Mary Wells I'll Be Available 1964 10 in Motown Acetate 45 RPM record

From the Collection Of Smokey Robinson of The Miracles

This is a 10 inch acetate from 1964 for the Mary Wells song "I'll Be Available. This song was never released as a single by Mary Wells but did appear as an album track on the Mary Wells LP "Vintage Stock" in 1966. This song was written by "Smokey" William Robinson. It is in VG condition. I played it myself and it plays through with some surface noise. 

This acetate is part of a collection of records that formerly belonged to Smokey Robinson of Smokey Robinson and the Miracles. This acetate was ultimately acquired by a former record company executive sometime after the 1986 divorce of Smokey Robinson from his wife Claudette Rogers Robinson. After Smokey left the house that he and Claudette had shared, Claudette cleaned out the house, discarding some items left by Smokey including some records and acetates.

Please check my other auctions for more Motown acetates from this collection.

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from www.wikipedia.com

William "Smokey" Robinson, Jr. (born February 19, 1940) is an R&B and soul singer and songwriter and record producer. Robinson is noted for being one of the primary figures associated with the Motown record label, second only to the company's founder, Berry Gordy. As both a member of Motown group The Miracles and a solo artist, Robinson recorded thirty-seven Top 40 hits for Motown between 1960 and 1987, and also served as the company's Vice President from 1961 to 1988.

In 1959, Barry Gordy founded Tamla Records, which he soon reincorporated as Motown. The Miracles were among the label's first signees. Gordy and Robinson had a synergistic relationship, with Robinson providing a foundation for Motown's hit-making success and Gordy acting as a mentor for the budding singer and songwriter. By 1961, Gordy had appointed Robinson vice-president of Motown Records, a title Robinson held for as long as Gordy remained with the company.

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An Introduction To Motown Acetates by Christopher Chatman

A unique subset in the world of collecting records is the world of collecting record acetates. An even more unique subset to the world of collecting record acetates is the world of collecting acetates that were either mastered at or mastered for the Motown Record Corporation from the early 1960s to the early 1970s.

Motown acetates are somewhat unique from acetates of most other record companies. For one thing, Motown Records had their own mastering lab in-house called Motown Hitsville USA Studios. This was somewhat unusual for a record company in the early 1960s. Most record companies in the 1960s had their records mastered (which is the technical term for “acetates cut”) at a separate recording company. Most Motown acetates were cut in house and then labeled with a plain white label with typed information on it.

Reference acetates were also used at Motown so that the same song performed by different artists at the label could be reviewed by a committee of producers and engineers. The songs could then be voted on as to which artist should perform a given song for release. Some of these acetates have the background music for a given song but no vocals. I assume that this is so any group could sing along with a given background so a given song could be tested with several vocal accompaniments.

At some point in the early 1960s the work load at Motown would occasionally accelerate to the point that Motown would contract out some acetate cutting work to RCA Custom Records in Chicago. According to Bob Dennis, perhaps the preeminent disc recording engineer at Motown during the 1960s, acetates that were cut at the RCA Chicago facility had to abide by quality guidelines that were predetermined by Motown. This level of quality control was due to the fact that in the early 1960s Motown had already dedicated itself to maintaining levels of sonic excellence designed to maximize consumer satisfaction which would lead to sales levels unattained by any other United States record company at that time. In any case a number of acetates that were cut by RCA Custom Records for Motown have 1960s RCA Custom Records labels.

Motown acetates have become highly prized and sought after as the popularity of soul music in general and Motown music in particular has increased in the last twenty years. The rise of what is termed as Northern Soul has also greatly increased the value of certain Motown acetates. The value of certain unreleased Motown acetates now reaches into the thousands of dollars as these acetates constitute newly discovered Motown music for people all over the world to discover.

Christopher Chatman is the author of several articles concerning record collecting including “Acetates and Test Pressings”, “ Collecting Gold and Platinum Record Awards” and “Genuine, Pirate and Fake RIAA Awards”  The aforementioned three articles were published in “Goldmine’s Price Guide to Collectable Record Albums Fourth Edition” by Neal Umphred.

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Since I have had problems recently with overseas buyers attempting to claim non-receipt of item WHEN IT WAS IN FACT DELIVERED, This item will be shipped by a bonded third party possibly by registered mail.  INSURANCE, TRACKING and SIGNATURE CONFIRMATION will be absolutely required for this purchase, which will also require full disclosure of actual value on all customs and shipping forms. There is no way around this, and DUTY fees could be considerable.

Shipping arrangements will be made with the winning bidder to best meet their needs and ensure that the package arrives safely but the above will be enforced.  It is absolutely imperitive that you email PRIOR TO BIDDING IF THERE ARE ANY QUESTIONS AT ALL.

Sorry, but because of the value of this record and the potential for fraudulent claims that  I've experienced several already there will be no returns on this item. Check my feedback as a seller if you are concerned. Thank you for your interest.

Payment for this special item is by Paypal only within 24 hours of close of auction. If payment is not received within that time, the purchase will be cancelled.

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