HDH - Motown Gold

Brian Holland (born February 15, 1941), Lamont Dozier (born June 16, 1941) and Edward Holland (born Oct 30, 1939) - all from Detroit - were the most successful songwriter/producers of the '60s.

Their run with Motown from '61 to '67 generated 13 No. 1 hits for the Marvelettes ("Please Mr. Postman"), the Four Tops ("It's the Same Old Song," "Reach Out I'll Be There"), and most prolifically, the Supremes ("Where Did Our Love Go?" "Baby Love," "Come See About Me," "Stop! In the Name of Love," "Back In My Arms Again," "I Hear a Symphony," "You Can't Hurry Love," "You Keep Me Hangin' On," "Love Is Here and Now You're Gone," "The Happening").

The team's work, in conjunction (and competition) with that of Berry Gordy, Smokey Robinson, and Norman Whitfield formed the backbone of Motown's "Golden Decade." In addition to the No. 1's, HDH wrote and produced dozens of other Top 20 hits for the aforementioned and other Motown artists including Marvin Gaye, the Isley Brothers, Martha and the Vandellas, the Miracles, and Jr. Walker and the All-Stars. HDH were voted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990.

Brian Holland learned to play piano literally in church. "I would run up to the piano after church and start playing it," he says. Though never a particularly accomplished musician, he had a knack for melody that would become the foundation of the team's eventual success.

Both Brian and Edward (then called "Eddie") were aspiring singers who recorded with Berry Gordy as early as '58. Brian decided that singing wasn't for him, mostly because he was shy, and pursued songwriting and its implementational consequence, producing.

With Robert Bateman, he co-wrote and co-produced Motown's first No. 1, the Marvelettes irresistible "Please Mr. Postman" in '61. Eddie continued to pursue a recording career and hit the Top 30 in '62 with "Jamie."

Lamont Dozier recorded (as "Lamont Anthony") in '61 for Anna Records, owned by Berry's sister Gwen, and remained with the Motown family in relative obscurity for the next couple of years. There is some dispute as to the identity of the inaugural HDH team venture, but both Brian and Edward remember it to be "Forever."

Brian recalls walking by the studio and hearing Dozier teasing out a melody on the piano. He recalls saying, "That's a pretty good song - let's see if we can finish it together." They did - with Edward contributing lyrics - and as produced by Brian for the Marvelettes, the song rose to No. 24 on the R&B chart in '63.

Article Author: Eric Olsen

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