William “Smokey” Robinson is a man whose work is synonymous with love – undying love, unrequited love, passionate love—and whose name is synonymous with Motown Records, as leader of the Miracles, as a solo artist, as a songwriter, as a producer and, along with Berry Gordy Jr., as a founding father of the company.

In fact, it was the Miracles’ “Shop Around” that established Motown’s Tamla label. After leasing previous singles to larger labels for distribution, Gordy decided to do it himself in 1959 with the Miracles’ “Way Over There,” which was a modest hit, selling to the tune of 60,000 records.