| "Shop Around" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Side A of the US single | ||||
| Single bythe Miracles | ||||
| from the albumHi... We're the Miracles | ||||
| B-side | "Who's Lovin' You" | |||
| Released | September 27, 1960 (1960-09-27) | |||
| Recorded | 1960 | |||
| Studio | Hitsville USA (Studio A) | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length |
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| Label | Tamla | |||
| Songwriters | ||||
| Producer | Berry Gordy | |||
| The Miracles singles chronology | ||||
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| Official audio | ||||
| "Shop Around" onYouTube | ||||
"Shop Around" is a song originally recorded bythe Miracles onMotown Records' Tamla subsidiary label. It was written by Miracles lead singerSmokey Robinson and Motown Records founderBerry Gordy. It became a smash hit in 1960 when originally recorded by the Miracles, reaching number one on theBillboard R&B chart, number one on theCashbox Top 100 Pop Chart, and number two on theBillboard Hot 100 chart. It was the Miracles' first million-selling hit record, and the first million-selling hit for the Motown Record Corporation.
The single was a multiple award winner for the Miracles, having been inducted into theGrammy Hall of Fame in 2006, inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as one of the500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll, and honored byRolling Stone as number 500 in their list of the500 Greatest Songs of All Time, dropping it five spots from number 495 in the 2004 version.
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The original version of "Shop Around" bythe Miracles (credited as "The Miracles featuringBill 'Smokey' Robinson"), was released in 1960 onMotown's Tamla label, catalog number T 54034.[3] The song, written by Smokey Robinson andBerry Gordy, depicts a mother giving her now-grown son advice about how to find a woman worthy of being a girlfriend or wife ("My mama told me/'you better shop around'").[4] The original version of the song had a strongblues influence, and was released in the local area ofDetroit, Michigan, before Gordy decided that the song needed to be re-recorded to achieve wider commercial appeal. At 3:00 one morning, the Miracles (Robinson,Claudette Rogers Robinson,Bobby Rogers,Ronnie White, andPete Moore) recorded a new, morepop music version of the song that became a major national hit.[5] The original record label credits Robinson as the writer, with Berry Gordy as producer. On theAmerican Top 40 program of July 4, 1987,Casey Kasem reported that Gordy had previously rejected 100 songs by Robinson as "garbage" before accepting the 101st, "Shop Around", as "a hit".
The single was the first Motown record to be released in the UK, onDecca Records'London label. The subsequentEP release, coupled the "Shop Around" single with its follow-up, "Ain't It Baby". The two singles and the EP were the only Motown releases on the London label.
"Shop Around" was a big hit for the Miracles, becoming the group's first number-one hit on theBillboardR&B singles chart, spending eight weeks at the top, and also hitting number two on theBillboard Hot 100, behind "Calcutta" byLawrence Welk.[6][7] "Shop Around" also reached number one on theCashbox magazine Top 100 pop chart, and is also noted for being the first million-selling record for the Miracles and for the Motown Record Corporation,[8] as well as a 2006Grammy Hall of Fame inductee. TheB-side to "Shop Around", "Who's Lovin' You", also had a plethora of covers, including a version bythe Jackson 5 in 1969.
"Shop Around" inspired ananswer record, "Don't Let Him Shop Around" byDebbie Dean, which charted at number 92 on the Hot 100 in February 1961 and was Dean's only chart entry. Smokey Robinson later recorded a sequel song for his 1987 albumOne Heartbeat, entitled "It's Time to Stop Shopping Around".
The Miracles
Additional personnel[11]
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| "Shop Around" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single byCaptain & Tennille | ||||
| from the albumSong of Joy | ||||
| B-side | "Butterscotch Castle" | |||
| Released | 1976 | |||
| Genre | Pop | |||
| Length | 3:29 | |||
| Label | A&M | |||
| Songwriters | ||||
| Producers | Daryl Dragon, Toni Tennille | |||
| Captain & Tennille singles chronology | ||||
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In 1976, the Americanpop music duoCaptain & Tennille released their version of "Shop Around" for their second studio album,Song of Joy, issued on theA&M Records label.Toni Tennille changed the lyrics slightly so that they were sung from a woman's perspective. The "Shop Around" single was produced by the duo and featured the song "Butterscotch Castle" as itsB-side. The single first entered the USBillboard Hot 100 chart on May 1, 1976, at number 62.[18]
Released as the second single of Captain & Tennille from theSong of Joy album, their version of "Shop Around" was a success. The single reached number 4 in Canada on theRPM singles chart and peaked at number 4 on the US Hot 100 chart on July 9, 1976.[19] While not out-charting The Miracles' original, their version became a gold record, and also topped theBillboardeasy listening chart for one week in 1976.[20]
Weekly charts[edit]
| Year-end charts[edit]
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"Shop Around" has been covered many times, including versions by:
...the Miracles came close to #1 with "Shop Around," an absolutely perfect pop song...
