Torri "TLC"
Title: Rhythm Ride A
Road Trip Through The Motown Sound
Author: Andrea Davis Pinkey
Genre: YA Nonfiction
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Release Date: September 29, 2015
Format: Hardback
Pages: 166
Groove? Groove who? You don’t know who
Groove is? Well chile, let me tell you who Groove is! Groove is that thing that
glides your heart mine and soul from the melody to lyrics. It’s the string that
pulls your emotions to feel the true meaning of your favorite song. Groove is
the host and driver through you ride to Motown. From its humble beginnings in Detroit,
Michigan to setting in the sun of Hollywood, Motown has seen decades of top
charting hits to national devastation. Creator Berry Gordy was the master mind
behind Motown and creating the likes of Smoky Robinson and the Miracles, Marva
and the Vandellas, The Supremes and the Jackson 5 just name a few. However,
gaining this success wasn’t easy. Luckily,
Gordy’s experience as an assembly line worker for the Lincoln-Mercury plant was
the push behind the creating and maintaining Hitsville U.S.A. Groove leads us
through the highs and lows of not only Motown, but the nation as a whole. Motown
went from being called “race music” to gracing the airways for “all” people to
enjoy. Like a star Motown, Berry Gordy and numerous acts were shining with fame
and achievement, however like all good things, some things must come to an end.
However, the Groove still goes on.
Andrea
Pinkney Davis took young adults readers on a ride through the historic days of
Motown. I thoroughly enjoyed how the use of urban colloquialisms from the 50s
and 60s to bring the rhythm of the Motown
Sound alive. Taken from experiences of a family member, who was a famous
radio disc jockey, Davis was able to make Motown come alive. I felt like I could
hear the Four Tops sing their most popular songs and I could just see Martha
and the Vandellas do the “Jerk” as they sang “Dancing in the Streets”. This
book is a great account of Berry Gordy and the rise and fall of Motown. I would
encourage my students who are interested in music and entertainment as well, as
my vocal and music teachers to read this book of rhythm, as well as, blues.
Pinkney, A. D. (n.d.). Rhythm ride: A road trip through the Motown sound
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