Originally intended to be Smokey's sendoff into a solo career, the massive success of The Miracles' 1970 # 1 smash hit, "
The Tears of a Clown" delayed his departure for another 2 years (strangely, that song was not sung on the special). Filmed at the height of success of Motown Records, this special was essentially a launching pad for Smokey's solo career and to prepare the public for his upcoming departure from the legendary Miracles - the very first of the Motown groups. The Miracles, however, were not at full strength, at the time of taping: Miracle
Pete Moore was absent from the special, having been sidelined by a leg injury shortly before filming, and Claudette (Mrs. Smokey) Robinson, another original Miracle, did not appear on the special. Miracle
Marv Tarplinwas present, but did not appear on camera. Thus, the only Miracles present were Smokey,
Ronnie White, and
Bobby Rogers, who began the show with their 1963 Top 10 smash hit "
Mickey's Monkey" at the show's intro, and followed up with a medley of 3 of their greatest hits, "
More Love", "
If You Can Want", and "
I Second That Emotion".
Other performances
This hit-filled special featured the following performances:
The Temptations sang and performed their then-current hit single, "
Ball of Confusion", then joined Smokey on one of the hit songs he wrote for them, "
Get Ready".
Fran Jeffries sang and performed "Something's Coming On", and then shared vocals with Smokey and Stevie on his hit, "
Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours".
Also notable was a "Motown Memories" segment, where the Miracles and the entire cast sat around reminiscing about Motown's early days, and did a "hits tribute" to Smokey and his composed songs for The Miracles and other Motown acts.(almost all of these songs were co-written by the other members of The Miracles,
Bobby Rogers,
Pete Moore,
Ronnie White, and
Marv Tarplin)
The entire cast joined in for the show's finale, with The Miracles at center stage, singing and performing an exciting rendition of
Gladys Knight & The Pips' Motown hit, "
Friendship Train".
Note: There has never been an official Motown DVD release of this special, but copies of it have been circulating in the "collectors market" for years, and are available on the internet.[3][4]
Motown Records never released a soundtrack album of this special.
As of May 1, 2017, this special is being broadcast on
Get TV.