is 50 years old this year as you have probably heard, so by way of a tribute, my blog will have a different Hero picture each month representing my 12 favorite Motown stars.

January is the marvelous Gladys Knight & The Pips, surprisingly my most played Motown act on last.fm. Signed to Motown from 1966 to 1973, the frustration of not being given their proper recognition within the company nevertheless resulted in 12 Top 10 entries on the US r'n'b chart and a devoted fan following.