The Tracks of My Tears
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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"The Tracks of My Tears" is a much recorded love ballad introduced in 1965 by The Miracles on Motown Records' Tamla label. This song is considered to be among the finest recordings of The Miracles, and it sold over one million records within two years.
Legacy
"The Tracks of My Tears" is The Miracles' most recognized, most honored, and most covered song, ranked at or near the top of many "best of" lists in the music industry over the last 40 years.
Remarkably "The Tracks of My Tears" is not among the seven Miracles' tracks to reach the Top Ten on the Billboard Hot 100 and the highest charting Pop version of the song was the 1967 cover by Johnny Rivers which reached #10.
Aretha Franklin recorded the song for her Soul '69 album from which it was issued as a single although the B-side: Franklin's version of "The Weight", became the favored track with "Tracks of My Tears" peaking at #76 Pop and #21 R&B.
"Tracks of My Tears" became a Pop Top 40 hit for the third time when the version recorded by Linda Ronstadt for her 1975 album release Prisoner in Disguise album was issued as that album's second single: the track was not one of Ronstadt's biggest hits peaking at #25 ("Tracks of My Tears" reached #11 on the C&W chart in tandem with its B-side: the Emmylou Harris duet: "The Sweetest Gift"). Conversely Ronstadt would score one of her biggest hits with her 1978 single "Ooo Baby Baby" which was a remake of the Miracles' hit single release precedent to "The Tracks of My Tears". Ronstadt and Smokey Robinson performed both "The Tracks of My Tears" and "Ooo Baby Baby" on the Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever special broadcast 16 May 1983.
In 1993 Go West reached #16 UK with "Tracks of My Tears"; since the Miracles' original had reached the UK Top Ten in 1969 the song had been a minor chart item via the Linda Ronstadt remake (#42 in 1976) and a 1982 version by Colin Blunstone which reached #60.
Other Cover Versions:
- The Jackson 5 Recorded for Steeltown Records in 1968 and was to be part of an 11 track studio album but remained unreleased until The Steeltown Sessions released in 2008.
- Pat Kelly (1969)
- Dean Martin (1970)
- Gladys Knight & the Pips - B-side of single "If I Were Your Woman" (1970)
- The Pharaohs - "Awakening" (1972)
- Bryan Ferry - These Foolish Things (1973)
- The Mighty Diamonds - (1977)
- The Flying Pickets - Live at the Albany Empire (1982); an a cappella version
- Big Country - Live on the King Biscuit Flour Hour (1984)
- Carmel - The Drum is Everything (1984)
- Dogbowl & Kramer - Hot Day in Waco (1994)
- La Toya Jackson - Stop in the Name of Love (1995)
- Patty Griffin with Billy Mann (1996); a live recording on Detroit's 93.9, The River
- Peter André - Time (1997)
- Mietta - La Mia Anima (1998)
- Billy Bragg (2002) on his album, England, Half-English. In "Tracks of My Tears", a man laments selling his vinyl record collection. Bragg had previously recorded a version of "The Tracks of My Tears" that was issued, along with other demos, b-sides, and rarities, on the second disk of the re-released Talking with the Taxman about Poetry.
- Gavin DeGraw (2004)
- Michael McDonald - Motown Two (2005)
- Mica Paris - Soul Classics (2005)
- Human Nature - Reach Out: The Motown Record (2005)
- Ben Mills - X Factor (UK Series 3) (2006)
- Boyz II Men - Motown: A Journey Through Hitsville USA (2007); also released as the first single from the album
- Dolly Parton - Backwoods Barbie (2008)
- Adam Lambert - American Idol Season 8 (2009) When he sang the song during the competition Smokey gave him a standing ovation.
- Rod Stewart - Soulbook (2009)
- UB40 - Labour Of Love IV (2010)
Also covered by: Soul Asylum, Billy Bragg, Susan Cadogan, The Contours, The Jackson 5, Martha and the Vandellas, Mary Beth Maziarz, The Mega Kids, The Mighty Diamonds, Q-Tip, Dianne Reeves, Brenda Russell, Mongo Santamaría, Paul Young and others. Despite the plethora of covers recorded over the decades, however, The Miracles' original is still considered the definitive version.
