Motown's Frank Wilson wrote and produced hit records for
such big names as the Supremes and the Temptations, but he was best known for a
single recorded in Los Angeles that featured his own voice — and was never released.
Copies of his "Do I Love You (Indeed I Do)" had
already been pressed in 1965 when Motown founder Berry Gordy asked him to
choose between being a performer or writer-producer, Wilson's family said. When
he decided on the latter, almost all of the singles were destroyed.
After the record mysteriously jumped across the Atlantic in
the 1970s, it became an underground sensation in Britain and a prized
collectible: A rare copy of "Do I Love You" sold in 2009 for $39,294,
making it the most expensive music single sold at auction, according to
Guinness World Records.
Wilson, who left Motown in the late 1970s to become a
minister, died Thursday at City of Hope in Duarte. The Pasadena resident was
71, according to a story at LATimes.com.
The cause was complications from a lung infection, said a
daughter, Tracey Stein. He was diagnosed with prostate cancer several years
ago.
He joined Motown in 1964 soon after the Detroit-based record
label opened a West Coast office in Los Angeles and helped produce a hit that
year for Stevie Wonder, "Castles in the Sand."
The long list of popular songs that Wilson either wrote or
co-wrote includes the 1968 hits "Love Child" for Diana Ross and the
Supremes, "Chained" for Marvin Gaye and "All I Need" for
the Temptations. After Eddie Kendricks left the Temptations, Wilson produced
"Keep On Truckin' (Part 1)," which reached No. 1 on the Billboard pop
charts in 1973.
Wilson also helped write "You've Made Me So Very
Happy," a 1967 Top 40 single for Motown's Brenda Holloway that soon became
an even bigger hit for Blood, Sweat and Tears.
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