5 of The Best Fauxtown™ Hits You Thought Were Motown

By: Ivan Munoz

I’ve invented a brand: Fauxtown™. It is now officially a musical genre; lock it in. Not to be mistaken with “blue-eyed soul”…totally different.

Fauxtown™ songs are effectively indiscernible from Motown songs, sharing that classic Motor City Sound, arrangement, writing, and overall magical quality. These are songs that sound like Motown but are not on Motown or any of their subsidiary record labels such as Tamla or Check-Mate records.

So without further adieu, let’s take a look at these 5 songs!

(Your Love Keeps Lifting Me) Higher And Higher

Jackie Wilson (1967) | Label: Brunswick

Kicking off the list, Higher and Higher actually has a couple interesting connections to Motown. Wilson’s earlier song Lonely Teardrops (1958), the one that rocketed him to stardom, was actually written by Barry Gordy and his sister Gwendolyn. The raging success of this song, with Gordy seeing the viability of entering the music industry, was what led him to form Motown. Fast forward 9 years ahead to 1967, Wilson had a second monster hit with the song above. It’s second connection to Motown is that this record featured music from the Funk Brothers (Motown’s famous group of session musicians) most notably the bass work of none other than James Jamerson. To bolster their income, sometimes members of the Funk Brothers would drive down to Chicago for the weekend and record a couple sessions. This consequential Fauxtown™ song has many types of direct lineage right back to Motown, so it’s only natural they’d share a sound.

Build Me Up Buttercup

The Foundations (1968) | Label: PYE Records

Many assume (myself included for the longest time) that this was a song born in Detroit. Believe it or not, The Foundations are a BRITISH band! With a hooky intro, rife with congas, tambourine, and a chiming piano riff, immediately blasting into the infectious and instantly memorable chorus, this has all the trimmings of a classic Motown hit; but alas, it isn’t even American! In fact, The Foundations were the first multi-racial group to get a number one song in the UK in the 60s with their song Baby Now That I’ve Found You. At the time the UK was crazy about the Motown sound, so it’s not surprise that this Fauxtown™ group was able to rise to the top with their expertly done reference to an iconic sound.

Band Of Gold

Freda Payne (1970) | Label: Invictus

Penned by Holland-Dozier-Holland (and Ron Dunbar), the hit writing machine that wrote countless Motown tracks up until early 1968 when the left the label. From there they formed the labels Invictus and Hot Wax records. So of course an HDH song is going to sound like Motown. Add to that the fact that The Funk Brothers backed Freda Payne by playing on this track, well, we’ve pretty much got a Motown record on our hands. A facsimile that is identical in every way but the label. This one is a perfect example of Fauxtown™.

Give Me Just a Little More Time

Chairmen of The Board (1970) | Label:Invictus

This Fauxtown™ number follows a similar trajectory as the song that precedes it on this list. Written and produced by Holland-Dozier-Holland (under the pseudonym Edythe Wayne) and Ron Dunbar for Invictus records. To add a little bit more to the Invictus story told above: after leaving Motown, HDH chose to use a pseudonym from roughly 1969 to 1972 for legal reasons. So for example, at the time, the credits for Band of Gold and Give Me Just a Little More Time would have read Wayne/Dunbar. This song, just like Freda Payne’s, features members of The Funk Brothers the writers had become close to and enjoyed working with during their tenure at Motown. Stylistically it’s very similar, if not identical, to the Motor City Sound sound featuring an overdriven microphone channel that leads to a crisp but subtle vocal distortion, opening with a chorus, and then seamlessly transitioning into a classic HDH verse. You can really tell that these are the same guys who wrote How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You) some 6 years earlier.

Cool Jerk

The Capitols (1966) | Label: Karen Records

Reminiscent of earlier dance-focused Motown sound of the first half of the 1960s, this song makes you wonder how well they could cop *that* sound. Well, go figure, it was learned much later, well after this song had come and gone, that The Funk Brothers secretly recorded the backing of this tune. It sounds like somewhat of an informal answer to and nod towards Jr. Walker and The All Stars’ Shotgun. Both share an indisputable energy of liveliness, fun, and smiles all around while imploring the listener to do the same dance. Also, I can’t not mention that Jamerson appears on this track!

Guess you’re wondering why I put a ™ after it each time? Cause I invented the brand, claiming it right here!

Do you know any more Fauxtown™ songs? Let us know!

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About The Author

Ivan Munoz is a musician, bassist, singer, musicians advocate, and member of the Victor Talking Machine Company. Along with this Ivan can be found devoting his time to various musical projects, compositions, and working on musical instruments. Click the photo for more!