‘Going To The Hop’: Who were the first group to record with Motown?
Motown Records made global megastars out of countless artists during the early years of its reign, from the youthful tones of Smokey Robinson to the iconic performances of Diana Ross. Berry Gordy’s pioneering label was utterly instrumental in bringing the sweet sounds of Detroit soul to the masses, and he oversaw the release of colossal hits in the process. When Motown hit its stride during the mid-1960s, many of its biggest hit records came from groups, with The Supremes being among the most successful and enduring Motown artists of all time, but that wasn’t always the case.
The early days of Motown were often sotired by trial and error, with Gordy finding his feet as a label boss and figuring out what worked and what didn’t. It took the label a few years to reach the top of the charts, earning its first number-one in 1961 with The Marvelettes’ ‘Please Mr. Postman’, but that legendary track might never have come to fruition were it not for the experimentation of Motown’s first year in 1959.
Originally named Tamla Records, the label’s early output consisted largely of the soul and R&B tunes that eventually earned Gordy’s company such an unparalleled reputation. However, there were more than a few curveballs during those early years, too. For instance, one of the most notable releases from the first months of Motown’s existence was ‘Snake Walk’ by The Swingin’ Tigers, which hit the airwaves in June 1959.
Only the sixth official release by Tamla at that time, ‘Snake Walk’ marked a huge departure from what had come before, and what would follow. Not only were The Swingin’ Tigers a surf rock outfit, rather than a soul group, but the very fact that they were a group put them at odds with the rest of Motown’s roster at that time, made up of figures like Eddie Holland, Marv Johnson, and Barrett Strong.
‘Snake Walk’ was a true one-off release for Motown; the band was not under contract with the label, and did not release any more tracks under the Motown/Tamla banner. Even still, the single did mark the first group to release a record via the Motown label, even if they were not the first group to record with the label or sign a contract with Berry Gordy. That honour would instead be bestowed upon The Satintones, who released their first Motown single ‘Going To The Hop’ one month later, in July 1959.
Chico Leverett, one of the members of the Satintones alongside Sonny Sanders, James Ellis, and Robert Bateman, had previously released the underwhelming single ‘Solid Sender’ on Tamla, so there was a lot of hope pinned on ‘Going To The Hop’. Unfortunately, the single failed to gain much traction in the mainstream and didn’t earn the band a hit single.
It is easy to see why the single didn’t command much attention: its doo-wop vocal style and almost lo-fi atmosphere meant the track was already pretty dated by the time it hit the airwaves. Nevertheless, the B-side, ‘Motor City’, is an often overlooked gem from the early days of Motown, almost acting as a theme song for the label as a whole given that ‘Motown’ was born from a portmanteau of ‘Motor’ and ‘Town’, owing to Detroit’s booming automotive industry.
What happened to The Satintones?
Although ‘Going To The Hop’ was not the hit Gordy and the label hoped it would be, the group recorded five singles for the label, of which only four saw a widespread release. None of those singles earned the group a spot in the hit parade and were quickly forgotten after their release. After their final release in 1961, the group disbanded, although they attempted a bizarre comeback in 1990 with the track ‘Perfect Combination’, which also did not work out.
‘Going To The Hop’ was a flop, but group member Robert Bateman clearly had hit potential lying dormant in him. Following the disbandment of the group, he went on to contribute to the writing of ‘Please Mr. Postman’, which became Motown’s very first number one single in 1961.
