Love Machine (The Miracles song)

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“Love Machine (Part 1)”
Single by The Miracles
from the album City of Angels
B-side Love Machine (Part 2)
Released October 1975
Format 7" single
Recorded 1975
Genre Disco
Length 2:55 (single version)
6:52 (album version)
Label Tamla
T 54262
Writer(s) William Griffin
Warren Moore
Producer Freddie Perren
The Miracles singles chronology
"Gemini"
(1975)
"Love Machine"
(1975)
"Night Life"
(1976)

"Love Machine" is a 1975 number-one single recorded by Motown group The Miracles, taken from their album City of Angels. This single was one of two Billboard Hot 100 Top 40 hits recorded by The Miracles with Billy Griffin as lead vocalist; the other is 1973's "Do It Baby". Griffin had replaced Miracles founder Smokey Robinson as lead singer in 1972.

Produced by Freddie Perren, a former member of The Corporation™ brain trust in charge of the early Jackson 5 hits, "Love Machine" was written by Billy Griffin and his Miracles bandmate Pete Moore, who wrote the rest of City of Angels as well. The song's lyrics, delivered over a disco beat, compare a lover to an electronic device such as a computer or a robot.

"Love Machine" peaked at number-one on the Hot 100, and was the best-selling single of The Miracles' career. By 1979, the song saw its first cover, this time performed by Thelma Houston. Houston's version became became a popular song with club DJ's at the time in the United States, although it did not chart. In Asia, and especially in Japan, "Love Machine" became her most successful single, and topped the Japanese charts. The success prompted her the album Ride to the Rainbow to be reissued as Love Machine for the Japanese release.

Wham! performed a cover version of "Love Machine" on their 1983 album, Fantastic.

Preceded by
"Theme From "S.W.A.T."" by Rhythm Heritage
Billboard Hot 100 number one single
March 6, 1976
Succeeded by
"December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night)" by The Four Seasons

[edit] See also