Motown Junk

Motown Junk is an early stand alone single from the rock band Manic Street Preachers. It was released on January 21, 1991. The track has long been a live favourite from the earlier part of their career to the present day. The title track shows the band during their pinnacle of iconoclastic attitude, such as in the lyric, "I laughed when Lennon got shot". The Motown in the title refers to famed 60s and 70s label Motown Records.

Both b-sides featured on the single (Sorrow 16 and We Her Majesty's Prisoners) were later on the third single - "You Love Us" - from the band's debut album, Generation Terrorists. The single was the band's first from their then record label, Heavenly Records. Despite its relatively poor charting, the single gained the band much attention from the press.

The b-side "We Her Majesty's Prisoners" was originally titled "Ceremonial Rape Machine", but after pressure from the label, it was renamed.

When performing live, the band begin the song with a few lines from another song. From around 1991 until 1997, James would sing the chorus to the Motown classic "Baby Love", often changing the lyrics on the spot. During 1998/99, the song began with the riff from Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Sweet Home Alabama"; since then the Manics have used the "Motown Junk Medley" to pay tribute to Van Halen's "Jump" and Guns N' Roses "Sweet Child O' Mine". On their May 2007 tour, the Manics used the first verse of "Condemned To Rock And Roll" to begin the song, and during the December tour the band played a shortened version of The Cult's "She Sells Sanctuary" as an intro.

The band have played the song at virtually every gig since 1990. Nicky Wire commented around 2003 that the day they stopped playing 'Motown Junk' live was the day they stopped being the Manics. It is noticeable, however, that on recent live performances, James Dean Bradfield does not complete the line "I laughed when Lennon got shot", only singing "I Laughed". Critics of the band's "Lifeblood" album were quick to make much of the fact that the song was dropped from the setlist of the band's December 2004 Lifeblood arena tour. It returned for the April 2005 "Past Present Future" tour, as the final song in the set.

The single's cover features a watch recovered from the Hiroshima bomb site depicting the exact moment of detonation.

[edit] Track listing

[edit] CD / 12"

"Motown Junk"
"Sorrow 16"
"We Her Majesty's Prisoners"

v • d • e Manic Street Preachers

James Dean Bradfield • Nicky Wire • Sean Moore Flicker (Miles Woodward) • Richey James Edwards

Studio albums	"Generation Terrorists" (1992) • "Gold Against the Soul" (1993) • "The Holy Bible" (1994) • "Everything Must Go" (1996) • "This Is My Truth Tell Me Yours" (1998) • "Know Your Enemy" (2001) • "Lifeblood" (2004) • "Send Away the Tigers" (2007)

Singles and EPs	"Suicide Alley" (1989) • "New Art Riot EP" (1990) • "Motown Junk" (1991) • "You Love Us (Heavenly Version)" (1991) • "Feminine Is Beautiful" (1991) • "Stay Beautiful" (1991) • "Love's Sweet Exile/Repeat" (1991) • "You Love Us" (1991) • "Slash 'N' Burn" (1992) • "Motorcycle Emptiness" (1992) • "Little Baby Nothing" (1992) • "Theme From MAS*H (Suicide Is Painless)" (1992) • "From Despair To Where" (1993) • "La Tristesse Durera (Scream To A Sigh)" (1993) • "Roses In The Hospital" (1993) • "Life Becoming A Landslide EP" (1994) • "Faster/P.C.P." (1994) • "Revol" (1994) • "She Is Suffering" (1994) • "A Design for Life" (1996) • "Everything Must Go" (1996) • "Kevin Carter" (1996) • "Australia" (1996) • "If You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next" (1998) • "The Everlasting" (1998) • "You Stole The Sun From My Heart" (1999) • "Tsunami" (1999) • "The Masses Against The Classes" (2000) • "Found That Soul" (2001) • "So Why So Sad" (2001) • "Ocean Spray" (2001) • "Let Robeson Sing" (2001) • "There By The Grace Of God" (2002) • "The Love Of Richard Nixon" (2004) • "Empty Souls" (2005) • "Your Love Alone Is Not Enough" (2007) • "Autumnsong" (2007) • "Indian Summer" (2007)

Promos	"UK Channel Boredom" (1990) • "God Save The Manics EP" (2005) • " Underdogs" (2007) • "Ghost Of Christmas" (2007)

Other releases	"Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head" (1995) • "Know Our B-Sides" (2001) • Leviathan" (2005) • "The Instrumental" (2006) • "Umbrella" (2008)

Compilation albums	"Forever Delayed" (2002) • "Lipstick Traces" (2003)

Box Sets	"Six Singles from Generation Terrorists" (1997)

Videos	"Everything Live" (1997) • "Leaving the 20th Century" (2000) • "Louder Than War" (2001) • "Forever Delayed" (2002)

Official book	"Forever Delayed" (2002)

Related articles	Manic Street Preachers Discography Manic Street Preachers B-sides