Brenda Holloway

Brenda Holloway is one of the unsung heroes of the Motown story. She had a soulful, gritty voice; stunning good looks; great songs (some of which she wrote herself); but no hits. Her signature song was her drop-dead ballad "Every Little Bit Hurts," and she also wrote and recorded the original of "You Made Me So Very Happy," later a hit for Blood, Sweat & Tears. Both of those songs are on this collection, as well as nine other solid cuts by Holloway, making this a good collection for Motown and soul fans who want to check out this fine singer.

The latest in an ongoing series wherein legendary Detroit label Motown revisits their back catalogue through alternate versions of their hits and lesser known tracks, Motown Unreleased 1966 gathers up 80 songs that have never previously been released on CD.

The Complete Motown Singles has been a dream project of Motown and soul fanatics for many years, ever since the first decade of Stax/Volt singles was compiled in an impressive nine-disc box set in 1991. Prior to that, no soul label had its output as thoroughly documented as that set – there had been the Atlantic R&B box, which collected highlights, but it never attempted to capture the label's entire run – and while The Complete Stax-Volt Singles 1959-1968 missed a B-side or two, it was an exceptional piece of music history, and pretty damn entertaining to boot.