BARRETT STRONG (1941 - 2023)

One of the first artists to achieve a hit record for Motown, Barrett Strong passed away on January 28th at the age of eighty-one. He later went on to become a prolific writer for the music label, co-writing with Norman Whitfield some classic songs like "I Heard It Through The Grapevine", "I Wish it Would Rain" and "Just My Imagination".

After signing with Tamla Records, Strong helped bring attention to the fledgling label with his recording of "Money (That's What I Want)" which reached number two on the r&b chart in 1960 and selling over one million copies. The song was so popular that other artists covered it including The Beatles in 1963 and The Rolling Stones in 1964. Strong claimed to have co-written "Money" with Janie Bradford and Motown founder, Berry Gordy and his name was originally on the copyright. But his name was later removed due to Gordy saying that the addition of Strong as a songwriter was a clerical error. Strong later tried to pursue this legally but his case was weakened due to how long it took him to have his name reinstated as a writer.

Strong had moved into songwriting after his recording career cooled down, working with producer Whitfield on songs largely for the Temptations which included "Cloud Nine", "Psychedelic Shack", "Ball of Confusion (That's What the World Is Today)", and "Papa Was a Rollin' Stone" as well as songs for the Undisputed Truth ("Smiling Faces Sometimes") and Edwin Starr ("War").

When Gordy decided to pack-up Motown to Los Angeles in 1972, Strong remained in Detroit, leaving the label and resuming his music career. He signed with several different labels and would record four solo albums throughout the rest of his career. Here is Strong's first big hit and a few of the popular hit songs he wrote for some of the great artists on Motown: