The Fabulous Miracles

The Fabulous Miracles is a 1963 album by The Miracles featuring the million-selling Grammy Hall of Fame hit, "You've Really Got a Hold on Me", one of the group's most popular singles. It also features the chart hits "A Love She Can Count On" and "I've Been Good To You", which The Beatles' John Lennon has identified as his favorite Miracles song. Miracles lead singer Smokey Robinson was the principal writer on all tracks, while Miracles members Ronnie White and Bobby Rogers co-wrote with him on several of the album's songs.  Although two of the album’s songs, “Won’t You Take Me Back” and “Your Love”, were taken from their debut album Hi ... We’re The Miracles, all eight new songs were released as either singles or b-sides.

The album also features "I Can Take a Hint", which charted on the Billboard pop & R&B listings after being issued as the B-side of "A Love She Can Count On".

"Happy Landing", the flip side of "You Really Got a Hold On Me" which, while never charting nationally, did become a hit on several regional charts, and was performed by the group on their first live album, The Miracles Recorded Live on Stage. It was also the original "A" side of “You've Really Got A Hold On Me”, but fell into undeserved obscurity as the nation's Dee Jays discovered and played the record's more successful flip side, relegating Happy Landing to "B" side status. The Fabulous Miracles is only one of three classic Miracles albums to feature Miracles guitarist and original group member Marv Tarplin on its cover. The Miracles' bass singer Pete Moore is not featured on the album or the cover, as he was serving in the U.S. Armed Services and was stationed in Germany at the time this album was recorded (Moore is shown in a separate photograph on the back cover). While Tarplin remained a member of the Miracles through 1973, he was not featured on any more of the group's classic album covers, except for 1961's Cookin' with The Miracles, 1962's I'll Try Something New, and this album. Tarplin does, however, appear on the cover of the group's 2009 Motown CD release,"The Miracles – Depend On Me: The Early Albums."

Track listing

Side one:
"You've Really Got a Hold on Me" (Smokey Robinson) – 2:57
"I've Been Good To You" (Robinson) – 2:42
"Such is Love, Such is Life" (Robinson) – 2:42
"I Can Take a Hint" (Robinson, Janie Bradford, Stanley Ossman, Robert Rogers) – 2:45
"Won't You Take Me Back" (Robinson) – 2:39 (previously appeared on Hi... We're The Miracles)

Side two:
"A Love She Can Count On" (Robinson) – 2:52 (different version than the single)
"Whatever Makes You Happy" (Robinson, Ronald White) – 2:33
"Heartbreak Road" (Robinson, White) – 2:46
"Happy Landing" (Robinson, White) – 2:46
"Your Love" (Robinson) – 2:50 (previously appeared on Hi... We're The Miracles)

The Fabulous Miracles and, in particular, the album version of "A Love She Can Count On," were released on CD for the first time as part of the 2009 Motown limited edition CD release "The Miracles: Depend On Me."

Personnel

The Miracles

Smokey Robinson - lead vocals, producer, executive producer.
Ronnie White - background vocals
Bobby Rogers - background vocals (co-lead on "You Really Got a Hold on Me")
Warren "Pete" Moore - background vocals
 Claudette Robinson - background vocals
Marv Tarplin - guitarist

Other Credits

 The Funk Brothers - instrumentation

References

External links
 [ Allmusic review: The Fabulous Miracles]
 The Fabulous Miracles- Original Liner Notes

Category:1963 albums
Category:The Miracles albums
Category:Motown albums
Category:Tamla Records albums
Category:Albums produced by Smokey Robinson
Category:Albums produced by Berry Gordy
Category:Albums recorded at Hitsville U.S.A.