit suburb of Inkster, Michigan...
- Lead and background vocals - Georgeanna TillmanGeorgeanna TillmanGeorgeanna Marie Tillman Gordon was an American R&B/Pop singer and an original member of the Motown girl group The Marvelettes....
- Background vocals - Katherine AndersonKatherine AndersonKatherine Anderson Schaffner is an American singer, famed for her tenure in the Motown all-female singing group The Marvelettes...
- Background vocals - Wyanetta "Juanita" Cowart - Background vocals
- Berry GordyBerry GordyBerry Gordy, Jr. is an American record producer, and the founder of the Motown record label, as well as its many subsidiaries.-Early years:...
- Producer - Smokey RobinsonSmokey RobinsonWilliam "Smokey" Robinson, Jr. is an American R&B singer-songwriter, record producer, and former record executive. Robinson is one of the primary figures associated with Motown, second only to the company's founder, Berry Gordy...
- Producer - Eddie Holland - Producer
- The Funk BrothersThe Funk BrothersThe Funk Brothers was the nickname of Detroit, Michigan, session musicians who performed the backing to most Motown Records recordings from 1959 until the company moved to Los Angeles in 1972...
- Instrumentation