Song of the Day Jan 21

January 21, 2024

This month I’m focusing on some great hits from the 60s.

Today our song is:  The Tracks Of My Tears

Wikipedia tells us this about the song:

"The Tracks of My Tears" was written by Miracles members Smokey Robinson (lead vocalist), Pete Moore (bass vocalist), and Marv Tarplin (guitarist).

In the five-LP publication The Motown Story, by Motown Records, Robinson explained the origin of this song in these words: "'Tracks of My Tears' was actually started by Marv Tarplin, who is a young cat who plays guitar for our act. So he had this musical thing [sings melody], you know, and we worked around with it, and worked around, and it became 'Tracks of My Tears'." Tarplin's guitar licks at the song's intro are among the most famous in pop music history.

"The Tracks of My Tears" was a No. 2 hit on the Billboard R&B chart, and it reached No. 16 on the Billboard Hot 100. On initial release in the UK in 1965 it did not chart, but like several other Motown singles reissued there in 1969, it became a Top Ten hit in the summer, reaching No. 9, credited to "Smokey Robinson and the Miracles". This song is considered to be among the finest recordings of The Miracles, and it sold over one million records within two years, making it The Miracles' fourth million-selling record. Billboard described the song as a "first rate teen ballad with pulsating dance beat." Cash Box described it as "a slow-shufflin’ pop-r&b tearjerker about a gal who has several regrets about losing her guy."

Enjoy!