(Credits: Far Out / Motown Records / Alamy / Press)
Sun 20 April 2025 20:15, UK
In the 1960s, there were two foundational forces in the music industry. Sure, it was a rich period when so many artists emerged and soared to success. It was a strong period for the industry as the boom of youth culture not only led to great music but also great sales. Two powerful cultural forces leading the way were The Beatles and Motown Records.
I don’t need to talk you through the impact and importance of The Beatles. In the ‘60s, when they were working and releasing music in real-time with each year bringing a new album, sometimes even more than one, they were an unstoppable force. Their albums would almost always fly straight to number one as fans went out in droves to buy copies. With no streaming services back then, it all came down to physical media, and for a band as big as the Fab Four, they were shifting a lot of vinyl.
But so too was Motown Records, another truly unstoppable force. After launching in 1959, the label played a vital role in the growth of motown music but specifically its intersection with rock and roll. The label was the key force in combining those two worlds and making people realise that really, in a lot of ways, they were one and the same.
Their roster was incredibly powerful. They repped the likes of The Supremes, The Temptations, Marvin Gaye, The Isley Brothers, Stevie Wonder, Gladys Knight & the Pips, Martha and the Vandellas and so many more. So much of the most exciting music of the time was coming from that one label, but their impact was felt even outside of their list of artists.
The Beatles and Motown intersect when The Beatles bought tracks from the label to cover. Especially on their 1963 album, With The Beatles, the band’s interest in Motown, both the music and the label, was at a high as they covered several tracks from that world. ‘Please Mr. Postman’, ‘Money (That’s What I Want)’ and ‘You Really Got a Hold on Me’ were all Motown tracks that the group had to lease from the label. That’s an act that so many important artists of the time were busy doing, as it seemed that everyone wanted a piece of Motown’s magic.
But did Motown outsell The Beatles?
Given that The Beatles are broadly considered to be the best-selling artist of all time, the answer here is a resounding no. It’s estimated that the Fab Four sold anywhere between 500million and 600million albums, putting them ahead of other huge names like Elvis Presley, Michael Jackson and Led Zeppelin.
But Motown had the benefit of representing many artists, meaning that they had sales coming in from all different directions, spread across a strong roster of people. Even still, their estimated sales trail behind, though many of their biggest hits brought in impressive numbers. ‘Shop Around’ by The Miracles alone sold millions of copies, being the first release on the label to hit that height.
The label was a veritable hit-making factory. Between 1960 and 1969, Motown had 79 songs reach the top ten on the Billboard chart. However, their sales success was largely in the US, making them struggle to compete with The Beatles’ overwhelming global fame.
The Beatles were a phenomenon, the type the world is still trying to wrap its head around. So while Motown was incredibly powerful, it couldn’t beat the Liverpool boys.
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