The Marvelettes - Please Mr. Postman (Classic R&B US 1961)

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Please Mr. Postman is the 1961 debut LP from Motown girl group The Marvelettes and the sixth album ever released by the company. The focal track is the number-one hit single, "Please Mr. Postman". It notably features cover versions of label mates The Miracles' "Way Over There and "I Want a Guy", which was the debut single for fellow Motown girl group The Supremes the same year, and their cover had served as the b-side to "Twistin' Postman" the less successful follow-up to "Please Mr. Postman." Although the original version by The Supremes flopped, The Marvelettes' cover became a regional hit.

Other songs on the album include "Oh I Apologize", produced by Smokey Robinson, who would produce much of the group's later material, and "Angel," an early lead for Wanda Young who would later take Gladys Horton's place as the group's main lead singer.

The album art for "Please Mr. Postman" did not contain any images of The Marvelettes, due to the fact that including African-American artists on album covers did not become customary until around 1963.

Please Mr. Postman received mainly negative reviews as it was believed to have been "too rushed" so that the focal track's success could be capitalized. All of the tracks from the album can be found on the Hip-O Select deluxe compilation CD Forever: The Complete Motown Albums.

"Please Mr. Postman" is the debut single by The Marvelettes for the Tamla (Motown) label, notable as the first Motown song to reach the number-one position on the Billboard Hot 100 pop singles chart. The single achieved this position in late 1961; it hit number one on the R&B chart as well.[1] "Please Mr. Postman" became a number-one hit again in early 1975 when The Carpenters' cover of the song reached the top position of the Billboard Hot 100.

In April 1961, the Marvelettes (then known as "The Marvels") arranged an audition for Berry Gordy's Tamla/Motown label. Marvels member Georgia Dobbins needed an original song for their audition, and got a blues song from her friend William Garrett, which she then reworked for the group. Dobbins left the group after the audition and was replaced, Gordy renamed the group and hired "Brianbert"—Brian Holland and Robert Bateman's songwriting partnership—to rework the song yet again. Freddie Gorman, another songwriting partner of Holland (before Holland became part of the Holland–Dozier–Holland team) was also involved in the final reworking.

The Marvelettes recording features lead singer Gladys Horton hoping that the postman has brought her a letter from her boyfriend, who is away at war. Accompaniment is provided by The Funk Brothers, including Marvin Gaye on drums.

Songwriting credits for "Please Mr. Postman" seem to have changed over the years. The original Tamla 45 single for the Marvelettes' version credits "Dobbins/Garett/Brianbert" as the songwriters, and credits "Brianbert" as producer. The original With the Beatles album cover credited it to just Brian Holland. The 1976 Beatles discography book All Together Now credits it to Holland, Bateman, and Berry Gordy. The 1992 Motown boxed set Hitsville USA: The Motown Singles Collection credits Dobbins, Garrett, Holland, Bateman, and Gorman as the composers. The Songwriters Hall of Fame credits "Please Mr. Postman" to just Holland, Bateman, and Gorman. EMI Music Publishing, the current music publisher of the song list all five writers in their catalog.

UK Label 1961

"Please Mr. Postman" has been covered frequently, including a version by The Beatles on their With the Beatles album. Sung by John Lennon, their version reverses the genders. The Marvelettes' version appears in a bar fight scene in Mean Streets (1973), directed by Martin Scorsese. Later, a second hit version was recorded by The Carpenters, whose version took the song again to number one on the Hot 100 in early 1975. The Pat Boone Family released their version of the song at approximately the same time, resulting in both versions appearing simultaneously on the South African Hit Parade. The Carpenters' cover version was also sampled by rapper Juelz Santana for his single "Oh Yes". It is used by the Rob, Arnie and Dawn Show to introduce their Listener Mail segment, and was sung by the presenters of British Saturday morning show SMTV Live to introduce the mailbag section.

The Beatles included "Please Mister Postman" as part of their live act in 1962, performing it regularly at the Cavern Club. By the time it was recorded for their second album, With The Beatles, it had been dropped from their set, and required some work in the studio to bring it up to an acceptable standard. Ian MacDonald criticised their version for having a "wall of sound" and for a "general airlessness."[Wikipedia]

01."Angel" (Sonny Sanders, Robert Bateman) 
02."I Want a Guy" (Brian Holland, Freddie Gorman, Berry Gordy) 
03."Please Mr. Postman" (Georgia Dobbins, William Garrett, Freddie Gorman, Brian Holland, Robert Bateman) 
04."So Long Baby" (Robert Bateman) 
05."I Know How It Feels" (Janie Bradford, Robert Bateman, Richard Wylie) 
06."Way Over There" (Berry Gordy, William Robinson) 
07."Happy Days" (Berry Gordy) 
08."You Don't Want Me No More" (Berry Gordy) 
09."All The Love I Got" (Berry Gordy, Janie Bradford) 
10."Whisper" (Berry Gordy, Marv Johnson) 
11."Oh I Apologize" (Berry Gordy, William Robinson) 

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