The
Hollywood Chamber of Commerce is proud to announce that songwriters and
producers Holland-Dozier-Holland will be honored with the 2,543rd
star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Friday, Feb. 13, at
11:30 a.m. The star in the category of Recording
will be dedicated near the Live Nation Building at 7070 Hollywood
Boulevard. “We are so happy to honor these musical geniuses with their
well-deserved star on the Walk of Fame very fittingly during Black
History Month,” stated Walk of Fame Producer Ana Martinez.
“Their music has and will continue for decades to be a part of American
music history.”
Helping
emcee and Hollywood Chamber President/CEO Leron Gubler to unveil the
star will be Berry Gordy, Founder of Motown and Mary Wilson, former
member
of The Supremes.
Brian
Holland, Lamont Dozier and Eddie Holland wrote and produced many of the
songs that are most closely identified with Motown, including such
classics
as “Stop! In the Name of Love” and “You Can’t Hurry Love” (the
Supremes), “Heat Wave” and “Jimmy Mack” (Martha and the Vandellas),
“Reach Out I’ll Be There” and “Baby I Need Your Loving” (the Four Tops),
and “Can I Get a Witness” and “How Sweet It Is to Be
Loved by You” (Marvin Gaye), among many others from their Hitsville
tenure. In their behind-the-scenes roles as staff producers and
songwriters, Holland-Dozier-Holland was as responsible as any of the
performers for Motown’s spectacular success.
Holland,
Dozier and Holland were all born in Detroit: Brian Holland on February
15, 1941; Lamont Dozier on June 16, 1941, and Eddie Holland on October
30, 1939. Their relationship with Motown founder Berry Gordy dates back
to 1958, before he started the famous Motown Company. Eddie Holland’s
recording debut, a 1958 Mercury single, “You,” was one of Gordy’s
earliest productions. Gordy also produced some sessions
for Brian Holland, while in 1961, Lamont Dozier began recording for
Anna Records, owned by Gordy’s sister Gwen.
Holland,
Dozier and Holland inaugurated their collaboration in 1962, with the
single “Dearest One,” released under Dozier’s name on the Mel-O-Dy
label,
a Motown subsidiary. The formation of the team was a logical outcome
and their workplace was a tiny recording studio in a converted garage at
Motown’s “Hitsville U.S.A.” offices.
In
short order, Holland-Dozier-Holland wrote and produced Martha and the
Vandellas’ “Come and Get These Memories,” which went to No. 3 on the
R&B chart
and No. 29 on the pop chart in 1963. That same year, the trio also
wrote and produced Marvin Gaye’s “Can I Get a Witness,” the Marvelettes’
“Locking Up My Heart” and “Forever,” the Miracles’ “I Gotta Dance to
Keep from Crying” and “Mickey’s Monkey,” and Martha
and the Vandellas’ “Heat Wave” and “Quicksand.”
All
of those songs preceded the trio’s record-breaking success with the
Supremes. In June 1964, “Where Did Our Love Go” became the first of six
consecutive
No. 1 singles for the Supremes and Holland, Dozier and Holland.
The
trio epitomized the Motown sound: a fluid, up-tempo style that combined
catchy lyrics with the fervor of gospel, the groove of R&B and the
polish
of pop. More than 50 of Motown’s most memorable songs can be attributed
to Holland-Dozier-Holland. They produced hits for nearly every act on
the Motown family of labels.
The
trio left Motown in 1968 to found their own Invictus/Hot Wax label,
where they continued their hit-making ways with Freda Payne’s “Band of
Gold,”
Chairman of the Board’s “Give Me Just a Little More Time,” and the
Honey Cones’ “Want Ads.” The sound of those records – with syncopated
rhythm guitars and gospel-inflected vocal arrangements delivering catchy
lyrics – was as distinctive as their Motown classics.
When
Invictus/Hot Wax folded in 1973, Dozier returned to his performing
career, resulting in a string of solo records that continues to be
sampled by
artists ranging from Lil Wayne to Linkin Park. He continues to achieve
success and accolades as an artist, producer, songwriter and most
recently USC professor.
In
the 70s, the Hollands wrote and produced for a number of artists,
including the Supremes and Michael Jackson. In 1988, the Holland
brothers founded
the Holland Group production company and revived their label Music
Merchant. They continue to release material from their classic catalog
as well as new material.
Holland-Dozier-Holland
have reunited for the first time in more than 30 years to write the
score for the brand new musical version of
The First Wives Club, based on the best-selling novel and the hit
1996 film. The score includes brand-new, original songs along with
Holland-Dozier-Holland classics “Reach Out I’ll Be There,” “Stop! In the
Name of Love” and “I Can’t Help Myself (Sugar
Pie, Honey Bunch).” The musical begins its pre-Broadway World Premiere
run at Chicago’s Oriental Theatre on February 17 and runs through March
29. For more info, visit
http://www.firstwivesclubthemusical.com/
Holland,
Dozier and Holland were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame
in 1990. They were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1988
and
in 2003, they were named BMI Icons at the 51st BMI Pop Awards. In 2009
they received the Songwriters Hall of Fame very prestigious Johnny
Mercer Award.
