Motown Presents: 20 Mod Classics
from the mod generation's podcast Hosted by TheModGeneration
Whilst the original modernists may have been associated with Modern Jazz it is the style and sophistication of Motown that is most readily associated with the impeccable mod taste. The early Motown sound is one mods felt completely in tune with and, in Britain, it was the young mods who were the first enthusiasts for 'The Sound Of Young America'. Mods looked on soul music and Motown in particular not only as providing great sounds for the dance floor but as a kind of backing track to their lives. Motown was also to have a great influence on bands that emerged out of the mod movement - The Who and The Action undertook many great Motown covers, Steve Marriott and Ronnie Lane first met in a music shop, discussing their mutual love of Motown. Even when the original Motown sound had lost some of it's mainstream popularity it was former mods in the North of England who kept enthusiasm for the music alive and it was to become an integral part of what became known as Northern Soul. The Motown corporation has not been slow to spot the potential of the mod market and several albums have been released over the years to tie-in with it, all of which are well worth seeking out, but the two '20 Mod Classics' albums, released at the time of Mod revival, were the first introduction to this timeless music for many young mods like myself and, for me, are a permanent reminder of that period in time - the excitement I felt on first hearing this fantastic music and my memories of becoming a mod come back with listening to every track.
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