With a resolution of the Michael Jackson trial in his favor, the speculators are speculating on how he might revive his once majestic career, which began as a tyke performing with his brothers in the Jackson 5. There are even rumors that the Jacksons might musically reconvene, over 35 years after they first came to prominence with Motown.
I spoke with producer/songwriter Deke Richards about his days with "The Corporation," the songwriting and production team behind the great early Jackson 5 hits.
The Corporation (Deke Richards, Freddie Perren, Fonce Mizell, Berry Gordy Jr.) helped resurrect Motown in 1969 with three No. 1 hits for the Jackson 5 and, for a magical year, returned Berry Gordy Jr. to the creative center of his organization.
The Corporation also brought future disco great Freddie Perren ("I Will Survive," "Shake Your Groove Thing," "If I Can't Have You," and the Miracles' post-Smokey hits "Do It Baby" and "Love Machine") into prominence. It also proved the premature peak of Deke Richards' career.
The Deke Richards story could be a movie - fitting, considering his father was a screenwriter. Born in Los Angeles in 1944, Richards figured he would follow his father into film until he heard "Heartbreak Hotel." The 12-year-old picked up a guitar and didn't put it down until he wrote his first song ("Bubblegum") at 14.
As the '60s hit, Richards played in a hot R&B band, Deke and the Deacons (later the Four Sounds) on the Strip in clubs like the Galaxy. On Mondays, the band would hit the freeway out to El Monte and fill in for Ike and Tina Turner. They toured as backup for many artists, including Dobie Gray, and ended up in Hawaii. The other guys wanted to add brass, Richards didn't, and the band split up in 1965.
Richards formed a new band that wound up backing singer Debbie Dean, one of the first (and only) white artists on Motown, in the early-'60s. He wrote a song for Dean, and with $300 borrowed from 10 different people, cut the instrumental track for a reduced rate at Richard Podolor's new American Recording studio, but Richards didn't have enough money to lay down the vocals.
Berry Gordy accompanied the Supremes when they came to town to play the Hollywood Palace in 1966. Debbie Dean gave Gordy a call at the Century Plaza Hotel and he invited them to bring the track over. Dean sang live to the tape in the hotel room, and Gordy offered Dean her second artist's contract with Motown and Richards a producer/writer contract on the spot.
Article comments
1 - James Mclafferty
Nice Post eric :), Nobody can take his music away from him, and maybe he should be given another chance to show he really is the person he tries to tell us he is. The jackson five era is, even though i wasn't actually around at the time (i'm only 27), an amazing era five young hopefuls who took over motown. I seem to remember you saying you were a fan do you think you'd give him another chance eric now?
2 - Eric Olsen
thanks James - if he put out interesting music, I'd be happy to listen to it
3 - godoggo
I loved the Jackson 5 when I was a little kid. Still do. Some of his solo stuff is pretty good, I guess.
4 - Eric Olsen
the best of the J5 and his Off the Wall-Bad albums will withstand Jackson's own best efforts to tarnish them
5 - claire
Does anyone else ever feel a little stab when they see MJ doing his cute moves when he was just a kid. Have this magazine at home from the Observer and it has a picture of him just a little kid and a crazy afro and underneath the caption says 'Remember Me'.
I aquired this even before the allegations and felt a bit sad. guilty or not, how can someone be so disturbed.
6 - Eric Olsen
absolutely Claire, a tragedy what he has become of his own volition
7 - The Proprietor
Excellent article, Eric. I didn't know that Louie Shelton had played on the early Motown J5 sides - he's one of my favorite LA session guitarists, best known for his terrific work on The Monkees' "Valleri". The Corporation should've gotten some propers in "Standing In The Shadows Of Motown" - like H-D-H, their songs were consummately fun, well-crafted and have proven their staying power over and over again.
8 - Tan Hoang
A Motown Revival would be great... or even just a revival of that 50s sound. I get my oldies fix from radio and my iPod but listening to new music would be great.
9 - Eric Olsen
thanks TP, got it straight from the horse's mouth, so to speak. Deke's a very interesting guy. I added in the link to his movie memorabilia site if you want to check it out.
Tan, an update of the classic Motown sound would be amazing, but I'm not sure what it would sound like!