Holland-Dozier-Holland: how Berry Gordy and Motown drove away the key to their success
No record label reflected the cultural revolution of the 1960s quite like Motown Records. Founded in 1959 by Berry Gordy Jr, the Detroit label brought the sweet sounds of soul and R&B to the masses, achieving an unparalleled wealth of hit singles and launching a multitude of now-iconic stars like Diana Ross or Stevie Wonder. Motown’s success came down to a multitude of factors—Gordy’s iron fist business style being predominant—but, ultimately, a record label’s output is only as good as its songwriters.
It is worth remembering that, back in the late 1950s and early 1960s, very few artists wrote and recorded their own original material. This practice became prevalent during the mid-1960s, largely thanks to the efforts of groups like The Beatles. So, when Motown established itself in 1959—then under the name Tamla Records—many of the songs it recorded were written by Berry Gordy himself or those connected to the label boss.
As the years progressed and Motown became more successful, with Barrett Strong’s ‘Money (That’s What I Want)’ ushering in a decade of solid-gold hits for the label, its pool of songwriters expanded. Gordy still wrote or co-wrote a lot of Motown’s hits, but when you think of ‘the Motown sound’, you are probably thinking of songs written by Brian Holland, Lamont Dozier and Eddie Holland.
Eddie Holland had a long history with Berry Gordy, predating the formation of Motown. In 1958, Gordy produced Holland’s single ‘You’, released by Mercury Records, and the performer released a handful of singles via Motown during the early 1960s. Meanwhile, his brother Brian Holland had been onboard the label as a songwriter, earning his stripes with a writing credit on Motown’s first number-one single, The Marvelettes’ ‘Please Mr. Postman’. Lamont Dozier also had credits as a performer and songwriter, but on Gordy’s sister’s record label, Anna Records.
In 1963, these three songwriters teamed up together, and The Marvelettes’ ‘Locking Up My Heart’ became the first released single bearing the Holland-Dozier-Holland songwriting tag. Over the next few years, the trio would work tirelessly for Gordy’s label, penning an awe-inspiring number of timeless hits. In fact, ‘Heatwave’ by Martha and the Vandellas was among their first joint efforts, acting as a sign of the great things to come from the songwriting trio.
Their first number-one single written together was ‘Where Did Our Love Go’ by The Supremes, which topped the US singles chart in 1964. The Diana Ross-fronted vocal group was already on its way to becoming Motown’s flagship group, but it was that chart-topping single which cemented their position. Holland-Dozier-Holland continued to write songs for the group, striking upon gold in the form of ‘Baby Love’, ‘Stop! In the Name of Love’ and ‘You Keep Me Hanging On’, all of which became number-one singles.
Elsewhere, the trio wrote classic songs like ‘Nowhere To Run’ by Martha and the Vandellas and ‘Reach Out (I’ll Be There)’ by the Four Tops, which topped the singles chart in both the US and UK, helping Motown establish itself on the other side of the Atlantic. Through these releases, Holland-Dozier-Holland became instrumental in establishing ‘the Motown sound’ and making colossal stars out of groups like The Supremes.
As such, it is not ludicrous to suggest that their songwriting talents were a huge part of Motown’s appeal. That fact became plainly obvious in 1968 when the songwriters parted ways with Motown over a royalty dispute with Berry Gordy. After their departure, Motown’s output witnessed a noticeable decline in quality, particularly with regard to The Supremes. In fact, the group’s first single after Holland-Dozier-Holland left the label was ‘Some Things You Never Get Used To’, which reached number 30 in the charts and became the band’s lowest-charting record since 1963, when the songwriting trio started working with the group.
Gordy ended up entering into a lengthy legal battle with the songwriters after they formed their own record labels, Invictus and Hot Wax, and the dispute became one of the longest legal feuds in the history of popular music. By the mid-1970s, Dozier had left the partnership, and the remaining Hollands continued to provide songwriting to those willing to pay. In fact, the pair wrote songs for various Motown artists during the 1970s, even while the label was pursuing litigation against the songwriters.
They might have returned to Motown’s arms eventually, but the initial departure of Holland-Dozier-Holland severely impacted the legendary soul label. Berry Gordy’s harsh business practices are often cited as a prevailing reason for Motown’s success, but in the case of the three songwriters, it is likely that his hoarding of royalties cost him dearly in the long run.
