PART  420



               THE MARVELETTES  -  Please Mr. Postman  (1961)  
               MARVIN GAYE  -  Hitch Hike  (1962)
               THE MARVELETTES  -  Don't Mess With Bill  (1965)    
               MARTHA & THE VANDELLAS -  Nowhere To Run  (1965)
                                   
                                        

     "Please Mr. Postman" is the debut single by The Marvelettes for the Tamla (Motown) label, notable as the first Motown song to reach the number-one position on the Billboard Hot 100 pop singles chart. The single achieved this position in late 1961; it hit number one on the R&B chart as well. "Please Mr. Postman" became a number-one hit again in early 1975 when The Carpenters' cover of the song reached the top position of the Billboard Hot 100.       
     "Hitch Hike" is a 1962 song by Marvin Gaye. The single was successful enough to land Gaye his first top forty pop single in 1963 with "Hitch Hike" reaching number thirty on the pop singles chart while reaching number twelve on the R&B singles chart.  The Velvet Underground's song "There She Goes Again" is based on "Hitch Hike", as is the guitar intro to The Smiths' "There is a Light That Never Goes Out". Another song which is likely based on "Hitch-Hike", is "You Can't Do That" by The Beatles, especially the use of cowbell and congas and the pronounced stops at the end of each verse. Paul McCartney performed a live cover of the song during his 2011 performance at Comerica Park in Detroit, Michigan. 
     "Don't Mess with Bill" is a million-selling Gold certified 1966 single recorded by The Marvelettes. Written and produced by Smokey Robinson, "Don't Mess with Bill" features a lead vocal by Wanda Young. The single peaked at number seven on the Billboard Hot 100 in February 1966, and at number three on Billboard's R&B singles chart. "Don't Mess with Bill" was the Marvelettes' final Top 10 single.
     "Nowhere to Run" is a 1965 pop single by Martha and the Vandellas and is one of the group's signature songs. The song, written and produced by Motown's main production team of HollandΓÇôDozierΓÇôHolland, depicts the story of a woman trapped in a bad relationship with a man she cannot help but love. Holand-Dozier-Holland and the Funk Brothers band gave the song a large, hard-driving instrumentation sound similar of the sound of prior "Dancing In The Street" with snow chains used as percussion alongside the tambourine and drums.  "Nowhere to Run" hit number eight on the Billboard Pop Singles chart, and number five on the Billboard R&B Singles chart. It also charted in the UK peaking at number twenty-six on the chart. This version was ranked #358 on Rolling Stone's list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.