“The Tracks of My Tears” is a song written by Smokey Robinson, Pete Moore, and Marv Tarplin. It is a multiple award-winning 1965 hit R&B song originally recorded by their group, The Miracles, on Motown’s Tamla label. In 1967, Johnny Rivers covered the song and his version was a number 10 hit on the Billboard Hot 100. Linda Ronstadt recorded a hit cover of her own in 1975 that reached number 25 on the Hot 100 chart. Numerous other artists have recorded the song over the years. (More from Wikipedia)
Among Smokey Robinson’s own hit songs that were also his compositions (at least as a co-writer, and usually also as the song’s producer) are classics like “Shop Around” – Motown’s first million-selling hit record – plus “You’ve Really Got a Hold on Me”, “I Second That Emotion”, “Ooo Baby Baby”, “Going to a Go-Go”, “The Tracks of My Tears”, and “Tears of a Clown”. Smokey Robinson also wrote or co-wrote (as outlined in Wikipedia) “Two Lovers”, “The One Who Really Loves You”, “You Beat Me to the Punch”, and “My Guy” for Mary Wells; “The Way You Do The Things You Do”, “My Girl”, “Since I Lost My Baby”, and “Get Ready” for the Temptations; “When I’m Gone” and “Operator” for Brenda Holloway; “Don’t Mess With Bill”, “The Hunter Gets Captured by the Game”, and “My Baby Must Be a Magician” for the Marvelettes; and “I’ll Be Doggone” and “Ain’t That Peculiar” for Marvin Gaye.
(April 2015/1)
